The victims of former gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar have reached a settlement of almost $400m (£302.7m) with USA Gymnastics (USAG), the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and insurers after a five-year legal battle.
The attorney for some of the victims said on Monday that USAG and the Olympic Committee had also agreed to allocate some seats on their boards to survivors and to implement new policies aimed at protecting athletes.
A settlement of $380m (£288m) has been agreed and the USOPC has committed to allocating $5m to implementing the new reforms.
“This settlement is about the brave survivors who came forward, forced these organisations to listen, and demanded change,” Michelle Simpson Tuegel, who represents over two dozen Nassar survivors, said.
“Through this agreement, these survivors are finally being acknowledged and USAG and USOPC are being forced to change so that this sport can begin a new chapter.”
The settlement agreement will cover claims brought by Olympic gold medallists including Simone Biles, Aly Raisman and McKayla Maroney – all of whom are among the former doctors most high-profile victims of sexual abuse.
They all testified about the abuse they suffered during a Senate hearing earlier this year, where they criticised officials for failing to stop Nasser.
Nassar was sentenced in federal court in 2017 to 60 years in prison on charges of possessing child sex abuse material.
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The following year, he was also sentenced to up to 175 years and up to 125 years, respectively, in two separate Michigan courts for molesting female gymnasts under his care.
The settlement was reached after TIG Insurance agreed to pay a large portion of the money, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier.
USA Gymnastics filed for bankruptcy in 2018 after additional claims were filed on behalf of a growing number of Nassar’s victims.
