The open letter, which was published on Monday, has been signed by a total of 70 Canadian gymnasts at national team level.
In the letter, the gymnasts talk about the emotional, physical and sexual abuse of Canadian coaches.
Many of the athletes are said to have been exposed as minors.
The gymnasts also write that the fear of revenge and punishment prevented them from daring to talk about the "toxic culture and ill-treatment" that exists in the sport.
The union: "We are part of the solution"
The board of the Canadian Gymnastics Association supports the gymnasts in the open letter, according to the news agency Reuters.
"We agree with the signatories to the letter that we are part of the solution to create a positive cultural change in Canada and also globally," the union wrote in a statement.
The Canadian Gymnastics Federation acknowledges the need for a better system that makes it easier to report abuse and other misconduct.
They also agree with the gymnasts, who demand an independent investigation, that an investigation is necessary and that the association needs to strengthen its work to create an environment where everyone thrives.
"To achieve this, we will continue our work with our national counterparts in sport, with our international body and with other countries to bring about a change of attitude in sport."
There are gaps in the handling
In addition, the association writes that more work needs to be done to ensure safety in sports and that it is obvious that there are gaps in the handling of safe sports.
"Gymnastics has been the subject of many independent reviews of misconduct and abusive behavior, which first emerged both through the criminal justice system but also through the voices of brave individuals," the union writes.
"Gymnastics in Canada is not immune to these issues and the Canadian Federation has addressed every complaint that has come to us."
CLIP: The researcher: Abuse in gymnastics a global problem (March 3, 2022)
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The researcher explains: why there is abuse in gymnastics Photo: SVT