U.S. Olympics knew of Larry Nassar allegations in 2015: report
The U.S. Olympic Committee learned about sexual abuse allegations against disgraced USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar a year before the accusations were made public, according to a new report.
The former president of United States Gymnastics in 2015 allegedly informed two top officials about an internal probe that had uncovered possible criminal behavior from Nassar against young Olympic athletes, the Wall Street Journal reported.
It’s unclear why the USOC, a recently vocal critic of USAG, did not intervene in the matter before the allegations were made public in September 2016.
The news comes hours before a press conference in Meridian Township during which local officials intend to apologize to Brianne Randall-Gay, who reported Nassar after an "uncomfortable" appointment in 2004.
Randall-Gay was 17 when she and her mother first visited Nassar to discuss treatment options for back pain stemming from scoliosis — but when the teen returned for a follow-up appointment several months later, her mother was not with her, according to a newly released police report.
Randall-Gay told authorities during her second exam, Nassar touched her vagina and fondled her breast with his bare hands.
The ex-doctor, armed with a powerpoint presentation citing medical journals, convinced authorities what he'd done to Randall-Gay was a legitimate procedure.
Meridian Township police later informed Randall-Gay and her mother they "would be closing the case with no prosecution being sought, due to the facts presented to me by Dr. Larry Nassar."
In the years since, more than 200 women have come forward with similar allegations against Nassar, many recalling how he would abuse them under the guise of treatment.
Randall-Gay joined more than 100 other abuse survivors last month to address Nassar in a marathon sentencing hearing that culminated in a judge handing the ex-doctor up to 175 years in jail.
Olympic medalists Aly Raisman, McKayla Maroney and dozens of other elite athletes faced Nassar and called out the entities — including Michigan State University, United States Gymnastics, and the United States Olympic Committee — that allowed the abuse to continue.
Following the high-profile hearing, USOC demanded the entire United States Gymnastics Board resign. Each of them had stepped down by Wednesday.
The USOC declined to comment on its communications with USAG. Spokesman Mark Jones in a statement to the Journal reiterated its commitment to completing an “independent investigation into the decades-long abuse by Larry Nassar to determine what complaints were made, when, to whom, and what was done in response.”
Nassar in December was separately sentenced to 60 years in a federal prison on child porn charges.
He’s facing another sentencing hearing yet for molesting gymnasts at a Lansing-area gymnastics club, which was run by 2012 Olympic coach John Geddert.
