Leah Millis/Reuters
In her testimony before Congress Tuesday, former Michigan State University President Lou Anna Simon apologized to the victims of Larry Nassar, who was sentenced to a maximum of 172 years in prison for abusing hundreds of athletes. “Not a day goes by without me wishing that he had been caught and punished sooner,” Simon told Congress in her prepared statement. “And not a day goes by without me wondering what we missed and what could have been done to detect his evil before a former youth gymnast filed her complaint with the MSU Police in 2016.” She described Nassar’s abuse as the university’s “darkest hour,” with the renowned doctor preying on amateur athletes “under the guise of medical treatments.” She told Nassar’s victims that she “can never say enough that I am so sorry that a trusted, renowned physician turned out to be an evil predator.” Simon stood to testify alongside former officials of USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic Committee about Nassar’s abuse and how to protect athletes going forward. This comes as Nassar’s former boss at MSU has been accused of soliciting sexual favors and nude photos from students, and as another employee was charged with bestiality.