US gymnast: Team doctor abused me
FORMER Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney has said she was sexually abused by her team doctor from the age of 13.
The American athlete said the abuse continued throughout her competitive career, including during the 2012 London Games when she won a team gold and an individual silver medal.
Miss Maroney, now 21, who retired last year after a series of injuries, said she chose to speak out after thousands of women shared their experiences of sexual harassment and assault on social media using the MeToo hashtag in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
She accused USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar of molesting her for years under the pretence of ‘medically necessary treatment’ for injuries and muscle strains. In a Twitter post, she wrote: ‘It started when I was 13 years old, at one of my first National Team training camps, in Texas, and it didn’t end until I left the sport.
‘It seemed whenever and wherever this man could find the chance, I was “treated”. It happened in London before my team and I won the gold medal, and it happened before I won my silver. For me, the scariest night of my life happened when I was 15 years old. I had flown all day and night with the team to get to Tokyo.
‘He’d given me a sleeping pill for the flight, and the next thing I know, I was all alone with him in his hotel room getting a “treatment”. I thought I was going to die that night.’
Miss Maroney added: ‘People should know that this is not just happening in Hollywood. This is happening everywhere. Wherever there is a position of power, there seems to be potential for abuse. I had a dream to go to the Olympics, and the things that I had to endure to get there were unnecessary and disgusting … I did it. I got there, but not without a price.’
Nassar, 53, worked for the US women’s gymnastics team for three decades and is awaiting trial over allegations he sexually molested girls, including nine gymnasts. He denies the charges, but has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography and is awaiting sentencing. He is also being sued in the civil courts by more than 125 women for alleged abuse.