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Olympics: Aly Raisman claims sexual abuse by Team USA doctor

By The Sports Xchange
Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman attends the 25th ESPYS at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles in July. Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman attends the 25th ESPYS at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles in July. Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman said she was sexually abused by former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, according to her upcoming interview on CBS' "60 Minutes."

Raisman, a six-time Olympic medalist and two-time national team captain, shared her story on the "60 Minutes" show scheduled to air Sunday, joining more than 130 other women who previously said the doctor sexually assaulted them.

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Raisman said she spoke to FBI investigators after serving as national team captain at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Nassar, who was involved with USA Gymnastics for nearly three decades as a trainer and national medical coordinator, already faces 22 counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and could receive a sentence of life in prison. He pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual assault but did plead guilty to federal child pornography charges and is in jail awaiting a Dec. 7 sentencing in that case.

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The 23-year-old Raisman said she was first treated by Nassar when she was 15. She details the abuse in her book "Fierce," which will be released next week.

In a television preview released Friday of the "60 Minutes" interview, Raisman said she didn't know why it took so long for allegations against Nassar to come forward.

"Why are we looking at why didn't the girls speak up? Why not look at what about the culture?" Raisman said. "What did USA Gymnastics do, and Larry Nassar do, to manipulate these girls so much that they are so afraid to speak up?"

Raisman hopes to transform the culture within the sport along with changes in leadership.

"I am angry," Raisman said in the CBS interview. "I'm really upset because it's been -- I care a lot you know, when I see these young girls that come up to me, and they ask for pictures or autographs, whatever it is, I just -- I can't -- every time I look at them, every time I see them smiling, I just think -- I just want to create change so that they never, ever have to go through this."

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Raisman is the second member of the U.S. women's gymnastics team to allege abuses by Nassar.

Last month, Raisman's teammate from the 2012 London Games, McKayla Maroney, alleged sexual abuse by Nassar dating back to 2009 when she was just 13.

Raisman spoke out in support of the 21-year-old Maroney, who posted her account online in October as part of the #MeToo campaign in the wake of sexual allegations mounting against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

In a statement to "60 Minutes," USA Gymnastics said it has made major changes since the Nassar scandal broke. The organization said it recently adopted a new "safe sport policy" that requires "mandatory reporting" of suspicions of sexual abuse and also sets standards to "prevent inappropriate interaction" between athletes and adults.

"USA Gymnastics is very sorry that any athlete has been harmed," the statement said. "We want to work with Aly and all interested athletes to keep athletes safe."

More than 140 women are suing Nassar and his former employer, Michigan State University. The plaintiffs also are suing USA Gymnastics.

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