USOC fires performance chief
Cites official’s silence in Nassar abuse scandal
U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland fired USOC chief of sport performance Alan Ashley on Monday morning after she was made aware of the contents of the Ropes & Gray report revealing that he failed to take action for 13½ months after learning about sexual abuse allegations against Larry Nassar.
“I made the determination late yesterday evening that our organization simply could not be successful going forward with Alan in the important leadership role he was in and thus first thing this morning, we terminated Alan’s employment,” Hirshland said. “I was very specifically briefed on the report contents as it related to Alan Ashley in particular, and upon reviewing those components and those findings, I made the determination that we needed to take the action we took.”
Ashley, whose high-profile presence within the USOC was highlighted in February with his appearance on stage at the organization’s closing news conference at the Olympics, oversaw the USOC’s divisions that provide resources and support to the national governing bodies and top athletes competing internationally. The support includes funding services in the areas of coaching, sport science, sports medicine and on-site operations in support of performance at the Olympics.
Like many top executives, Ashley earned bonuses based on the performance of American athletes at the Olympics. According to the organization’s 990 tax forms, his compensation ranged from $426,000 to $459,000 annually from 2014-16. The USOC paid Ashley $720,000 in 2017, making him the organization’s second-highest paid employee.
The law firm Ropes & Gray was hired in February by the USOC to investigate when USA Gymnastics and USOC officials first became aware of evidence of Nassar’s abuse and what they did with that information. It reviewed more than 1.3 million documents and interviewed more than 100 people, including gymnasts and employees and board members of the USOC, USAG and the U.S. Center for SafeSport.