McKayla Skinner, the 2020 Olympic silver medalist, issued an apology Saturday for comments criticizing the work ethic of some members of the U.S. 2024 team.
The 27-year-old gymnast had received considerable criticism in the gymnastics community for a post-Olympic Trials YouTube stream in which she said team members other than Simone Biles lacked work ethic, something she partly blamed on the U.S. Center for Safe Sport. The video has since been removed, but The clips remain on social media.
The crux of Skinner’s comments:
“Other than Simone, I feel like the talent and depth isn’t what it used to be. I mean, obviously a lot of girls don’t try as hard. Girls just don’t have the work ethic. It’s also hard because of SafeSport. Coaches can’t push athletes and they have to be very careful with what they say, which in some ways is great, but at the same time, to get to where you need to be in gymnastics you have to be a little aggressive, a little intense.”
SafeSport is the organization charged with preventing sexual abuse of athletes, which has been a widespread problem for USA Gymnastics for decades.
Skinner initially responded to the backlash with A quick video in which he said his comments were misinterpreted.but capitulated three days later with a full apology, saying he was trying to overcome “the emotional and verbal abuse” he suffered while training with former national team coordinator Márta Károlyi.
Among the many gymnasts and fans who criticized Skinner before the apology was Biles, who posted “Not everyone needs a microphone and a platform”” via Thursday’s Threads.
Skinner won her vault silver medal in Tokyo after filling in for Biles as an alternate in the event, where the star was the heavy favorite to take gold until her struggles with the twists derailed her Olympic program. Brazilian Rebeca Andrade won the event in her place.
After giving birth to her first child in September, Skinner did not compete for the 2024 Paris team. The team for this Olympics will include a resurgent Biles, 2020 all-around champion Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Hezley Rivera. All of those gymnasts, with the exception of Rivera, competed alongside Skinner in Tokyo.
Depth may be an issue for Team USA, but mostly because of injuries. Three different gymnasts with strong chances of making the team (Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely and Kayla DiCello) had to withdraw from the competition due to significant injuries.