Simone Biles May Consider Staying ‘Far Away’ From USA Gymnastics

By Alyssa Wilson Published: November 10, 2021

Simone Biles May Consider Staying ‘Far Away’ From USA Gymnastics

Simone Biles, of the United States, performs on the balance beam during the artistic gymnastics women's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

In Summary

Olympian Simone Biles doesn't know if she can work with organizations, including USA Gymnastics, after the Larry Nassar sexual abuse scandal.

Simone Biles said she has suffered and continues to suffer because of the FBI and USA Gymnastics’ handling of accusations against team doctor Larry Nassar.

Now, after testifying in a Senate hearing, the 24-year-old Olympian told US Weekly that she is focusing on her mental health but faces hard decisions about a return to the sport.

“Everything that I’ve been through with the organization of USAG just makes for a sticky situation,” she said. “It just sucks. And it’s like, I love the sport so much, but I feel like it’s just a hit to the gut every time something comes out, or new information has been revealed.”

On September 15, Biles and gymnasts McKayla Maroney, Maggie Nichols and Aly Raisman testified about the FBI’s handling of complaints against Nassar. This came after the Department of Justice’s Inspector General released a report saying FBI officials investigating the sexual abuse allegations against Nassar made “fundamental errors” and did not act with urgency.

At the hearing, Biles gave an emotional testimony, saying she didn’t want what happened to her to happen to anyone else. “I don’t want another young gymnast or Olympic athlete, or any individual to experience the horror that I and hundreds of others have endured before, during, and continuing to this day in the wake of the Larry Nassar abuse,” Biles said. “We suffered and we continue to suffer because no one at the FBI, USAG or the USOPC did what was necessary to protect us. We have been failed and we deserve answers.”

Months after testifying, Biles is still unsure if she can continue working with the organizations she says failed her and her teammates. “I love the sport. I love the people that I work with. I love the girls that I trained with, but those organizations, it’s just like—ugh!” she said. “It’s just like a huge dumpster fire that we’re trying to get rid of and that I’m trying to stay as far away from so that my mental health can be intact and if I do decide to train again that I have a clean slate.”

Biles withdrew from several individual races during the Tokyo Olympics, citing “the twisties” and her mental health as reasons. During her interview with US Weekly, she said she could not ignore the feelings. “The mental aspect obviously got me during Tokyo and it’s like, some of those things you can’t ignore and my body didn’t ignore,” she said.

The gymnast is currently focusing on Athleta’s Gold Over America Tour, where she and other female athletes will display the power and beauty of women’s gymnastics. The event will stream on Stellar on December 4.