Simone Biles releases statement saying she was assaulted by former gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar

Julio Cortez/AP

• Simone Biles on Monday released a statement alleging she was sexually abused by former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar.
• Biles is one of 140 women to accuse Nassar of sexual assault and molestation.
• Nassar has already pleaded guilty to charges of child pornography and is expected to be sentence to life in prison for sexual assault charges.

Simone Biles is the latest member of the USA Gymnastics team to allege she was sexually assaulted by former team doctor Larry Nassar.

Biles on Monday released a statement via Twitter saying coming forward in the “Me Too” movement was difficult but she was inspired by her teammates. Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, and former US gymnast McKayla Maroney also alleged they were sexually assaulted by Nassar.

“I too am one of the many survivors that was sexually abused by Larry Nassar,” Biles wrote. “Please believe me when I say it was a lot harder to first speak those words out loud than it is now to put them on paper. There are many reasons that l have been reluctant to share my story, but I know now it is not my fault.”

Over 140 women have accused Nassar of abuse and molestation. According to USA Today, Nassar will be tried on seven sexual assault charges and is expected to be sentence to life in prison this week. Nassar was also sentenced to 60 years in prison for child pornography charges.

“It is not normal to receive any type of treatment from a trusted team physician and refer to it horrifyingly as the ‘special’ treatment,” Biles wrote. “This behavior is completely unacceptable, disgusting, and abusive, especially coming from someone whom I was TOLD to trust.”

Nassar was accused of digitally penetrating gymnasts under the guise of treatment.

“It is impossibly difficult to relive these experiences and it breaks my heart even more to think that as I work towards my dream of competing in Tokyo 2020, I will have to continually return to the same training facility where I was abused,” Biles wrote.

Biles said her experiences would not stop her from competing, however.

“I have promised myself that my story will be much greater than this and I promise all of you that I will never give up. I will compete with all of my heart and soul every time I step into the gym. I love this sport too much and I have never been a quitter. I won’t let one man, and the others that enabled him, to steal my love and joy.”

Read Biles’ entire statement below: