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Karolyis and their famed ranch draw scrutiny

USA TODAY

It was the toughest of environments, intended to mold aspiring gymnasts into elite Olympic athletes. Demanding coaches, disciplined training and brutally honest assessments — the camps were not designed for average gymnasts.

It also is a place where a former national team gymnast claims a predator doctor was free to roam, using his access to sexually abuse them. Her attorney asserts it was the “toxic” environment created by Bela and Martha Karolyi’s unrelenting expectations that enabled Larry Nassar to befriend gymnasts he intended to abuse.