USA Gymnastics changes course amid heavy criticism, asks coach who defended Nassar to resign
Three days after hiring a coach who had defended Larry Nassar in 2016 after his arrest, USA Gymnastics on Friday reversed course and asked Mary Lee Tracy to resign after she contacted Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman.
USA Gymnastics’ decision to hire Tracy as elite development coordinator drew swift criticism from Raisman and other survivors who saw it as a sign that the organization was not committed to changing its culture. At the time Tracy made her comments about her experience with Nassar, about 50 women and girls had said he sexually abused them.
“We strongly believe in a culture that encourages our athletes and survivors to speak up and make their voices heard. As a representative of the organization, she inappropriately contacted a survivor, who is also a represented plaintiff, in response to that survivor’s public criticism of her,” USA Gymnastics said in a statement released early Friday evening.
“USA Gymnastics decided it would be best to move forward without Ms. Tracy in this role.”
Tracy announced in a Facebook post earlier Friday afternoon that USA Gymnastics CEO Kerry Perry told her she had the option to resign or be removed after she reached out to Raisman. Tracy initially said she chose to resign, but an hour later said she had notified USA Gymnastics that she would not resign.
“I was pressured to make a decision and I am seeking counsel!” Tracy wrote. “I appreciate all of the support from the community!”
USA Gymnastics’ statement did not address Tracy’s most recent statement, so it’s not clear what her status is. Tracy did not return a text from USA TODAY Sports seeking comment.
Raisman, a six-time Olympic medalist, criticized the decision to hire Tracy after USA Gymnastics announced it Tuesday. She is one of more than 350 women and girls who said Nassar abused them.
“USA Gymnastics has appointed someone who, in my view, supported Nassar, victim-shamed survivors, & has shown no willingness to learn from the past. This is a slap in the face for survivors, & further confirmation that nothing at @USAG has changed. What a profound disappointment!” she tweeted.
That was among a torrent of criticism from survivors, including Rachael Denhollander, who was the first woman to come forward publicly and say that Nassar had abused her.
Nassar, the longtime team physician for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State, is serving an effective life sentence after pleading guilty to federal child pornography charges and state charges of sexual abuse.
In her initial Facebook post, Tracy wrote, “In an attempt to move in our journey to more ‘transparency’ and openness, I need to explain why I have to resign. Kerry P gave me two options, to resign or be removed because I tried to contact (Raisman) to apologize and hope we could work together to make our sport better and learn from all the mistakes of the past. I was never informed that I was not permitted to speak to (Raisman) or any of the survivors!”
Raisman is one of dozens of women suing USA Gymnastics, which is in mediation in those lawsuits.
In a Dec. 19, 2016, story published by WCPO, the ABC affiliate in Cincinnati, where she has a gym, Tracy defended Nassar, calling him “amazing.” Nassar already was facing child sex abuse charges in Michigan at that point and had been indicted on federal child pornography charges three days earlier.
“My Olympians have all worked with Larry," Tracy, who coached two members of the Magnificent Seven, the first U.S. women’s team to win gold at the Olympics, said then. "We were all defending him because he has helped so many kids in their careers. He has protected them, taken care of them, worked with me and worked with their parents. He's been amazing."
Tracy told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday night that she understands the criticism of her 2016 comments. But her endorsement was in response to a question about her experiences with Nassar, she said, not the survivors.
"They wanted to know my experience with Larry Nassar. That’s what I shared. At that point, that’s what was my truth and my experience, that he had only helped my athletes," Tracy said.
"That has absolutely nothing to do with a) what I feel today and b) it had nothing to do with the survivors."
Tracy further defended herself to Cincinnati TV station WCPO, saying “cyber bullying” was causing her to reconsider taking the position of developmental coordinator, which would have her overseeing the national training program for gymnasts just below the elite level.
“I’m at a point where – I’m strong lady, but I have a great family, and none of this is worth risking my family or watching what my family is going through right now while people are saying these awful things about me," Tracy told WCPO.
Some of Tracy’s former gymnasts have criticized her training methods, saying they were subjected to regular weigh-ins and restrictive diets. In a March discussion on the GymCastic podcast’s Facebook page about a Washington Post story in which Raisman detailed criticism of conditions at the Karolyi ranch, Tracy defended the monthly camps for national team members.
“It was fine, it wasn't luxury but it was camp. I have gone there for 25+ years of my life because it was a learning environment for me and my athletes!” Tracy wrote.
Several gymnasts have said Nassar abused them there. Others have said the harsh and demanding culture created an environment that allowed Nassar to prey on young gymnasts.
“USA Gymnastics was a system much like Scientology,” Alyssa Beckerman King, who trained with Tracy and was an alternate on the 2000 Olympic team, wrote on Twitter, criticizing Tracy’s hiring. “Fear and shame were their tools for controlling, discarding and silencing their athletes.
“From my experience, Mary Lee championed this system, wielding political influence like a weapon if you did not conform, lose another pound, stay quiet. … In the wake of Larry Nassar, USAG needs a complete paradigm shift, from top down. Not the business as usual by reinstating the old guard.”
In a review of USA Gymnastics’ practices and policies after Nassar’s arrest, former federal prosecutor Deborah Daniels said in June 2017 that the governing body needed a “complete cultural change.” The federation had not done enough to educate staff, members or athletes about protecting children from sexual abuse, Daniels found, and the perception was that USA Gymnastics put winning medals ahead of child protection.
The U.S. Olympic Committee has hired Boston-based law firm Ropes & Gray to investigate itself and USA Gymnastics and what knowledge employees had about Nassar's abuse. The investigation is ongoing.
Follow Armour on Twitter @nrarmour and Axon @RachelAxon
