Controversial comments from former U.S. gymnast Mikayla Skinner have the U.S. gymnastics team in the spotlight ahead of the Paris Olympics later this month.
Skinner, 27, said USA Gymnastics’ “talent and depth is not what it used to be” and argued that the current culture at the organization means “the girls aren’t working as hard as they used to.”
Skinner’s comments caught the attention of Shawn Johnson, an Olympic medalist who won one gold medal and three silver medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
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Johnson denied Skinner’s allegations and expressed confidence in the gymnastics team that would travel to Paris to represent the United States.
“I think we have an incredibly strong team,” Johnson told Yahoo Sports’ Caroline Fenton.
“As far as difficulty and score, I think we’re ahead by a number of points, so as long as they come out and do their job, I don’t think we have any worries.”
This year’s team includes the legendary Simone Biles, current all-around champion Suni Lee, Jordan Childs, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera, with Childs and Carey having competed in Tokyo and Rivera, a 16-year-old phenom.
Johnson also rejected any criticism of the culture at USA Gymnastics.
“I think our team, the atmosphere and the atmosphere at USA Gymnastics in general is just different than it’s ever been. I think there’s been a lot of really large-scale organizational changes, and you can see that with the age of our girls and how well they’re doing,” Johnson said.
“They’re having more fun. They’re engaging with each other. They seem lighter, they seem happier. They seem to really enjoy the sport.”
The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics will begin with the Opening Ceremony on Friday, July 26th and run until Sunday, August 11th.
The U.S. gymnastics team will begin competition on Sunday, July 28, with the women’s preliminaries.
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