Gabby Douglas is the third member of the 2012 U.S. Olympic team to say she was abused by then-USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar.
“It would be like saying that because of the leotards we wore, it was our fault that we were abused by Larry Nassar,” was part of a post on Douglas’ Instagram on Tuesday apologizing for a Friday tweet that generated criticism. “I didn’t publicly share my experiences as well as many other things because for years we were conditioned to stay silent and honestly some things were extremely painful.”
They marked Douglas’ first public comments about Nassar since many gymnasts said starting last year that the doctor sexually abused them under the guise of medical treatment.
It wasn’t totally clear from her post whether Douglas, the 2012 Olympic all-around champion, said she was abused, but one of her representatives confirmed it, according to multiple reports.
Douglas’ post came four days after her comment on teammate Aly Raisman‘s tweet generated criticism (see below).
Raisman said two weeks ago that she was sexually abused by Nassar while on the national team.
A third 2012 Olympian, McKayla Maroney, said last month that she was sexually abused by Nassar during her national-team career.
Nassar is in jail in Michigan awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography.
He’s also awaiting trial on separate criminal sexual conduct charges and has been sued by more than 125 women alleging abuse.
Nassar pleaded not guilty to the assault charges but is expected to change pleas to guilty Wednesday and on Nov. 29 in bids to close criminal cases against him.
“We are appalled by the conduct of which Larry Nassar is accused, and we are very sorry that any athlete has been harmed during her or his gymnastics career,” USA Gymnastics said in a statement last week. “Aly’s passion and concern for athlete safety is shared by USA Gymnastics. Our athletes are our priority, and we are committed to promoting an environment of empowerment that encourages speaking up, especially on difficult topics like abuse, as well the protection of athletes at all levels throughout our gymnastics community.”
Douglas last competed at the Rio Olympics and has not publicly said whether she will return to competition.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
