Touching photo shows Aly Raisman supporting Simone Biles as US gymnasts deliver

United States gymnasts from left, Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman and Maggie Nichols arrive for a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General's report on the FBI's handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington. Nassar was charged in 2016 with federal child pornography offenses and sexual abuse charges in Michigan. He is now serving decades in prison after hundreds of girls and women said he sexually abused them under the guise of medical treatment when he worked for Michigan State and Indiana-based USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians. — United States gymnasts from left, Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman and Maggie Nichols arrive for a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington. Graeme Jennings/Pool via AP

Simone Biles took the stand to testify about Larry Nassar’s abuse and the failings of the FBI.
An FBI agent was fired for ignoring tips regarding Nassar’s abuse for 17 months, Insider reported.
“I blame Larry Nassar,” Biles said. “And I also blame an entire system that enabled and perpetrated his abuse.”
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A touching photo shows gymnasts Aly Raisman and Simone Biles holding hands during a Wednesday Senate hearing.

Four top gymnasts – Biles, McKayla Maroney, Maggie Nichols, and Raisman – appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to testify about the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar case.

Nassar, a former USA Gymnastics doctor who is currently in prison, was found guilty on multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct in 2018 and sentenced to up to 175 years in prison. He was accused by hundreds of women and girls of sexual abuse under the guise of medical treatment.

The gymnasts testified that the FBI – along with Congress, USA Gymnastics, and the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee – didn’t offer them adequate protection, therefore allowing Nassar’s abuse.

An FBI agent was fired for ignoring, and lying about, Maroney’s claim about Nassar’s abuse for 17 months, Insider previously reported.

“Enough is enough,” said Biles as she addressed Congress. “The scars of this horrific abuse continue to live with us. As the lone competitor in the recent Tokyo Games, I can assure you that the impact of this man’s abuse are not over or forgotten.”

Nassar was also sentenced to 60 years in prison for child pornography charges in a 2017 case.

“To be clear, I blame Larry Nassar,” the gymnast added. “And I also blame an entire system that enabled and perpetrated his abuse.”