Gymnastics

A judge sentenced former Michigan State head gymnastics coach Kathie Klages to 90 days in jail after she was found guilty of lying to investigators about her knowledge of abuse committed by Larry Nassar, according to the Associated Press' Anna Liz Nichols.

Nassar pleaded guilty to multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct in January 2018. More than 150 women and girls had testified during his trial that he sexually abused them while he worked as a doctor for Michigan State and USA Gymnastics.

Larissa Boyce testified in February that she approached Klages in 1997 to discuss abuse she had suffered, only to have Klages dismiss the claims, per MLive.com's Gus Burns (warning: contains graphic language):

"'I was 16,' Boyce testified. 'I remember telling Kathie (Klages) that Larry was sticking his fingers inside of me and it felt like he was fingering me.'

"Klages didn't call Boyce’s parents, Klages didn't report Nassar to the university and Klages didn't call police, Boyce testified.

"Instead, Klages 'berated' Boyce and made her feel like she was 'crazy' and a 'liar,' Boyce testified. To support her claims, Boyce said she brought up another gymnast, a then-14-year-old family friend in the same summer program, who'd also been abused by Nassar."

Klages said during the trial she didn't recall being alerted to allegations against Nassar, something she had also told authorities in June 2018. Days after Boyce's testimony, a jury determined that Klages had lied and thus impeded the investigation into Nassar.

Judge Joyce Draganchuk added during her ruling that Klages' actions "not only thwarted an investigation, but it also impacted two victims of sexual assault," per ESPN's Dan Murphy and John Barr. Draganchuk went on to say the latter offense "is far greater and more serious" that the consequences she created for the investigation.

Former Michigan State President Lou Anna K. Simon was also accused of lying to police but had the charges dismissed in May. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed an appeal of the ruling in July.

Former Michigan State dean William Strampel was also sentenced to one year in jail after he was found guilty of misconduct in office and willful neglect of duty.

Former United States Gymnastics coach Terry Gray has been arrested on 14 charges of lewdness with a child under the age of 14. 

Per Scott M. Reid of the Orange County Register, Gray was arrested in Las Vegas on Friday night. Reid noted "there are at least three alleged victims," with all charges alleged to have taken place at Brown's Gymnastics in Las Vegas.

Last October, Reid reported that Gray was a major focus of a United States Senate hearing from July 2018 after it was revealed he continued to work with young athletes at a gymnastics club in Temecula, California, despite the fact that he was listed on USA Gymnastics' suspension list and under investigation for alleged sexual misconduct with a minor. 

Per USA Gymnastics' official website, Gray is currently serving a two-year suspension through Oct. 18, 2021, that prohibits him from having "any contact with any USA Gymnastics-sanctioned event, member club, professional member or athlete involved with USA Gymnastics member clubs or events."

According to Reid, Gray is scheduled to have a court appearance in Las Vegas on Monday. 

The official trailer for the Netflix documentary Athlete A, which covers the USA Gymnastics sexual abuse scandal from the perspective of its hundreds of survivors and the Indianapolis Star journalists who broke the news, has been released to the public, per People magazine's Lindsay Kimble:

Marisa Kwiatkowski, Mark Alesia, Tim Evans, Steve Berta and Robert Scheer of the Indianapolis Star reported on sexual abuse within USA Gymnastics beginning with an August 4, 2016, piece that soon developed into a multiyear investigation.

The Indianapolis Star group notably uncovered allegations against ex-USA Gymnastics and Michigan State team doctor Larry Nassar, who has since been accused of sexual abuse by around 500 women and girls, per Catherine Shaffer of Michigan Radio. Nassar was sentenced to 40-125 years in federal prison in February 2018. 

Rachael Denhollander, who shared her story with the Indianapolis Star and was the first person to publicly accuse Nassar of sexual abuse, is featured in the documentary along with ex-NCAA gymnast Maggie Nichols and Olympic bronze medalist Jamie Dantzscher. 

Denhollander, a lawyer and author who was named as one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in 2018, won the Arthur Ashe Courage Award with other survivors at the 2018 ESPYs.

The documentary will be available on Netflix beginning next Wednesday, June 24.

More than 120 victims of Larry Nassar, including Simone Biles and Aly Raisman, signed a letter asking the Department of Justice for the release of an investigation into the FBI's handling of allegations against the former USA Gymnastics doctor.

Per Sarah Fitzpatrick and Lisa Cavazuti of NBC News, the letter asks:

"Why is the Justice Department sitting on this report? We do not want it withheld and then have authorities claim they cannot indict and prosecute the people involved in criminal conduct because the statute of limitations has expired.

"It is important for our healing for all the facts to come out and for wrongdoers to be held accountable. It is also important to maintain public confidence in our federal law enforcement agencies by exposing the truth and initiating reforms so that this never happens again."

