National champ Mattie Larson slams pedophile USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar while giving victim impact statement.
Former gymnast Mattie Larson was so desperate to avoid Larry Nassar, the USA Gymnastics physician who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting multiple women, she tried to give herself a concussion so she wouldn't have to see him.
During her testimony at the sentencing hearing for Nassar on Tuesday, Larson detailed her horrific experiences with the physician at Karolyi Ranch in Texas, which was used as an Olympic training site. Overall, more than 100 women have accused Nassar of sexual assault.
SEE ALSO: Olympian Simone Biles also accuses USA Gymnastics doctor of sexual abuse
"I was willing to physically hurt myself to get out of the abuse I received at that ranch," she said.
"I was taking a bath when I decided to splash water on the floor and bang my head as hard as I could on the tub so it looked like I slipped," Larson, now 25, said. "I thought injuring myself was the only way I could get out of going to camp."
Larson said Nassar began abusing her at her first U.S. National Championships, when she was 14 years old. She wasn't able to compete because of a painful hip injury, which is when Nassar first took advantage of her.
"My injury was very close to my pelvic bone, so when Larry put his fingers in my vagina for the first time, I thought it was some internal treatment," Larson said.
Larson said he molested her until she retired from the elite team at 19. During her testimony, she recounted how during one training camp at Karolyi ranch, she injured both ankles. Instead of treating her injuries, Nassar continued to abuse her.
At one camp she dislocated both ankles and he molested her but didn't even wrap her ankles. She crawled or got around on a rolling chair, and he abused her on a table behind the couch as her friends watched TV. — The Gymternet (@thegymterdotnet) January 23, 2018
Larson said in the past she trusted Nassar, and that he was one of the few kind adults in her life. During her testimony, she addressed him directly: "Your kindness was simply a ploy to molest me every chance you got. I can't even put into words how much I fucking hate you."
The abuse she endured at Karolyi Ranch wasn't just physical — after she "cost the team the gold medal" at the 2010 World Championships in the Netherlands, Larson said she was shunned by Karolyi staff.
"I can't even put into words how much I fucking hate you."
The camp's remote location, forced training with few breaks for food or rest, and staff that Larson said were "careless and neglectful" contributed to her eating disorder.
"I've never felt so small and disposable in my life," she said.
SEE ALSO: Olympian Simone Biles also accuses USA Gymnastics doctor of sexual abuse
Larson was the floor exercise national champion in 2010. She won a silver medal with the U.S. team at the World Championships later that year. Fellow teammate Aly Raisman offered her support on Twitter, and reminded Larson that "USAG has forever manipulated us to feel guilty and worthless when we don't win gold medals."
My words to Mattie Larson.... pic.twitter.com/VV2mExlDr8 — Alexandra Raisman (@Aly_Raisman) January 23, 2018
Larson, along with other gymnasts who were abused by Nassar, have been lobbying Congress for a bill that would require amateur athletic organizations to report sexual abuse. The bill passed in the Senate but has yet to go through the House.
Watch Mattie Larson's full testimony here:
USA Gymnastics recently began addressing the abuse its staff imposed on young gymnasts, including cutting ties with Karolyi Ranch. On Monday, three USA Gymnastics board members resigned.
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Larson detailed the abuse she received while competing for the U.S. gymnastics team during the sentencing hearing of convicted serial sexual predator Larry Nassar. She saw Nassar -- formerly the national medical coordinator for USA Gymnastics -- for several injuries, and no matter the part of her body that was injured, the disgraced doctor would find a way to abuse her, she said.
"No matter what Larry was supposed to be treating on me -- usually ankles or knees -- his fingers always seemed to find their way inside me," Larson said.
Judge Rosemarie Aquilina announced Tuesday that Nassar will be sentenced on Wednesday after she hears a few more victim statements.
Larson and other gymnasts met with Sen. Dianne Feinstein and sat in on a session with the Senate Judiciary Committee last year to discuss the culture within USA Gymnastics that allowed for a long history of abuse. From that meeting, Feinstein and others in the Senate drafted a bill to make it mandatory for amateur athletic organizations such as USA Gymnastics to report any allegations of sexual assault immediately to law enforcement. The bill also aims to create a method for all youth athletes in those organizations to bring allegations of abuse to an independent entity that would not have any potential conflicts of interest in reporting a potential crime.
The Senate passed a revised bill in November, which is awaiting approval in the House of Representatives. A spokeswoman from Feinstein's office said they expect that vote will come in the next couple of weeks. It will need a two-thirds majority in order to pass an expedited process to becoming law.
