Who Is Jacob Moore? Male Gymnast Accuses Larry Nassar Of Sexual Abuse

Gymnast Jacob Moore became the first man to accuse former USA Gymnastics (USAG) doctor Larry Nassar of sexual abuse. Moore said he visited the serial abuser in April 2016 to treat his ailing shoulder.

During a press conference Monday, Moore said he was inspired by his older sister and former gymnast Kamerin Moore, a victim of Nassar. She was among those who described the abuse in a victim impact statement at Nassar’s sentencing in January.

"I was inspired by my sister and everyone else in this community to come out and help bring change to what allowed this to happen," Moore said. "I don't want (other victims) to be scared to come out because of stigma that guys can't be sexually abused or taken advantage of."

Moore had visited Nassar, who was a family friend, after a gymnastics practice to treat an ailment in his shoulder. In Nassar’s basement, however, Moore was asked to pull down his pants. Nassar then proceeded to administer acupuncture in his genital area, and assured Moore it would help his shoulder, the gymnast’s attorney said during the conference. Nassar also asked a female gymnast in the treatment room if she had seen a man’s “body part” before. Moore was 15 then.

A freshman gymnast at Michigan University, Moore said the encounter was “quite uncomfortable,” and did not help his shoulder, which required surgery.

"I left his basement thinking that did not help at all," he said. "It's frustrating when you have an injury and thinking you're gonna get legitimate medical treatment, and you're not getting that, for sure."

Moore, last week, joined a federal lawsuit against Nassar and others in connection to the case. The lawsuit stated, “There is no known medical connection between shoulder pain which can be treated through acupuncture in the area of a male's genitalia. … Plaintiff Jacob Moore believes the conduct of Dr. Nassar was sexual assault, battery, abuse, molestation and harassment performed by Defendant Nassar for Defendant Nassar's sexual pleasure and gratification."

The disgraced doctor was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison in January, after more than 150 women and girls spoke out about the abuse they faced in the hands of Nassar. Judge Rosemarie Aquilina told Nassar, after the judgment, she “signed his death warrant.”

Nassar, who was a licensed osteopath, served at the USAG from 1997 to 2015, when he was fired. But, he continued to treat patients at Michigan State University, where he worked at the school of osteopathic medicine.

Tom Waun, Moore’s attorney said it was “egregious” that the gymnast was abused almost a year after USAG fired Nassar, but did not inform other athletes.

"Jake was a child at this time, and he was a young man who did not deserve to have this happen," Waun said.

The former doctor began his career with the gymnastics community while volunteering at the Twistars Gymnastics Club in Dimondale, Michigan. The club was a training ground for new talent, where women and girl gymnasts were trained. Gymnasts such as Rachael Denhollander, Jeanette Antolin and Jamie Dantzscher, who attended the club, were among those who alleged Nassar abused them at the club, where he was allowed to enter the girl’s room under the pretext of treatment.