• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Sexual Abuse Attorneys | Trial Lawyers Fighting For You

Giving Power to Your Voice for Over 55 Years

Toll Free866.446.7478
Make a Payment free consultation
  • English
  • Español

Search

  • About
  • Attorneys
  • Areas of Focus
    • Failure to Report
    • Adult or Family Member Sexual Abuse
    • Church Sexual Abuse
      • Jehovah’s Witness Sexual Abuse
      • Mormon Church Sexual Abuse
      • Southern Baptist Sexual Abuse
    • Sexual Abuse in Schools
      • Campus Sexual Assault
      • Sexual Abuse in Sports
      • Daycare Sexual Abuse
    • Doctor on Patient Sexual Abuse
      • Hospital Sexual Abuse
      • Massage Therapy Sexual Abuse
      • Nursing Home Sexual Abuse
      • Residential Treatment Center Sexual Abuse
      • Sexual Assault by a Dentist
      • Therapist Abuse
    • Foster Care Abuse
    • Child on Child Sexual Abuse
    • Uber Sexual Assault
    • Lyft Sexual Assault
    • Boys & Girls Club Abuse
    • YMCA Sexual Abuse
  • Resources
    • Alerts
    • Podcast
    • Video Library
    • Questions & Answers
  • Contact
  • English
    • Español

USA Gymnastics Sexual Abuse

Home » USA Gymnastics Sexual Abuse

Attorneys helping survivors of sexual abuse in athletic sports

Regardless of the sport, athletes spend countless hours training their bodies through exercise, nutrition, and discipline to be the best they can be. Athletes put their trust in coaches, doctors, and physical therapists to help them ensure their bodies are performing at the highest level and to heal any injuries that may occur. When a coach or doctor breaches that trust by initiating inappropriate sexual contact with the athlete, the impact can be devastating. Sexual abuse can happen to male and female athletes of all ages. Reports of sexual abuse in sports include pre-teen adolescents up to young adult athletes. Sexual abuse in organized sports can occur on the high school, collegiate, Olympic, and professional levels. Sexual abuse includes any kind of inappropriate touching, sexual suggestions, sharing or taking inappropriate photos or videos, or exposing oneself to a patient athlete. While coaches and doctors do hold a position of authority for athletes, they do not have the right to force sexual contact on an athlete in exchange for allowing them to play their sport.

The trauma a survivor of sexual abuse goes through can cause severe emotional and psychological problems, including anxiety, depression- including suicidal thoughts, self-harm, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is imperative that survivors seek the help of mental health professionals who can provide therapies to set them on a path to healing.

USA GYMNASTICS ATHLETE SEXUAL ABUSE

One of the largest cases of sexual abuse of athletes involved USA Gymnastics and former team doctor Larry Nassar, who was accused of sexually abusing nearly 300 female athletes. As team doctor, Nassar was put in a position of authority over hundreds of Olympic hopeful athletes. He groomed these female athletes by giving them gifts and words of encouragement and preyed on their desire to earn a spot on the national team.

In addition to USA Gymnastics, Nassar also served as a team physician and assistant professor at Michigan State University’s Department of Family and Community Medicine.

The USA Gymnastics sexual assault cases are one example of the severe impact sexual abuse can have on children and developing adolescents. The athletes in these cases trusted the recommendation and advice of their coaches to be treated by a staff physician. These coaches and the sports organization failed to safeguard these children from the abuse inflicted by the physician. Michigan State University agreed to pay $500 million to settle claims with more than 300 women who said they were sexually abused by former school sports doctor Larry Nassar. Claims against USA Gymnastics tied to Nassar’s work for the organization and the U.S. Olympic team forced the organization to file for bankruptcy. Many of these athletes will require ongoing psychiatric therapy to cope with the trauma the sexual abuse has had and will have on their lives moving forward.

The USA Gymnastics story broke after a group of three journalists from the Indianapolis Star conducted an investigation into Indiana school systems that failed to report sexual abuse by officials. During that investigation, a source told Marisa Kwiatowski to look into USA Gymnastics. From that tip Kwiatowski, along with Mark Alesia and Tim Evans, all journalists with the Indianapolis Star, uncovered one of the largest sexual abuse coverups involving athletes. Many of these survivors demonstrated a great deal of courage to come forward and share their stories. Equally important was the support they received from people they trusted their stories with. Without both courage and belief, Nassar would have remained in place and continued to sexually abuse athletes.

Help for survivors of athlete sexual abuse

If you or a loved one is a survivor of sexual abuse, contact us. Our attorneys have experience handling sexual abuse claims against schools, organizations and groups and can help your family on the path to healing. We understand the sensitive nature of this type of lawsuit and prioritize our clients’ privacy and trust while fighting to get them the compensation they need to assist them in healing and coping with sexual abuse.

Help for survivors of other types of sexual abuse

We are proud to help families heal through the legal pursuit of sexual abuse claims. We have investigated and/or helped sexual abuse survivors in a variety of claims. Speak with us today with no cost or obligation.

  • Adult on child sexual abuse
  • Daycare sexual abuse
  • Child-on-child sexual abuse
  • Church sexual abuse
  • Doctor on patient sexual abuse
  • Nursing home sexual abuse
  • Residential treatment center sexual abuse
  • School or extracurricular activity sexual abuse
  • Ohio State University athlete sexual abuse
  • UCLA gynecologist sexual abuse

Primary Sidebar

SCHEDULE A FREE, CONFIDENTIAL CONSULTATION TODAY

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

CohenMalad, LLP

One Indiana Square Suite 1400
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
(317) 636-6481
Toll Free: (866) 446-7478
  • twitter logo

Copyright © 2025 CohenMalad, LLP
Disclaimer Privacy Policy

  • About
  • Attorneys
  • Areas of Focus
    ▼
    • Failure to Report
    • Adult or Family Member Sexual Abuse
    • Church Sexual Abuse
      ▼
      • Jehovah’s Witness Sexual Abuse
      • Mormon Church Sexual Abuse
      • Southern Baptist Sexual Abuse
    • Sexual Abuse in Schools
      ▼
      • Campus Sexual Assault
      • Sexual Abuse in Sports
      • Daycare Sexual Abuse
    • Doctor on Patient Sexual Abuse
      ▼
      • Hospital Sexual Abuse
      • Massage Therapy Sexual Abuse
      • Nursing Home Sexual Abuse
      • Residential Treatment Center Sexual Abuse
      • Sexual Assault by a Dentist
      • Therapist Abuse
    • Foster Care Abuse
    • Child on Child Sexual Abuse
    • Uber Sexual Assault
    • Lyft Sexual Assault
    • Boys & Girls Club Abuse
    • YMCA Sexual Abuse
  • Resources
    ▼
    • Alerts
    • Podcast
    • Video Library
    • Questions & Answers
  • Contact
  • English
    ▼
    • Español
Cookies and other technology are used on this website to tailor your user experience and evaluate our marketing strategy. By clicking any link on this site you agree to our privacy policy.
En este sitio web utilizamos cookies y otras tecnologías para personalizar su experiencia de usuario y evaluar nuestra estrategia de marketing. Al hacer clic en cualquier enlace de esta plataforma, usted acepta nuestra política de privacidad.
Agree