319: Aly and Lynn Raisman

THE ALY INTERVIEW

Aly's experience, in her own words. On August 19th, the morning before the women's final at US Championships, Jessica had the opportunity to visit the amazing Raisman vegetable garden and spend the morning with Aly and Lynn Raisman, speaking about...well...everything—from USAG's insane official policies about abuse, to Steve Penny's shady business dealings, to what Aly really thinks about Martha. Plus,

• How Aly feels about being victim-shamed by coaches on social media
• Why she decided to come forward in a book, and getting misquoted in the media
• The less-than-warm welcome she received from USAG and Ron Galimore in 2017
• A mysteriously canceled NBC interview
• Why it's impossible to trust SafeSport
• How USAG treated Mattie Larson at 2010 worlds
• What happened at 2015 worlds, and the need to impress Martha
• Extreme weight pressure and the lack of dietary and medical education in US gymnastics
• The monetary exploitation of US Olympic gymnasts, featuring crazy Steve Penny sponsorship stories
• What she thinks of Rhonda Faehn's role and responsibility
• Solutions - what needs to happen to make US gymnastics safe and healthy before we can move forward

LINKS

• 2013 NBC Interview at American Cup in Worchester, MA
• Boston Globe: Forster said he wants gymnasts to feel they can voice complaints without fear of retaliation."Some of the fear — I don't know if it was real, but it was certainly perceived, and we want to change that," he said.
• In May, the Indianapolis Star reported that a USAG lawyer and Ron Galimore helped Larry Nassar provide a cover story rather than tell the truth about being suspended from USAG for sexual abuse.
• Aly's speech at the 2017 USAG Hall of Fame Induction
• International Gymnastics Camp's booth at 2017 USAG Congress "Alliance for Accountability"
• USAG Sexual Abuse Reporting History and Changes
  • USAG III. PROFESSIONAL MEMBER BEHAVIOR POLICY (unknown date)
    • C. Such above described behavior will be penalized as follows:
      • 1. First Offense: Verbal warning will be issued by the Meet Referee/Technical Director and/or designated representative of USA Gymnastics.
      • 2. Second Offense: Withdrawal of floor credential, necessitating ejection from the competitive floor area (or possibly the entire competitive arena)
    • USAG Policies 2015 B. Enforcement of Code
    • USAG Bylaws 2013 10.02 Filing a Complaint
• Get Trained: Darkness to Light Flip The Switch free online training
• Get Help: Darkness To Light

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