Gold Medal-winning U.S. gymnast Aly Raisman criticized both USA Gymnastics and the USOC for their "response to the sport’s sexual abuse crisis, saying she feels as if they’re more concerned about sweeping it under the rug or protecting themselves legally than making sure it never happens again," according to Nancy Armour of USA TODAY. Raisman said that revelations of "widespread abuse by longtime team physician Larry Nassar and the reaction by the governing bodies has colored how she views her sport." Raisman: “The people at the very top, that work at the office every single day at USA Gymnastics, they need to do better. It’s making me sad. ... I don’t support how USA Gymnastics is handling everything right now." She added, "It doesn’t matter if you’re the Olympic champion or you’re an 8-year-old that goes to gymnastics in Ohio, or wherever you are in the United States. Every single kid is important, and I want USA Gymnastics to do a better job with that.” Raisman said she would like a "little more accountability from USA Gymnastics and the USOC." She said, "I feel like there's a lot of articles about it, but nobody has said, ‘This is horrible. This is what we're doing to to change'" (USA TODAY, 8/21). The AP's Will Graves noted Raisman, who was "around Nassar regularly at the team's training facility in Texas and at meets around the globe, declined to talk about whether she was treated improperly" by him. She did "agree to speak more generally, calling Nassar 'a monster." While USA Gymnastics is "taking steps toward creating a safer environment for its athletes," Raisman "doesn't believe it is doing nearly enough openly enough." She added that she feels USAG is "trying to get on with business as usual" (AP, 8/20).
