American Olympic medalist Jordan Chiles is hoping to return from the Paris Games with gold after being a part of the team’s silver medal in Tokyo three years ago.
As Chiles prepped for the Olympics, she recalled in an interview with Teen Vogue the racism she experienced as she grew up in the sport. She talked about one incident when she was young.
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"Some lady in the crowd basically was like, ‘She doesn’t deserve to be on the floor. She doesn’t even look like anybody else,’" Chiles said. "People were racially attacking me without me even really knowing. I’m young, so I only know the story because my mom told me.
"Security had to come and say, ‘Ma’am, she’s doing everything just like everybody else.’ I’ve gotten medals taken away from me. I’ve been told that my mom wasn’t my mom. I’ve gotten told that I wasn’t Black."
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Chiles then spoke of the advice she gives to those growing up around the sport who experience similar racism as she did.
"I can tell the younger generation, ‘Look, if this ever happens, use your voice, say what you need to say. And if you get kicked out of the gym, you get kicked out of the gym,’" she told the magazine. "But at least you were able to stand up for yourself. At least you were able to tell them how you truly feel."
The women’s gymnastics portion of the Olympics begins Sunday with the team final set for Tuesday.
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