Aly Raisman, one of the Olympic medalists who said she was sexually abused by former Team USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, is calling for an independent investigation into the USOC and USA Gymnastics.
Raisman tweeted a lengthy statement Monday night in reaction to three members of the USA Gymnastics board of directors resigning and the USOC's response.
Raisman called out the organization, saying the resignations are too little, too late and don't fix the heart of the problem — athletes have been abused and there are no checks and balances to keep such behavior from happening again. And, she writes, USAG isn't the only organization that failed.
"For the past week, survivors came forward to courageously face a perpetrator of evil and to share their painful stories," Raisman wrote. "Many of them, myself included, claim the USOC is also at fault. Was the USOC there to 'focus on supporting the brave survivors'? No. Did they issue any statement then? Crickets"
Chairman Paul Parilla, vice chairman Jay Binder and treasurer Bitsy Kelley resigned after several days of public criticism as women and girls read victim statements at the sentencing of Nassar at a court in Michigan on charges of criminal sexual conduct. And more than a year after the allegations first came to light.
USOC CEO Scott Blackmun issued this statement after the resignations were announced:
"Since October of last year, we have been engaged in discussions with leadership of USA Gymnastics about the primary recommendation of the Daniels Report — changing the culture at USA Gymnastics. Those discussions accelerated over the holidays and today you have seen three board resignations. New board leadership is necessary because the current leaders have been focused on establishing that they did nothing wrong. USA Gymnastics needs to focus on supporting the brave survivors. The Olympic family failed these athletes and we must continue to take every step necessary to ensure this never happens again."
Raisman is among several Olympic gymnasts who have come forward with their harrowing stories of abuse under Nassar's reign. Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney and Gabby Douglas also are among the more than 140 girls and women who have said Nassar sexually abused them.
Many believe the USOC and Michigan State, where Nassar also worked, share the blame and responsibility in allowing his behavior over decades.
Kerry Perry, who on Dec. 1 stepped in as the president and CEO of USA Gymnastics, said in a statement: “We support their decisions to resign at this time. We believe this step will allow us to more effectively move forward in implementing change within our organization.”
Nassar is expected to be sentenced Tuesday. He already has been sentenced to 60 years in federal prison on child pornography charges.
Here is Raisman's statement in its entirety:
"The Indy Star story broke on August 4, 2016, after survivors courageously came forward sharing stories of sexual abuse and alleging organizational mishandling. The next day, the USOC said they wouldn’t investigate (and even praised USAG’s work in the area of sexual abuse).
For the past week, survivors came forward to courageously face a perpetrator of evil and to share their painful stories. Many of them, myself included, claim the USOC is also at fault. Was the USOC there to "focus on supporting the brave survivors"? No. Did they issue any statement then? Crickets ....
Over the weekend, the USOC released a statement shamelessly taking credit for a few USAG resignations (note: not fired), as though they’re addressing this problem. But they are still not acknowledging its own role in this mess. ZERO accountability! It’s like none of us were ever abused!
If the board members had to go because they “have been focused on establishing that they did nothing wrong,” then the USOC must see fault. So what was the fault? And why just those three board members? How about the others, who either allowed them to do whatever they did wrong, or were so oblivious they didn’t know it was happening? Either way, these — and any other changes — won’t matter, until we know exactly what happened. Suggesting otherwise is dangerous to athletes.
INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION!
What’s it going take for you to do the right thing?"