Mattie Larson called for stricter rules for mandatory reporting of sexual abuse at the sentencing hearing for Dr. Larry Nassar. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Larson said USA Gymnastics made a positive step last week when it announced it would be closing the Karolyi Ranch, the training camp run by Bela and Marta Karolyi in Texas where the country's top young gymnasts trained. Larson said the isolation and conditions at the camp made it "a perfect environment for abusers and molesters to thrive."
"Today I call on Speaker Paul Ryan to schedule this for a vote immediately," Larson said while addressing the Lansing, Michigan, courtroom. "It's not only about switching to a better location. We must ensure that ample steps are made to prevent anything of this nature and magnitude from happening again."
USA Gymnastics also announced earlier this week that three members of its executive board were resigning and that John Geddert, a prominent coach based in central Michigan, has been suspended. Geddert told members of his gym on Tuesday that he plans to retire.
Larson said she was terrified of visiting the Karolyi Ranch, where she says Nassar sexually abused her. She remembered once trying to fake a concussion -- banging her head into the back of the bathtub at her family's house to create a bump -- in order to avoid going to a camp there.
Several prominent former gymnasts have spoken or submitted statements during Nassar's sentencing hearing in the past week. Three-time national champion Jessica Howard submitted a letter to the court Tuesday. Last week, Jamie Dantzscher, Aly Raisman and Jordyn Wieber appeared in court and McKayla Maroney provided a written statement. They are among the 158 young women and girls who are scheduled to address the court and the man they say abused them as part of his plea deal.
Raisman tweeted her support to Larson on Tuesday.
My words to Mattie Larson.... pic.twitter.com/VV2mExlDr8 — Alexandra Raisman (@Aly_Raisman) January 23, 2018
Many of those who have spoken in the past six days of impact statements say that Nassar used his connection with Olympians and national team members -- heroes for many young gymnasts -- to impress them. He often gained their trust by providing them with gifts from international competitions or autographed items from the stars he purported to be healing.
Isabell Hutchins brought a box full of old gifts from Nassar to court Tuesday. Hutchins was an elite-level gymnast at Twistars, a gym in Dimondale, Michigan, where Nassar has admitted to abusing young girls. She read aloud a note from Nassar that ended with "love you, girl" and then went on to describe the way he abused her starting when she was 10 years old. Hutchins said she wonders whether Nassar misdiagnosed some of her injuries to keep seeing her on a frequent basis. She said she had lower leg pain in 2011 and Geddert, the owner of Twistars, told her to see Nassar and didn't allow her to get a second opinion from a different physician. Nassar told her she was healthy enough to continue training.
She was kicked out of practice a month later because she was having trouble walking. She went to the emergency room that day, and X-rays revealed she had been practicing with a broken leg.
"It looked like an ax splitting a piece of wood," Hutchins said of the X-ray. "So for over a month I practiced, competed and made it to nationals on a broken leg because Larry Nassar said there was nothing wrong. ... Am I still having pain today because my doctor was more concerned with sexually abusing me than he was about my physical health?"
Hutchins said she and her family helped Nassar save boxes of memorabilia and other items when his basement flooded when she was a young girl. Years later, when she was trying to stem the pain from her undiagnosed broken leg, Nassar invited her to the same basement where he would massage her, which "consisted of his bare hands running across my private areas," she said.
Hutchins said her time as a Twistars gymnast was the worst period of her life. As she walked away from the podium after delivering her statement, Hutchins dumped the box full of notes and gifts from Nassar into a courtroom trash bin.
