When Larry Nassar was sentenced to up to 175 years of prison on Wednesday, Jan. 24, he was guilty not only of assaulting the bodies and minds of 150+ women, but also of abusing positions of power and trust given to him over his patients and the sport they loved.
“[The] defendant is a twisted, beloved, renowned doctor, who used his prestige to gain trust of these girls, and to exploit them,” said Michigan Assistant AG Angela Povilaitis on Wednesday.
Women’s gymnastics is known for being a taxing and time consuming sport, to say the least. Girls typically enter young – often before grade school, and peak in their mid to late teens. Those who stick with it can spend 25+ hours a week perfecting their routines, building strength, and preparing for competitions.
25+ hours a week spent with their teammates, their coaches, and their trainers.
Daisy Todd, a high scorer on our own Temple Gymnastics Team, says that “a healthy relationship with a coach or trainer is extremely important because we spend A LOT of time with them. [We] are often at our most vulnerable when struggling in the gym or struggling with an injury and we rely on our coaches and trainers to help us out of that. We often place our wellbeing in the hands of our coach or trainer for the sake of excelling in our sport.”
Todd has been a competitive gymnast since age five and first began practicing when she was just two years old. At age 13, Todd placed first in her age group at Level 9 Eastern Nationals and was invited to train with olympic prospects at Karolyi Ranch — the US Women’s National Team Training Center and official US Olympic training site. This 2000 acre compound in southeast Texas was also the workplace of Nassar. USA Gymnastics officially cut ties with the ranch on Jan. 18.
“The idea of sexual assault never occurred to me as a young gymnast,” says Todd, who rejected the invitation and continued working with her club team. “However, I’ve had coaches who did take certain precautions to avoid any issues. We used to wear sports bras and spandex when we worked out, [but] when we hired a male coach, we were required to wear leotards. If he was spotting and accidentally had improper hand placement, he didn’t want to be accused of anything.”
Now on Temple’s varsity team, Todd credits the sport for shaping a big part of who she is today. When asked if this event has changed her perspective on gymnastics as a whole, she says it hasn’t.
“It’s very frustrating to me that the media surrounding this issue is using this tragic event to invalidate the sport,” says Todd. “I know first hand that gymnastics is the most brutal, mentally and physically difficult sport, and the olympic gymnasts work extremely hard in order to be the best few in the world. However, if girls wish to pursue gymnastics, this event shouldn’t discourage them. This tragic event defines one disgusting and sick man, not the entire sport of gymnastics.”
Her efforts to separate the sport as a whole from Nassar’s actions within it are similar to the efforts of Aly Raisman. At his trial on Jan. 19, Raisman told Nassar: “you have not taken gymnastics away from me. I love this sport and that love is stronger than the evil that relies in you and in those that enabled you to hurt many people.”
Raisman’s speech inspired many, including Todd, who says, “when she decided to speak up, it encouraged a lot of others too as well. I deeply admire her bravery and dedication to fighting for the survivors, and fighting against Nassar and the organization that allowed him to continue his abuse.”
She adds that while the event doesn’t affect her love for gymnastics, it alters the way she views the specific officials and coaches involved. The improper actions taken by Nassar and his higher-ups, Todd calls, “disgusting and unforgivable.”
“[This event] obviously changes the way I view the officials at USA gymnastics,” says Todd. “Many of them knew this abuse was occurring and didn’t do anything about. I also think the culture of the sport allowed these elite gymnasts to be easy targets; they’re willing to do anything it takes from a very young age to achieve their goals, no questions asked.”
While Temple Gymnastics’ coaches haven’t addressed the trial explicitly, Todd says she and her teammates have discussed the issue extensively and have been demonstrating their support for sexual assault survivors by wearing blue-teal hair ribbons (the color of sexual assault awareness) at every meet. By doing so, the team is able to show their respect without bringing the negativity of Nassar’s actions into their training environment.
Going forward, Todd says “the issue is something very near and dear to all our hearts and we want to publicly demonstrate our support for the survivors. I love representing Temple, getting to be teammates with 19 amazing girls, and being apart of something bigger than myself.”
The owls are looking forward to a season of improving, record-breaking, and a hopeful conference championship win.
Come out to McGonigle Hall on Feb 17. to watch them compete against Bridgeport, Ursinus, and West Chester, and be sure check the schedule for more upcoming competitions.