Simone Biles and Dr. Larry Nassar (inset) [Image source: Imagn, Inset - Instagram/Nassar]

"You can only shove stuff down for so long" - Simone Biles recounts the horrors of Larry Nassar & how it led to a 'trauma response' at Tokyo Olympics

Modified Jul 17, 2024 17:23 GMT

Simone Biles has once again opened up about the abuse she suffered at hands of Larry Nassar, the disgraced USA gymnastics team doctor. She has stated that her struggles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was actually a trauma response.

Nassar used his position to prey upon hundreds of young girls, with some as young as eight years old. His victims include some of the biggest names in American sport, including McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, and Simone Biles.

In a new Netflix documentary titled 'Simone Biles Rising,' the American said that her struggles with the twisties at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was actually a trauma response.

"Everything that has happened I've just like, 'I'll push it down, shove it down, wait until my career's done, go fix it. Then something like this happens, and unfortunately, to me, it happened at the Olympics. It's a trauma response," she said.

"Your mind and your body is the first one to say, 'actually, no'. You just never know how you'll react when you start actually talking about that and trying to start the healing process... you can only shove stuff down for so long," she added.

Nassar is currently serving a life sentence without parole.

Simone Biles gears up 2024 Paris Olympics

Simone Biles has won 37 world and Olympic medals.

In her debut Olympics in Rio 2016, Simone Biles made her mark by winning four gold medals and one bronze medal. At the Tokyo Games four years later, she could only clinch one brone and one silver as she had to withdraw from the majority of her events in Japan after struggling with the “twisties” — a type of mental block that gymnasts face.

Biles immediately took a two-year break to prioritize her mental health. She stayed away from the limelight but did not shy away from speaking about her struggles. Last year, she made her comeback to the sport and immediately showed that she was just as good as before, if not better.

At the World Artistic Gymnastics Championship in Antwerp, the 27-year-old clinched four gold medals and one silver medal — and breaking many records in the process. With 37 world and Olympic medadls, she surpassed Vitaly Scherbo as the most successful gymnast of all time.

Biles also became the only gymnast besides Kohei Uchimura to win the all-around title six times at the event. Winning her sixth gold medal on floor saw the Texas resident become the first gymnast to win that many titles on one apparatus in the history of the competition.

This year, Biles has carried over form to the U.S. Classic and the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, winning medals and qualifying for the Olympic trials. There, she booked her spot at the Paris Olympics after finishing first in the all-around, second on uneven bars, fourth on balance beam, and first on floor exercise.