A U.S. Senate subcommittee accused former U.S. Olympic Committee chief executive officer Scott Blackmun of making false statements and misleading Congress and has referred the case to the Justice Department and FBI.
In a joint statement Friday morning, Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), the chairman and ranking member of the Senate sub-committee with jurisdiction over the health and safety of U.S. Olympic and NCAA athletes, said the subcommittee forwarded the case to acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker and Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray, citing Blackmuns “materially false statements contained in his written testimony to the Subcommittee during the course of the Subcommittees investigation.”
“The Subcommittee takes its oversight role seriously, and it appears that Mr. Blackmun has made false claims and misled our Subcommittee – harming the investigation and ability to develop policy,” Moran and Blumenthal said in a statement. “Just as importantly, survivors of abuse have had to wait longer for the truth and longer for systemic changes to help prevent others from similar injury.”
The Senate referral comes four days after a USOC commissioned-report by Ropes & Gray, a Boston-based law firm, outlined how USOC policies, negligence and complicity allowed Nassar and other sexual predators to prey on young athletes undetected.
In particular the report reveals how then USOC chief executive officer Scott Blackmun and Alan Ashley, USOC chief of sport performance, failed to take action or notify USOC board members after they were informed of allegations during the summer of 2015. Blackmun and Ashley deleted emails related to Nassar and Blackmun misled a USOC board member about when the USOC was informed of the allegations against Nassar.
During the 15-month period between the time Blackmun and Ashley were first informed of allegations against Nassar and the time the physicians misconduct went public, dozens of unsuspecting young gymnasts were sexually abused by Nassar.
Blackmun was forced to resign in February. Ashley was fired Monday morning.
Blackmun received $1.3 million in compensation from the USOC and another$49,098 from a related organization in 2017, according to IRS and USOC financial records. Ashley was paid $720,044 in 2017.Blackmun was invited to testify before a June 5, 2018 Senate subcommittee hearing on sexual abuse within American Olympic sports. He declined citing ongoing medical treatment for prostate cancer. Blackmun did not attend the 2018 Olympic Games in South Korea, also citing medical issues.
Blackmun did however provide the subcommittee a statement for the record and subsequently answered on the record questions from subcommittee members.
In his written remarks, Blackmun recounted a conversation he had with USA Gymnastics CEO Steve Penny.
“. . . Mr. Penny told me that after interviewing three athletes and the team doctor, they were concerned [Nassars] treatments were not legitimate. Mr. Penny said that he was going to report this to law enforcement, a decision I fully supported. Mr. Penny also told me that the doctor would no longer have contact with athletes. I spoke to the USOCs safe sport staff after talking to Mr. Penny. My understanding was that reporting the doctor to law enforcement was the most aggressive thing that could be done. I also understood that once it was reported, the issue should be left in the hands of law enforcement—we did not want to interfere with their investigation in any way.”
According to the USOC-commissioned report, Blackmun told Ropes & Gray attorneys report that in or about September 2015, he engaged a group of USOC staff, possibly including the USOC Director of Ethics and SafeSport, because he “wanted to make sure that we were doing everything that we should be doing in response and that our response was appropriate.”
“However, independent investigators found no supporting evidence of this follow-up meeting,” Moran and Blumenthal said. “After being confronted with this information, Blackmun recanted his earlier assertion that this engagement took place.
“The results of the independent investigation and Blackmuns own statements to the independent investigators appear to contradict his statement to the Subcommittee that he “spoke to the USOCs safe sport staff after talking to Penny.”
According to the independent investigators, Blackmun did not speak with Safe Sport staff or any other USOC personnel outside of former Chief of Sport Performance, Alan Ashley, after learning from then-USAG President and CEO Steve Penny about Nassar and the subsequent report to the FBI.”
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