Photo: MATTHEW DAE SMITH, MBR Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Image 1 of 4 CORRECTS SPELLING OF FIRST NAME TO MATTIE, NOT MADDIE - Former U.S. National Gymnastics team member and world championship silver medalist Mattie Larson addresses Larry Nassar, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in Ingham County Circuit Court in Lansing, Mich. Nassar, 54, has admitted sexually assaulting athletes under the guise of medical treatment when he was employed by Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics, which as the sport's national governing organization trains Olympians. He already has been sentenced to 60 years in prison for child pornography. Under a plea bargain, he faces a minimum of 25 to 40 years behind bars in the molestation case. (Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal via AP) less CORRECTS SPELLING OF FIRST NAME TO MATTIE, NOT MADDIE - Former U.S. National Gymnastics team member and world championship silver medalist Mattie Larson addresses Larry Nassar, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in Ingham ... more Photo: MATTHEW DAE SMITH, MBR Image 2 of 4 From left, Shawn Johnson, Mattie Larson and Nastia Liukin wave to spectators following the women's second day of competition at the U.S. Olympic gymnastics trials, Sunday, June 22, 2008, in Philadelphia. Johnson and Liukin were nominated to the U.S. Olympic team after the event. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) less From left, Shawn Johnson, Mattie Larson and Nastia Liukin wave to spectators following the women's second day of competition at the U.S. Olympic gymnastics trials, Sunday, June 22, 2008, in Philadelphia. ... more Photo: Julie Jacobson, STF Image 3 of 4 A walk of fame holds bricks for the USA Gymnastics teams and members who have trained at the Karolyi's facility near New Waverly, Wednesday, May 4, 2016, in Houston. ( Mark Mulligan / Houston Chronicle ) A walk of fame holds bricks for the USA Gymnastics teams and members who have trained at the Karolyi's facility near New Waverly, Wednesday, May 4, 2016, in Houston. ( Mark Mulligan / Houston Chronicle ) Photo: Mark Mulligan, Staff Image 4 of 4 Marta Karolyi at the Karolyi Ranch near New Waverly where she and her husband, Bela Karolyi, train gymnasts, including members of the Women's National Team, Wednesday, May 4, 2016, in Houston. ( Mark Mulligan / Houston Chronicle ) less Marta Karolyi at the Karolyi Ranch near New Waverly where she and her husband, Bela Karolyi, train gymnasts, including members of the Women's National Team, Wednesday, May 4, 2016, in Houston. ( Mark Mulligan / ... more Photo: Mark Mulligan, Staff Mattie Larson describes 'eerie' environment at Karolyi Ranch 1 / 4 Back to Gallery
A decorated gymnast recounted the "eerie" environment at the Karolyi Ranch during the sentencing for former USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar.
The Karolyi complex - in the Sam Houston National Forest midway between New Waverly and Huntsville - has been used for many years as a training site for U.S. Olympic gymnasts, and has been mentioned by several gymnasts during Nassar's sentencing as a location where they were assaulted.
Last week, USA Gymnastics announced the camp would no longer serve as the National Training Center.
Mattie Larson, 25, was a member of the U.S. National Team from ages 14 to 19. She detailed isolated conditions, diet restrictions and painful injuries sustained at the camp during her victim impact statement Tuesday,
"There's an eerie feeling as soon as you step foot on the Karolyi Ranch," she said.
Larson said she was terrified of visiting the Karolyi Ranch, where she says Nassar sexually abused her. She remembered once trying to fake a concussion - banging her head into the back of the bathtub at her family's house to create a bump - in order to avoid going to a camp there.
Larson said the camp's location in an isolated area was an environment where abusers and molesters like Nassar could thrive. She said her time there, the pressures of competition and her abuse by Nassar led to depression and suicidal thoughts.
"From that first camp at 10 years old, I dreaded going back every single time for the next nine years," Larson said.
Larson said the first time she remembers getting treated by Nassar was at age 14 for a hip injury at the U.S. National Championships in Minnesota. She continued to receive treatment from him until she was 19.
She said Nassar was a renowned doctor, charismatic, and "one of the only nice adults I had in my life at the time." Larson said Nassar would bring her treats and junk food when she'd been placed on a restrictive diet by coaches.
"I just couldn't comprehend that someone like him could do something so awful," she said. "On top of that, who was I going to tell? Certainly not my coaches, who I was afraid of."
Several other gymnasts have referenced Nassar's efforts to bring them food when coaches wouldn't allow it, a technique many believe was Nassar's way of grooming the young gymnasts.
Larson told the Lansing State Journal that Nassar's favors eased the "prison-like mentality" of Karolyi Ranch.
"I absolutely would lose weight every single time and when I got back to my home gym my coaches would be so happy." Larson said during a break in the hearing.
Larson said she was "ecstatic" upon hearing of the separation between USA Gymnastics and the Karolyi Ranch.
"It's not only the culture there that's scary," Larson said. "It's literally the location."
Larson has advocated for legislation that would make it a federal crime for Olympic national governing bodies to fail to promptly report child sexual abuse allegations to authorities. She met with Sen. Dianne Feinsten, D-California, in an effort to advance the cause.
"All I wanted to do as a kid was go to the Olympics," Larson said Tuesday. "I was at the height of my career at 19 and the Olympics were just one year away and I just couldn't take any more abuse.
"I was broken. Larry, my coaches and USAG turned the sport I loved as a kid into my own personal hell."
