simone biles on the courage of surviving assault

In the wake of the devastating revelations about the system of sexual abuse in U.S. women’s gymnastics perpetrated by Larry Nassar, Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles is opening up about her assault, and the courage she raised to face her ordeal. Using words like “relief” and “empowerment”, Biles shared how speaking out against abuse has endowed her with a strength she didn’t have before. “It was very hard but I figured out that if I can tell my story then it might encourage other people to tell theirs,” says the 21-year-old gold medalist told BBC Sports. “I think it was very important to support the fellow gymnasts it had happened to and to speak up for what you believe in and say ‘I don’t think this is right’ and I hope I gave them [the] courage to come out and tell their stories one day if they want to.”