Washington (AFP)

American gymnasts Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Maggie Nichols and Aly Raisman violently denounced on Wednesday the inaction of sports authorities and the federal police to prevent sexual assaults by the former doctor of the United States women's team , Larry Nassar, on young athletes for two decades.

"We have been let down and we owe an explanation," voice broken with emotion, Simone Biles, 24, said before a Senate committee tasked with looking into the FBI's "breaches of duty" in the conduct of the investigation.

Larry Nassar, 58, is serving a life sentence after being heavily convicted in 2017 and 2018 for sexually assaulting more than 250 gymnasts, mostly minors, committed within the Gymnastics Federation at the University of 'State of Michigan and in a gymnastics club.

An inspection report from the Department of Justice, an independent body, was very harsh on the local FBI office in Indianapolis, where the boss of the gymnastics federation first reported the charges against the osteopath in July 2015.

Larry Nassar appears in court in Charlotte, Michigan on February 5, 2018 RENA LAVERTY AFP / Archives

The agents "made many fundamental mistakes in (investigating these charges) and violated several FBI rules," according to the report.

- "False statements" -

The investigation was quickly dropped and it took another report, in May 2016, for the FBI to launch a new one.

The biggest scandal in American sports history came to light in September 2016 following an article in the Indianapolis Star daily.

"I hold Larry Nassar accountable and I hold accountable an entire system that allowed and perpetrated these abuses, the American Gymnastics Federation and the US Olympic Committee," said Simone Biles, a huge multi-gold medalist champion.

McKayla Maroney, she focused her anger on the agent from the local FBI office who had taken his testimony, containing very specific details of the assaults, and who had reacted with "silence and contempt".

"Not only did the FBI not do an investigation, but when (federal agents) finally made a report 17 months later, they made false statements about what I said," the accused said. 25-year-old gymnast, who was assaulted when she was 13.

McKayla Maroney testifies in Congress in Washington on September 15, 2021 SAUL LOEB POOL / AFP

By falsifying her testimony, "these FBI agents committed a crime," she said, denouncing the absence of sanctions taken by the Department of Justice which chose not to prosecute these police officers.

The department refused to testify before the commission.

- "Fundamental errors" -

Aly Raisman, victim of Larry Nassar from 2010, had denounced him in 2015 to the Federation.

Still, "it took 14 months for the FBI to contact me despite my numerous requests to testify," the 27-year-old said.

She criticized the silence of sports bodies after the departure of the selection doctor in September 2015. He had continued to work at the university and at the gymnastics club, killing a hundred additional victims.

"It was like serving innocent children to a pedophile on a silver platter," she said.

Maggie Nichols, 24 and the first to report sexual violence, also denounced the Federation for having sanctioned her for speaking out.

"My Olympic dream faded in the summer of 2015 when my coach and I denounced the assault on Larry Nassar," she said.

FBI Director Christopher Wray has apologized to the victims of Larry Nassar, admitting that "the fundamental mistakes made in 2015 and 2016 should never have been made."

FBI Director Christopher Wray in Congress in Washington on September 15, 2021 SAUL LOEB POOL / AFP

The officer overseeing the investigation was fired, he said, expressing "frustration" that the investigating officer was not sanctioned, having retired before the findings of the investigation. general inspection.

This agent had asked the Federation to obtain a post of head of security, which he ultimately did not obtain.

Mr. Wray also underlined that various reforms recommended by the report of the general inspectorate had been undertaken within the FBI, in particular a better training of the agents on sexual violence.

© 2021 AFP