Two US senators yesterday introduced legislation to prevent sexual assaults against athletes by increasing oversight and legal liability for US Olympic and sports officials following the Larry Nassar scandal.
The legislation was welcomed by former gymnasts and abuse survivors such as Jordyn Wieber, but drew a mixed response from the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), which said that it could cause operational “disruption” for athletes.
The bill followed an 18-month bipartisan investigation that found Nassar, the former team doctor for USA Gymnastics, was able to assault hundreds of girls and women because of a lack of transparency and accountability among US Olympic officials, coaches and trainers.
“This needs to empower and embolden the athletes, who should feel they can come forward without fear of retaliation and without intimidation,” Democratic US Senator Richard Blumenthal said in a conference call about the bill he cosponsored with Republican Senator Jerry Moran.
The bill gives the US Congress authority to dissolve the board of the USOPC and decertify national governing bodies should they fail to protect athletes.
The Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act would also impose greater legal liability on the USOPC and national governing bodies that oversee amateur sports for acts such as sexual abuse by coaches and employees.
Nassar was in 2017 sentenced to up to 300 years in prison after more than 350 women testified about abuse at his hands, including Olympic champions Aly Raisman and Wieber.
The scandal prompted the resignation of the board and other officials at USA Gymnastics, the sport’s governing body, after victims accused them of being slow to investigate abuse allegations.
Former USA Gymnastics officials said that the USOPC was informed of sexual abuse in gymnastics more than two decades ago, but did little to address the issue.
To raise oversight, the Senate bill would increase the level of athletes’ representation on the USOPC board.
It would also require the committee to pay the Center for Safe Sport US$20 million per year to raise the independence of the organization set up to investigate allegations of sexual abuse in sports.
“Stronger oversight by Congress and a truly independent Center for Safe Sport is necessary to restore public confidence in our Olympic organizations,” Wieber said in a statement.
USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland supported the senators’ bid to improve safety, but said that she looked forward to working with Congress to address certain areas of the bill.
For example, the legislation does not spell out how a sports governing body would be replaced should it be dissolved by Congress, she said.
“There are sections in the proposed legislation that, while conceptually appropriate, could result in unintended consequences and disruption for athletes in operational reality,” Hirshland said in a statement.
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
The US’ bid for a fourth consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title came to a stunning end as they fell 1-0 to Panama after a stoppage-time goal from Cecilio Waterman on Thursday in Inglewood, California. Despite dominating possession, the US struggled to break down a resilient Panama side for long periods. Panama spent the bulk of the match defending, but pounced on a giveaway by the US before substitute forward Waterman sent a shot from the right side of the area to the bottom left corner late in stoppage time. Up next for Panama in tomorrow’s final is to be Mexico, who beat
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Chris Wood has fired Nottingham Forest into surprise UEFA Champions League contention and now the striker wants to score the goals to help New Zealand make history at the FIFA World Cup. New Zealand are strong favorites to qualify out of the Oceania region over the next week and reach the World Cup for only the third time. At the country’s two previous appearances at the finals, in 1982 and 2010, they have failed to win a match in six attempts. With Wood captaining the side and leading from the front, he told local media yesterday that the current squad can finally deliver
RSS