SafeSport was launched in the wake of USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar’s serial sexual abuse of gymnasts. Nassar is serving an effective life sentence for his crimes. Probst acknowledged that officials hadn’t done enough to protect the gymnasts.
“We failed our athletes,” he told reporters on a call. “I’m at the top of the food chain and so I take this very personally.”
“We have said on many occasions that we are very sorry for what happened and we’re very empathetic toward the survivors and we have to be laser-focused on athlete safety.”
Probst said it was “now time for a new generation of leaders to confront the challenges facing the organization, and I have the utmost confidence in Susanne’s and Sarah’s ability to do just that.”
Lyons said the new leadership hopes to foster a cultural change at the USOC that puts the emphasis squarely on the well-being of the athletes.
“We need to remind people that the athletes are the center of our world and the reason why we are here,” she said. “Sometimes perhaps we got caught up in the operations of the Games and sometimes maybe we lost sight of that fact.
