Olympian McKayla Maroney Says She Was Molested By Gymnastics Team Doctor Larry Nassar

Olympic gold medalist McKayla Maroney has come forward as a victim of sexual misconduct at the hands of former USA gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar, who recently plead guilty to child pornography charges and has been accused of sexual assault by other women in the sport.

“Everyone’s words over the past few days have been so inspiring to me. I know how hard it is to speak publicly about something so horrible, and so personal, because it’s happened to me too,” McKayla wrote.

“People should know that this is not just happening in Hollywood. This is happening everywhere. Wherever there is a position of power, there seems to be potential for abuse. I had a dream to go to the Olympics, and the things that I had to endure to get there, were unnecessary, and disgusting,” she continued.

“I was molested by Dr. Larry Nassar, the team doctor for the US for the US Women’s National Gymnastics Team, and Olympic Team. Dr. Nassar told me that I was receiving ‘medically necessary treatment that he had been performing on patients for over 30 years.’ It started when I was 13 years old, at one of my first National Team training camps, in Texas, and it didn’t end until I left the sport,” McKayla wrote.

“For me, the scariest night of my life happened when I was 15 years old. I had flown all day and night with the team to get to Tokyo. He’d given me a sleeping pill for the flight, and the next thing I know, I was all alone with him in his hotel room getting a ‘treatment.’ I thought I was going to die that night,” she bravely continued.