Olympian McKayla Maroney Claims Team Doctor ‘Molested’ Her For Years
Oct. 18 2017, Published 12:43 p.m. ET
Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney has spoken out about being sexually abused by her team doctor since the age of 13. The now retired 21-year-old gymnast claimed that at one point she found herself alone in his hotel room thinking she was going to die!
"I was molested by Dr. Larry Nassar, the team doctor for the US Women's National Gymnastics Team, and Olympic Team," Maroney wrote on Twitter. "Dr. Nassar told me that I was receiving 'medically necessary treatment that he had been performing on patients for over 30 years.'"
She said the abuse started when he was just 13 and went on for 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. It seemed whenever and wherever this man could find the chance, I was 'treated.' It happened in London before my team and I won the gold medal, and it happened before I won my Silver," continued the athlete.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Dr. Nassar has been put under fire before, by other Olympic athletes who claimed he touched them "funny" and often put his bare hands inside their vaginas for no apparent reason.
Added Maroney: "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 was going to die that night."
The former gymnasts' accusations come after the #MeToo campaign against sexual assault went viral on social media. It also comes at the heels of the explosive Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct scandal.
Referencing the Weinstein Hollywood scandal, Maroney said: "People should know that this is not just happening in Hollywood," McKayla continued. "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."
After being previously accused of inappropriately touching his patients, Dr, Nassar plead guilty to child pornography possession. He also faces 33 charges of criminal sexual conduct for alleged assaults to his athlete patients.
Ever since July of this year, over 100 former teen patients filed lawsuits claiming they were abused by the troubled doctor. One victim claimed that she was reluctant to complain or speak out because he was such a "high-profile" physician.
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