A spokesperson for the inspector general says the DOJ is conducting an investigation into the FBI's handling of the case and would make the findings public when that investigation is concluded. The investigation has been ongoing since 2018.

USA Gymnastics first learned about Nassar's conduct in June 2015 but waited nearly five weeks before alerting the FBI. Nassar continued to serve as the doctor for USA Gymnastics for more than a year after the FBI and USA Gymnastics found out about the allegations.

Per the NBC News report, "Dozens of young athletes said Nassar abused them in the period between the first report to the FBI in July 2015 and his arrest by local authorities in November 2016."

A 2019 congressional report says the FBI, Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics "had opportunities to stop Nassar but failed to do so."

Nassar pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of 10 minors in 2018 and was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison. 

United States star gymnast Simone Biles has identified herself as one of the plaintiffs suing USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, according to John Barr and Dan Murphy of ESPN. 

She joined Madison Kocian, Aly Raisman, McKayla Maroney, Kyla Ross, Jordyn Wieber, Jamie Dantzscher and "some 140 other sexual assault victims of disgraced Team USA doctor Larry Nassar" in filing a motion "seeking the testimony of current and former Olympic officials."

In 2018, Biles said in a public statement she was one of the women sexually assaulted by Nassar:

"Let's be clear—they knew Larry Nassar was a child molester and they never told Ms. Biles," John Manly, Biles' attorney, told Scott M. Reid of the Orange County Register. "She didn't find out until 14 months after they were told and that this had all gone down. Her parents weren't notified."

According to Barr and Murphy, the plaintiffs are seeking testimony from a number of current and former USOPC officials, including current chair Susanne Lyons, former CEO Scott Blackmun and former chief of sport performance Alan Ashley.

"Neither Mr. Blackmun nor Mr. Ashley engaged with USAG on the reported concerns, shared the information with others at the USOC, or took any other action in response to the information from Mr. Penny to ensure that responsible steps were being taken by USAG and the USOC to protect athletes," a report from Boston-based law firm Ropes & Gray stated.

USA Gymnastics had previously offered the survivors a $215 million settlement, though it included the caveat that the plaintiffs agree to not hold the USOPC financially responsible for any future compensation claims for Nassar survivors and would protect USOPC officials and former officials from having to testify in future court depositions. 

That settlement and its stipulations were rejected. 

"The intent is to shield the survivors, court and public from the truth regarding what USOPC knew about the sexual abuse of its athletes," Monday's court filing said.

A Michigan judge dismissed charges against former Michigan State president Lou Anna Simon stemming from the Larry Nassar case.

Per Ed White of the Associated Press, Eaton County Judge John Maurer dismissed charges that Simon lied to police about her knowledge of a sexual misconduct complaint filed against Nassar when he worked at Michigan State. 

Per Dave Eggert of the Associated Press, Simon was formally charged in November 2018 after being accused of making two false and misleading statements to police. 

Eggert noted Simon said she was unaware of a sexual misconduct complaint that led to the school's Title IX investigation into Nassar. 

According to court records obtained by Matt Mencarini and Kara Berg of the Lansing State Journal, Simon had a meeting with the head of the school's Title IX office four days after a woman told a Michigan State investigator she was sexually assaulted by Nassar. 

Simon told authorities that she didn't know about the nature of the complaints against Nassar or the Title IX investigation until 2016. 

"'The prosecution did not provide evidence sufficient to give a reasonable person probable cause to believe that Dr. Simon knew during her 2018 interview that her purported knowledge in 2014 of Dr. Nassar's name and the 'nature' and 'substance' of the complaint against him' were relevant to the 2018 investigation, Maurer said of his decision to dismiss the charges," per White.

Nassar, who worked as a team physician at Michigan State and team doctor for USA Gymnastics, is serving a minimum of 100 years in prison after being found guilty of criminal sexual conduct in two cases and child pornography in a third case. 

Simon resigned as Michigan State's president in January 2018 amid backlash for her handling of the Nassar scandal.

USA Gymnastics announced Tuesday that all premier events scheduled for 2020 have been postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

"In light of recent guidance from health experts, and after receiving feedback from our athletes and coaches, we believe it is in the best interest of our community to wait until 2021 to hold premier events," CEO Li Li Leung said in a statement. 

The delayed events include the GK U.S. Classic as well as the U.S. Gymnastics Championships for artistic gymnastics as well as rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline and tumbling and acrobatic gymnastics.

The U.S. Gymnastics Championships were originally set for June 4-7, 2020 but will be moved to June 3-6, 2021.

The changes align with the Summer Olympics, which were postponed from this summer to July 2021 because of COVID-19. Gymnastics superstar Simone Biles agreed with the International Olympic Committee's move.

"I cried," Biles said, per Liz Clarke of the Washington Post. "But ultimately it was the right decision. We need to make sure that everyone in the U.S. and around the world is healthy and safe."

The 23-year-old did add that "dealing with USAG another year" is a negative, but she will stick it out to compete for more gold medals.

