The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said on Friday it was cooperating with government inquires after it was reported US agencies were conducting a widespread investigation into US Olympic sport organizations.
The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the investigations, reported the US Justice Department is pursuing multiple wide criminal investigations into sexual abuse in US Olympic sports organizations and into potential financial and business misconduct throughout the US Olympic system.
The inquiries come in the wake of the sexual abuse case against former national gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar and include not only the USOPC but USA Gymnastics, USA Taekwondo and other organizations, the Journal said.
Nassar, 55, was given an effective life sentence by a Michigan court for sexually abusing young female gymnasts entrusted to his care. He is also serving a 60-year sentence for a federal child pornography conviction.
The USOPC declined, in a late afternoon teleconference, to comment on the report beyond reading a prepared statement.
"Every instance related to potential or actual abuse of athletes warrants thorough investigation," spokesperson Mark Jones said. "We have cooperated with all government inquiries and will continue to do so."
Jones added if there were inquiries on the call, "you will receive the same answer."
The Journal reported that federal prosecutors have spoken with potential witnesses about alleged abuse and misconduct in Olympic sports organizations, including USA Gymnastics and USA Taekwondo.
One focus of the investigation appeared to be on failures in the Olympic system to respond to signs of widespread child abuse, the newspaper said.
It said prosecutors have already spoken with some witnesses and received documents from SafeSport in response to a grand jury subpoena.
The US Center for SafeSport is the organization formed in 2017 to handle sex-abuse cases in the Olympic world.
The newspaper also reported that USA Gymnastics said in bankruptcy filings that it has been responding to Justice Department subpoenas as recently as April.
In response to the report, US Senators Jerry Moran and Richard Blumenthal issued a joint statement.
"The US Olympic Committee and its affiliated national governing bodies enabled Larry Nassar by turning a blind eye to criminal conduct and then trying to sweep it under the rug.
"Everyone who allowed abuse to continue must be held responsible for any and all violations of the law."
USA Gymnastics said it "is striving to become an athlete-centric organization that keeps athlete safety and well-being at the forefront of everything it does."
It added USA Gymnastics has cooperated fully with any governmental investigation and will continue to do so in the future."
In a separate statement, USA Taekwondo said: "While we are limited in what we can say while legal proceedings move forward, we want to state clearly that above all else, our top priority at USA Taekwondo is the safety of our athletes."
source: news.abs-cbn.com
The enraged father of three daughters sexually abused by Larry Nassar lunged at the former USA Gymnastics national team doctor during a sentencing hearing in a Michigan courtroom on Friday. Court guards pinned him to the ground before he could attack Nassar.
The chaotic scene began after sisters Lauren and Madison Margraves had finished reading their victim statements on the second day of hearings at a court in Eaton County. Standing alongside his daughters and wife, Randall Margraves asked to speak.
"I would ask you as part of the sentencing to grant me five minutes in a locked room with this demon," he said, gesturing toward Nassar, who has already been sentenced to up to 175 years in prison at an earlier hearing after pleading guilty to molesting young women under the guise of medical treatment.
Judge Janice Cunningham told him he knew she could not do that, and chastised him for cursing after he called Nassar a son of a bitch. He asked for one minute alone instead. The judge demurred as some in the courtroom laughed uncomfortably.
Margraves then bolted towards Nassar, seated in an orange jump suit nearby. Gasps, cries and shouts filled the courtroom as Margraves was wrestled to the ground and put in handcuffs while Nassar was taken out to safety.
"What if this happened to you guys?" he implored of the court officers as they pulled him out the room.
Looking distressed, the lead prosecutor, Angela Povilaitis, turned to the victims and relatives in the courtroom and tried to restore calm.
"I understand Mr. Margraves' frustration but you cannot do this," she said. "This is not helping your children."
The hearing resumed after a short break, with the judge addressing what she called a "scary" scene.
"My heart started beating fast and my legs started shaking," Cunningham said. "We cannot react by using physical violence," she said, noting she could not imagine Margraves' pain as a father.
Nassar is also serving a 60-year federal term for child pornography convictions.
His case has sparked broader outrage after numerous victims accused USA Gymnastics, the sport's governing body, and Michigan State University, where Nassar worked, of failing to investigate complaints about him going back years. U.S. Olympic officials have also been criticized by some of the sport's biggest stars, including gold medalists Aly Raisman, Simone Biles and McKayla Maroney.
On Thursday, the police department in Meridian, Michigan, apologized publicly to one victim for declining to press charges against Nassar in 2004 when she reported that he abused her. The Wall Street Journal also said on Thursday that U.S. Olympic officials did not intervene after being told in 2015 that USA Gymnastics had uncovered possible abuse by Nassar.
USA Gymnastics' board of directors agreed to a demand by the U.S. Olympic Committee that they all resign in the wake of Nassar's sentencing, as did the president and athletic director of Michigan State. The scandal has prompted several investigations into those institutions. (Reporting by Joseph Ax and Jonathan Allen; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Andrew Hay)
source: news.abs-cbn.com
