Simone Biles testifies against team doctor Larry Nassar, says "system enabled abuse"
Simone Biles, a world-class gymnast, spoke before the Senate about her abuse at the hands of Larry Nassar, the accused former team doctor.
Former teammates Aly Raisman and McKayla Maroney, as well as FBI Director Christopher Wray, testified before the committee.
The committee is looking into the FBI's investigation of Nassar, who was later found guilty of sexually abusing young girls.
He is currently incarcerated for the rest of his life.
Ms Biles, the most decorated Olympic gymnast of all time, stated, "I blame Larry Nasser, and I also blame a whole system that enabled and perpetrated [sic] his abuse."
"The consequences will be fast and harsh if you allow a predator to hurt children," she added.
Maggie Nichols, a gymnast who was the first to report her abuse to USA Gymnastics, also testified.
The four women told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, September 15th, that they had "undergone and continue to suffer" as a result of the abuse they had suffered and its bungled handling.
Simone Biles, a four-time Olympic gold medalist and one of the most well-known athletes in the world, has called for federal prosecution of the agents implicated.
She inquired, "How much is a little girl worth?"
Aly Raisman, who captained the US Olympic gymnastics teams in 2012 and 2016, stated her displeasure that she was "still fighting for the most basic answers and accountability" six years after reporting her assault.
"It has become brutally evident over the last five years how the management of a survivor's abuse affects their healing," she testified.
She called the FBI inquiry "like guesswork," and warned that failing to solve its fundamental shortcomings will result in a "nightmare" for many more women.
McKayla Maroney, a gold medalist at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, characterized her FBI interview as filled with "silence and disrespect for my pain."
She told senators, "They chose to create, to lie about what I said, and to shield a serial child molester."
"What's the use of reporting abuse if our own FBI agents will bury the information in a drawer?"
More than 200 women submitted emotional impact statements to a court in 2018, documenting Larry Nassar's abuse as the sports doctor for the US women's national gymnastics team.
More than 330 women and girls at USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University have accused Nassar of sexual abuse.
A long-awaited report of the FBI's investigation, released in July, uncovered multiple blunders, delays, and cover-ups on the part of FBI investigators, allowing Nassar's abuse to continue for months after the case was originally started.
Despite the seriousness of the claims against Nassar, the FBI field office in Indianapolis was sluggish to respond, according to the 119-page report by the Department of Justice Inspector General.
Ms Maroney was the only young woman interviewed by the agency at first, and other young women who had come forward with their allegations were not.
When confronted with their shortcomings, two FBI agents lied during interviews to cover up their flaws, according to the study. One of those officials was fired last week, according to the FBI.
To those in attendance, FBI Director Christopher Wray sincerely apologized for the "reprehensible conduct" and "basic flaws" highlighted in the July report.
Mr Wray only became the agency's director in 2017, but he promised to avoid a repeat of the bungled case while in office.
He cited the dismissal of the supervising official implicated last week, while pointing out that the other official, who ran the Indianapolis field office, had resigned long before he could be reprimanded.
He agreed that both agents' actions "violated the FBI's long-standing code of conduct," but claimed that the great majority of his staff was "inconsistent."
Later on Wednesday, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki stated the president "supports" the FBI's recommended actions listed in the Department of Justice report during a press conference.
Despite being invited, the department was a "no-show" at the session, according to lawmakers and witnesses. Following the session, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal stated that the government still needs to respond to further questions.