Vile Sydney tennis coach jailed for sexually touching student

A Sydney tennis coach who manipulated a young student into sexually touching him has learned his fate in court on Thursday afternoon.

A perverted former Sydney tennis coach who manipulated a young student into vile abuse and sexual touching under the ruse of naked “massages” has been jailed for at least four years and three months.

Ray Younan learned his fate on Thursday afternoon as Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court heard how he manipulated his young victim through threats and coercion.

He was sentenced for a string of offences against a former young student during trips to tennis tournaments across NSW.

The court heard that his victim was between 11 and 12-years-old at the time and how he isolated her by arranging to have them share a bed in a hotel room during the trips.

The girl’s parents paid him $12,000 to coach her and look after her during the trips, which Judge Kara Shead described as an “egregious” breach of trust.

She said he exploited her for his own sexual gratification and there was no reason to give her the so-called massages, nor was there any reason for the victim to be naked.

The 73-year-old last year pleaded guilty to 17 charges including 10 counts of sexual touching a child between 10 and 16 years old as well as seven counts of inciting a child to sexually touch.

“I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that there was no legitimate or therapeutic reason for the offender to touch or massage the victim to her breasts or genital area,” Judge Shead said.

“Nor did she have injuries to those areas.

“The massages the offender did were ultimately sexual in nature. I find they were performed in furtherance of the offender’s depraved desire for sexual gratification.”

Ray Younan on Thursday learned his fate in Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court.

The offending against the young victim began when Younan, the victim and another young player travelled to a tournament.

At their accommodation, he manipulated the situation so that she would share a room with him.

Younan told the other child to go to McDonald’s to get food and the victim to lie on a towel on the bed to give her a massage.

He told her to strip off and used baby oil to massage her chest and groin.

Over the next several months at several more tournaments in different cities and towns across NSW, he made the girl strip off in similar circumstances and forced her to endure similar abuse under the guise of massages.

He would sometimes strip naked during his offending, claiming it was so he did not get oil on his clothes, the court heard.

During one tournament in Cessnock, he stripped naked, climbed on top of and gave her a so-called “body massage” so that their stomachs rubbed against each other.

He also forced her to massage his penis, with Judge Shead finding that Younan had coerced the young girl into sexually touching him.

On one occasion he told her that if she did not massage his penis, he would stop coaching her.

He also made her believe that if she did not receive a massage, her muscles would tear and it would affect her ability to play the game she loved.

“This had the effect of threatening the victim. She believed she would not be able to play tennis if she did not comply and she might be injured,” Judge Shead said.

“This was a callous and meaningful manipulation designed to coerce the victim. The offender knew tennis was important to the victim and he used his authority to ensure she acceded to his demands.”

He made sick comments about the girl’s pubic hair and on one occasion forced her to kiss him, explaining it was “preparation for her match”.

Ray Younan was on Thursday sentenced to jail. Source: NSW Police

His offending was exposed when one of his other young students walked in when he had the victim on the bed.

The other young student told his parents, who in turn told the victim’s parents, who went to police.

When asked about what Younan had done, the young girl began crying and said she “did not know what he was doing was wrong”.

The court heard that after being arrested, he was held in prison on remand for 14 days, during which he was assaulted after a fellow prisoner had found out what he had been charged with.

In a victim impact statement, the girl reported being traumatised, frightened and confused by her abuse at Younan’s hand.

She said she felt helpless and was suffering nightmares ever since.

He was sentenced to six years and six months in jail, with a four-year, three-month non-parole period.

He will first be eligible for release in November 2026, with his full sentence to expire in February 2029.