(WXYZ & ASSOCIATED PRESS) — Rachael Denhollander, the first gymnast to publicly accuse Larry Nassar of sexual assault, is speaking out on Twitter after former Olympic coach John Geddert was charged with 20 counts of human trafficking, two counts of sexual assault, one count of racketeering and one count of lying to a peace officer.
RELATED: Ex-Olympics gymnastics coach with ties to Larry Nassar charged with human trafficking, assault
Geddert's abuse, like so much, was never a secret. EVER.
— Rachael Denhollander (@R_Denhollander) February 25, 2021
In my memoir I wrote about knowing of it even as a club level gymnast in 2000. Because we have to grapple with the reality that it was known, and no one stopped him. It was known, and he was promoted and given more power. https://t.co/CVmb8kDWr7
I am so proud of the women who came forward to tell the truth about Geddert. Their voices effected and will continue to effect change.
— Rachael Denhollander (@R_Denhollander) February 25, 2021
But imagine what they could have been spared, and what could have changed, if it had been the adults who stood up to say "no more".
Do better.
"Geddert's abuse, like so much, was never a secret. EVER," Denhollander tweeted.
She also applauded the women who came forward in the Geddert case. "Their voices effected and will continue to effect change," she wrote.
Nassar was sentenced in 2018 to 40 to 175 years in prison for molesting some of the nation’s top gymnasts, including Denhollander, under the guise of medical treatment.
Geddert was the head coach of the gold medal-winning 2012 U.S. Women's Olympic Gymnastics Team, which Nassar was the team doctor for. Nassar also worked at Geddert's gym in Lansing, Twistars, where many victims were abused.
The investigation started back in 2018 when the Eaton County Sheriff said complaints were filed against Geddert in the wake of the Nassar cases. According to the sheriff's office, people in 2018 came forward with complaints against Geddert. In January 2020, the AG's office executed a search warrant at Geddert's home.
During the sentencing for Nassar, some of the young athletes said that Geddert was abusive, and one alleged that Geddert was aware of Nassar's "inappropriate procedure" in the late 1990s when she was 16.
Geddert has said he had "zero-knowledge" of Nassar's crimes.
