Hi, everyone.
I haven't posted in a long, long time. I took a break from following gymnastics. But like everyone else, I have followed the Nassar case. Pretty much everything that could be said about this tragedy has already been said, but there is one person about whom I feel we cannot say enough - Mattie.
I am just gutted for her, or at least for the person she was back then. Thankfully, it sounds like she has come a long way since leaving elite. But my heart still breaks for her. I feel so badly that she was suffering so much while we were sitting in the stands or in front of the TV admiring her beautiful floor routines.
She, more than any of her teammates who have spoken out, was brave enough to identify specific people at USAG who mistreated her, and how they enabled Larry Nassar. What kills me the most is that, if she had told her story even just two years ago, if she had stood alone, without the support of all these other women, everyone would have maligned her - just like they did to Dominique Moceanu and Jennifer Sey, and Jamie Dantzscher when she first accused Nassar. They would have called her a whiner. They would have accused her of being bitter about the way her elite career ended, or wanting her fifteen minutes of fame. They would have pointed to her performance at 2010 Worlds as an example that she simply wasn't mentally tough enough for the sport.
I am devastated that this revelation of mass sexual abuse had to occur before anyone paid any attention to the other forms of abuse these athletes suffered. I feel so distressed that all this probably had to happen before anyone would have taken Mattie seriously. My heart just aches for her, and I wanted to give her a hug throughout her entire impact statement. I still want to give her a hug!
I find myself wondering if there is anything we can do for her now - other than make the changes she and all the others so rightfully deserve. Any ideas?
Edit: How about an appreciation thread?
Mattie Larson
I haven't posted in a long, long time. I took a break from following gymnastics. But like everyone else, I have followed the Nassar case. Pretty much everything that could be said about this tragedy has already been said, but there is one person about whom I feel we cannot say enough - Mattie.
I am just gutted for her, or at least for the person she was back then. Thankfully, it sounds like she has come a long way since leaving elite. But my heart still breaks for her. I feel so badly that she was suffering so much while we were sitting in the stands or in front of the TV admiring her beautiful floor routines.
She, more than any of her teammates who have spoken out, was brave enough to identify specific people at USAG who mistreated her, and how they enabled Larry Nassar. What kills me the most is that, if she had told her story even just two years ago, if she had stood alone, without the support of all these other women, everyone would have maligned her - just like they did to Dominique Moceanu and Jennifer Sey, and Jamie Dantzscher when she first accused Nassar. They would have called her a whiner. They would have accused her of being bitter about the way her elite career ended, or wanting her fifteen minutes of fame. They would have pointed to her performance at 2010 Worlds as an example that she simply wasn't mentally tough enough for the sport.
I am devastated that this revelation of mass sexual abuse had to occur before anyone paid any attention to the other forms of abuse these athletes suffered. I feel so distressed that all this probably had to happen before anyone would have taken Mattie seriously. My heart just aches for her, and I wanted to give her a hug throughout her entire impact statement. I still want to give her a hug!
I find myself wondering if there is anything we can do for her now - other than make the changes she and all the others so rightfully deserve. Any ideas?
Edit: How about an appreciation thread?
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