Biles would be the heavy favorite to win the female all-around title if she competes after winning the United States championship in six of the last seven years. She has 19 gold medals at the world championships, the most in gymnastics history.

Fans will now have to wait another year to see her in action at a premier event.

Former USA Olympic and national team gymnastics coach Maggie Haney, who coached 2016 Olympic gold medalist Laurie Hernandez and 2018 world champion Riley McCusker, has been suspended eight years for verbal and emotional abuse, per Scott M. Reid of the Orange County Register.

USA Gymnastics outlined the remainder of the punishment:

"The hearing panel determined that Ms. Haney is suspended from membership, and any coaching of USA Gymnastics athletes or in member clubs, for a period of eight years, effective immediately, followed by a two year probationary period. After the suspension concludes, Ms. Haney may reapply for membership after submitting proof of completing certain specified Safe Sport courses."

A USA Gymnastics hearing panel wrote that Haney failed "to provide a safe, positive and healthy environment with a culture of trust and empowerment." They further ruled that Haney "engaged in severe aggressive behavior toward a minor that included teasing and ridiculing that was intended to control and diminish another person."

Per Reid, two months of hearings regarding Haney occurred. Hernandez testified against Haney, and McCusker wrote the panel a letter criticizing her ex-coach.

Haney, who has not responded to comment requests from the Orange Country Register, is expected to appeal. Her attorney, Russell Prince, released the following remarks:

"The ruling is regrettable but in no way surprising considering the heavy-handed nature of the investigative and hearing process. There is no fundamental fairness to the manner in which these matters are resolved. Clearly, I would anticipate an arbitration."

Julie Sanders, an attorney for Hernandez and others, stated that the ruling reveals "that these are children, even if they're an elite athlete and the coach doesn't possess the athlete, they're not something to be controlled by the coach."

Haney is the head coach at MG Elite Gymnastics in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, where she coached both Hernandez and McCusker.

In addition, the spotlight on USA Gymnastics has elicited concerns about coaches over the past three decades, with Reid writing the following:

"The Haney case raised further questions about a generation of American coaches that came of age in the so called Karolyi Era, a period through the late 1990s to 2016 that saw both unprecedented U.S. Olympic and World Championships success under national team directors Bela and Martha Karolyi and the creation of a culture abuse that left young gymnasts vulnerable to predatory coaches, physicians and officials."

Intense scrutiny on the USA Gymnastics program has also occurred largely because of former team doctor Larry Nassar, who pled guilty to seven counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with children under the age of 16. Over 150 women and girls testified against Nassar in court.

Survivors are suing USA Gymnastics, and gymnasts such as gold medalists Simone Biles and Aly Raisman have demanded an independent investigation exploring why Nassar's acts could occur within the organization.

Leave it to one of the most iconic U.S. Olympic athletes to take a fun viral challenge to the next level.

Gymnast Simone Biles gave the Handstand Challenge her best shot Saturday and came away the clear winner. While holding herself upright for nearly a minute with her legs in the air, the four-time Olympic gold medalist used her feet to take off her sweatpants.

Biles' upper-body and core strength has always been awe-inspiring. This is just the latest example.

While other celebrities like Jake Gyllenhaal and Tom Holland had to balance themselves against a wall to put a shirt on, Biles relied only on herself and one-upped them both.

Not even Spider-Man could balance as well as Biles.

It might not be an Olympic medal, but Biles definitely won this social media challenge. Everyone else, as usual with her, is competing for second place.

Four-time Olympic gold medalist and 19-time World Championship gold medalist Simone Biles called on USA Gymnastics once again to hold an independent investigation into former Team USA doctor Larry Nassar.

Biles' remarks came after the USA Gymnastics Twitter account wished her a happy birthday (albeit by accidentally tagging a Biles fan account).

The Spring, Texas, native then issued this response (h/t Nick Schwartz of For The Win):

Nassar was sentenced to 40-175 years in prison after pleading guilty to seven counts of criminal sexual conduct in Ingham County (Michigan) Circuit Court, per Eric Levenson of CNN.com.

A total of 156 women and girls spoke out in court and said Nassar sexually assaulted them.

USA Gymnastics has offered survivors a $215 million settlement, a decision that three-time Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman called "offensive" to NBC News' Stephanie Gosk.

Per Scott Gleeson of USA Today, the settlement would absolve "former USA Gymnastics CEO Steve Penny, former national team coordinators Martha and Béla Károlyi, and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee" from liability.

Biles also noted on Feb. 29 that she hoped USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee would hold the investigation:

In addition, Louise Radnofsky of the Wall Street Journal reported that USA Gymnastics did not inform Biles that the organization was investigating concerns about Nassar.

USA Gymnastics is also attempting to declare bankruptcy, a move that the survivors are asking a U.S. bankruptcy judge to dismiss, per Radnofsky.