International Gymnastics Federation launches $2 million safeguarding project

BAKU, Azerbaijan -- The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) has approved a $2 million project to safeguard athletes as a response to the Larry Nassar sexual abuse cases.

The sport's governing body says the Gymnastics Ethics Foundation will have a help desk for athletes, judicial panels to prosecute and judge cases, and a compliance section to monitor good governance.

FIG acted in response to "abuse cases in the United States which so shocked the world of gymnastics."

Hundreds of girls and women, including many Olympians, said they were molested by Nassar, a former USA Gymnastics doctor. He was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison after pleading guilty to sexual assault and possessing child pornography.

At a biennial congress, FIG member federations also incorporated the free-running sport of parkour as an official discipline.

Parkour organizers campaigned against FIG using the hashtag #WeAreNotGymnastics.