Sigh. After people decided to lambaste and bully her, gold medal Olympian Gabby Douglas has responded to her critics. This past week has not been easy for Douglas. People had a problem with her hair. People had a problem with her not putting her hand over her heart while the National Anthem played at the team’s medal ceremony. People thought she wasn’t happy for teammates Simone Biles and Aly Raisman during the all-around competition when she “didn’t clap hard enough.”
Really? Come on, people. Give it a rest. It’s not like she pulled a Hope Solo and called another Olympic team a “bunch of cowards.”
After finishing in seventh place in the finals for the uneven bars, Gabby Douglas spoke with reporters about how she pictured her competition in Rio turning out differently. The tide of the conversation turned when reporters brought up her social media criticisms.
“When they talk about my hair or me not putting my hand up on my heart or me being very salty in the stands, they’re really criticizing me, and it doesn’t really feel good,” Douglas said, tearfully, as The Washington Post reports. “It was a little bit hurtful.”
“Everything I’ve gone through has been a lot this time around,” Douglas said, “and I apologize if [I seemed] really mad in the stands. I wasn’t. I was supporting Aly. And I always will support them and respect them in everything they do. I never want anyone to take it as I was jealous or I wanted attention. Never. I support them, and I’m sorry that I wasn’t showing it.”
“I’ve been through a lot,” she added. “I still love them. I still love the people who love me. Still love them who hate me. I’m just going to stand on that.”
That’s right, Gabby. Stand on that.
