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*Olympic gymnast Simone Biles has joined the scores of athletes who have accused former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar of sexual abuse.
In a letter shared via Twitter on Monday, Biles wrote, “Most of you know me as a happy, giggly, and energetic girl. But lately…I’ve felt a bit broken and the more I try to shut off the voice in my head the louder it screams. I am not afraid to tell my story anymore.”
“I too am one of the many survivors that was sexually abused by Larry Nassar,” continued the athlete. “Please believe me when I say it was a lot harder to first speak those words out loud than it is now to put them on paper. There are many reasons that I have been reluctant to share my story, but I know now it is not my fault.”
Calling Nassar’s alleged behavior “completely unacceptable, disgusting, and abusive,” Biles noted she was “told to trust” the doctor.
“For too long I’ve asked myself, ‘Was I too naive? Was it my fault?’ I now know the answers to those questions. No. No, it was not my fault. No, I will not and should not carry the guilt that belongs to Larry Nassar, USAG, and others.”
Biles said that it’s “difficult to relive these experiences,” and that she’s uneasy over having to train for the 2020 Olympics in the same facility where she was allegedly abused.
She said she was emboldened to speak out “after hearing the brave stories of my friends and other survivors,” and wants to help ensure that “something like this never happens again.”
Biles wrote in the letter, “I have promised myself that my story will be much greater than this and I promise all of you that I will never give up.”
Read in full below:
Feelings… ? #MeToo pic.twitter.com/ICiu0FCa0n
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) January 15, 2018
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