Gymnastics-Culture change seeks to produce happier US women athletes

KATY, Texas : U.S. women's gymnastics, long associated with intense pressure placed on the shoulders of young girls, has entered a new era that prioritizes happiness and career longevity, former Olympians now in leadership roles said.

Not long ago the typical career of an elite gymnast was short and existed in a culture that controlled every aspect of the athlete's schedule, conditioning and diet.

Following a high-profile sexual abuse scandal that broke in 2016, however, physical and mental health issues have been dealt with more sensitively and USA Gymnastics is putting the athletes first, the former gymnasts said.

"Times have changed a lot," Alicia Sacramone Quinn, a two-time Olympian who is now a national coordinator for USA Gymnastics, said during a training camp near Houston this month.

"When we were growing up it was acceptable, or they thought it was acceptable, to be that demanding," she said.

"We are actively trying to break that trend. Instead of coming from a place of power and fear, we want to lift them up and make them feel that they can accomplish anything they dream of if they work hard enough.

"We're here as more of a positive influence for them rather than somebody that they are intimidated by."

Disgraced former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing young female gymnasts entrusted to his care and in 2021 his victims reached a $380 million settlement with USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee.

A more cheerful mood around team training was evident, however, in Texas, where four-times Olympic gold medallist Simone Biles and her team mates smiled and laughed between executing their jaw-dropping feats on vault, floor, balance beam