President Trump on Friday signed a bipartisan bill that gives more protection to Olympic athletes. The reform bill, which was introduced in July 2019, comes after the much-publicized sex abuse scandal of Larry Nassar, who served as the USA Gymnastics national team doctor.

The “Empowering Olympic, Paralympic and Amateur Athletes Act of 2020" is intended to provide "increased oversight of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee’s board of directors and governing bodies; and establishes safeguards to protect amateur athletes from emotional, physical, and sexual abuse,” according to The White House.

Nassar, 57, pleaded guilty in November 2017 to multiple sex crimes and was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison. He was convicted of molesting hundreds of girls for decades as a doctor of osteopathic medicine while giving them medical examinations and treatments.

The bill stems from an 18-month investigation into systemic abuse of Olympic athletes by members of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Manufacturing, Trade, and Consumer Protection.

Sens. Jerry Moran and Richard Blumenthal, who spearheaded the bill, released a statement praising athletes who came forward with charges of sexual abuse.

“We are pleased to announce that the president signed our sweeping Olympic reform legislation into law,” Moran and Blumenthal said. “This law would not be possible were it not for the athletes and courageous survivors who traveled to Washington shared their stories and demanded change so that future generations of athletes can train, compete and succeed without fear of abuse. We are grateful to our colleagues, athlete advocates and the many survivors who helped create and advocate for this law to bring about change in the Olympic movement and allowed us to keep our promise to the survivors to get this bill across the finished line.”

The new law creates a commission to study broader issues within the Olympic and Paralympic movements.

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics were postponed for a year
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics were postponed for a year AFP / Behrouz MEHRI
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