Olympian Aly Raisman says US team doctor molested her
Six-time Olympic medalist Aly Raisman said that she was sexually abused by the US women’s gymnastics national team doctor.
Raisman, who is Jewish and is one of the most accomplished gymnasts in history, made the allegation against Dr. Larry Nassar in an interview scheduled to air on Sunday on the CBS news magazine 60 Minutes, as well as in her new book, Fierce.
She is the second member of the gold medal-winning 2012 Olympic women’s team to accuse Nassar of abuse, Time magazine’s online edition noted in an article published on Friday. In October, McKayla Maroney wrote on Twitter that Nassar molested her for years beginning when she was 13.
Nassar, who worked as a volunteer doctor for USA Gymnastics, is in jail awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to child pornography charges in Michigan.
Raisman, 23, was 15 when she was first treated by Nassar, according to Sports Illustrated. The magazine reported that details of her experience appear in her biography that will be published on Tuesday.
Nassar also is named in more than 100 lawsuits filed by gymnasts and athletes he treated while working with USA Gymnastics and at Michigan State University. Those suits claim he sexually abused athletes under the guise of medical treatment. Nassar resigned from USA Gymnastics in the summer of 2015.
In the CBS interview, Raisman says she spoke to FBI investigators about Nassar following the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, after an investigation by The Indianapolis Star revealed that USA Gymnastics had a policy of not disclosing sexual abuse reports unless they were filed by the victims or a parent. She won three medals at the Brazil games, including gold in the team overall competition.
Raisman – the nation’s second most decorated female Olympic gymnast, according to Time – is pushing for change at USA Gymnastics, the national governing body for the sport.
“I am angry,” she says in the interview. “I just want to create change so [that young girls] never, ever have to go through this.” USA Gymnastics, in a statement to 60 Minutes, said it has adopted new policies that require “mandatory reporting” of any potential abuse.
“USA Gymnastics is very sorry that any athlete has been harmed,” it wrote, adding that “we want to work with Aly and all interested athletes to keep athletes safe.”