KEY POINTS

  • A Senate hearing on the Larry Nassar case was held Wednesday
  • Angelina Jolie took a photo with some of the athletes who testified against Nassar
  • Simon Biles said the FBI made false statements in its report

Actress Angelina Jolie is in awe of the athletes, including McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman, who recently testified at the Senate hearing of the Larry Nassar case.

On Thursday, Jolie took to Twitter to share a photo of herself with some of the former and current athletes, who attended the hearing on the FBI's handling of the case to share their stories, and said she was honored to meet all of them.

The photo shows Jolie with Maroney, Raisman, Maggie Nichols, Kaylee Lorincz and Jessica Howard posing for a snap together on Capitol Hill.

“I was honored to meet with some of the brave U.S. gymnasts who appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday,” Jolie captioned her post. “I’m in awe of their courage and commitment to preventing future failures to investigate abuse.”

“As Aly Raisman said in her testimony, ‘Over 100 victims could have been spared the abuse. All we needed was one adult to do the right thing.’ Sending support and respect to them, and to all who are reliving this trauma so that system reforms can occur,” she added, before ending her post with the hashtag “#StopViolenceAgainstWomen.”

Jolie explained she was on Capitol Hill engaging with senators on the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization and FBI reforms when she took the photo with the athletes. She said the discussion included the inclusion of better protections for abused children, non-biased forensic evidence collection, trauma care and judicial training.

In January 2018, Nassar, who used to be the doctor for the USA Gymnastics, was sentenced up to 175 years in prison after at least 150 women came forward to claim they had been sexually abused by him. The hearing was held Wednesday, following a report by the Justice Department Inspector General claiming the FBI had failed to properly address in their investigation the 2015 sexual abuse allegations against the suspect.

During the Senate hearing, Maroney, Raisman, Nichols and Simone Biles said the FBI had made false statements in its official report.

“I believe without a doubt that the circumstances that led to my abuse and allowed it to continue, are directly the result of the fact that the organizations created by Congress to oversee and protect me as an athlete, USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, failed to do their jobs,” said Biles in her testimony.

Angelina Jolie
Pictured: Angelina Jolie attends the premiere of Disney's 'Dumbo' at El Capitan Theatre on March 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Getty Images/Emma McIntyre