Four years ago, Gabby Douglas was the darling of the U.S. women's gymnastics team, winning the all-around competition and leading the team to a gold medal as well at the London Games.
In 2016, Douglas was no longer the team's star. That would be Simone Biles who won the all-around gold this year, but Douglas did help the team to the gold with her performance on the uneven bars. When the team took to the medal podium to receive their golds as the U.S. national anthem played, there were some upset by Douglas not putting her hand over her heart.
That small gesture, or lack thereof, was enough to turn some against the woman who had been a national sensation in 2012. There were columns written about how it was disrespectful and nasty tweets directed at Douglas for an innocuous thing that she even apologized for later.
"I tried to stay off the internet because there's just so much negativity," Douglas told reporters on Sunday. "Either it was about my hair or my hand not over my heart [on the medal podium] or I look depressed. ... It was hurtful. It was hurtful. It was. It's been kind of a lot to deal with."
This is an athlete that's twice competed for the United States in the Olympics and has helped the team win two gold medals, but her standing at attention on the podium rather than putting hand over heart is enough to incite anger. Douglas, like many, finds it hard to believe these criticisms exist because she does do this for her country.
"When I heard some of the comments, I was finally like 'Whoa, whoa, whoa, that's far from me and far from my personality at all," Douglas said. "I've been through a lot. A lot. Sometimes I sit back and say, 'Wait. What did I do to disrespect people? What have I done to disrespect the USA?'"
"I don't get that part," Douglas said. "I'm sorry."
After congratulating her teammate Madison Kocian on her silver medal in the uneven bars and speaking to reporters, Douglas was seen in tears as she scrolled through her phone undoubtedly seeing more hateful mentions on social media.
