Simone Biles says her Olympic return is driven by a desire to use her voice to spotlight historic abuse in gymnastics
Advertisement
Will Martin,Barnaby Lane
Apr 15, 2021, 20:05 IST
Screenshot/NBC's Today
Simone Biles' return to gymnastics is driven by a desire to provide a voice for abuse victims.
Biles is the only victim of Larry Nassar still competing in elite gymnastics.
Nassar was convicted of sexually assaulting more than 265 minors dating back to 1993.
Advertisement
Simone Biles says that representing the US at the Tokyo Olympics this summer is not just about winning gold medals but also ensuring that survivors of abuse within American gymnastics have a voice.
John Geddert, who was head coach of the women's gymnastics team in 2012 and worked closely with Nassar, was charged with sexual assault and human trafficking last month. On the day charges against him were publicly announced, Geddert died by suicide.
Biles is the only publicly known victim of Nassar who is still competing in elite gymnastics, as teammates like Aly Raisman, McKayla Maroney, and Gabby Douglas - all of whom spoke publicly about their abuse at Nassar's hands - have now retired from the sport.
That, she said, means she has a duty to speak out.
"I feel like gymnastics wasn't the only thing I was supposed to come back for," Biles told Today's Hoda Kotb. "Because I feel like if there weren't a remaining survivor in the sport, they would've just brushed it to the side.
"Since I'm still here, and I have quite a social media presence and platform, they have to do something. So I feel like coming back, gymnastics just wasn't the only purpose I was supposed to do."
"We need to know who knew what, when, and how we can stop this from ever happening again," she said.
Asked in the same interview if she believes the full truth will ever come to light about the scale of abuse in gymnastics in the US, Biles added: "No, they're [USA Gymnastics] gonna hide it because it's their organization, and they're protecting them."
In response to Raisman's call for an investigation, USA Gymnastics said in March that it has "fully cooperated" with six independent investigations that have been led by "several congressional committees" and an "independent law firm."
NewsletterSIMPLY PUT - where we join the dots to inform and inspire you. Sign up for a weekly brief collating many news items into one untangled thought delivered straight to your mailbox.