Gold-medalist Gabby Douglas endured years of racist taunts from her fellow gymnasts and almost quit the sport that has turned her into a household name.
Douglas spilled her guts to Oprah Winfrey earlier this week for an interview airing Sunday.
“I felt [I was] being bullied . . . I felt isolated,” said Douglas about her time training at a gym in Virginia, where she was berated with ridicule — and even referred to by another gymnast as a “slave.”
Her mom, Natalie Hawkins, told Winfrey that Douglas started asking to move away from their Virginia home at age 11 and even discussed abandoning her gymnastics career at 14.
Douglas is the first African-American gymnast to win the individual, and the first American to take both individual and team gold at the same Olympics.