USA Gymnastics coach fired for contacting Larry Nassar victim
By admin - 2019-01-21 01:58:53

Just three days after Mary Lee Tracy was hired by USA Gymnastics as the program’s elite development coordinator, she was fired for reaching out to one of Larry Nassar’s victims.

According to USA Today, Lee posted on social media Friday that she was asked to resign after trying to contact Raisman to apologize, and in the hopes “we could work together to make our sport better and learn from all the mistakes of the past.”  USA Gymnastics said in a statement that Tracy inappropriately contacted Raisman, who is suing the federation, and was critical of Tracy’s hiring because the coach had previously defended Nassar.

Raisman, a three-time Olympic champion, was critical of Lee’s from the beginning, saying on Twitter that her hire was “a slap in the face for survivors, and further confirmation that nothing at USAG has changed.”

Raisman first came forward with accusations against Nassar on “60 Minutes” in November 2017. Raisman told CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook that the culture at USA Gymnastics had to change.

“Why are we looking at why didn’t the girls speak up?” Raisman said. “Why not look at what about the culture? What did USA Gymnastics do, and Larry Nassar do, to manipulate these girls so much that they are so afraid to speak up?”

Nassar pleaded  pleaded guilty to assaulting seven people, and more than 150 women and girls testified that he abused them at his sentencing hearing in January. A judge sentenced him to 40 to 175 years in prison, calling it a “death sentence.”