Gymnast MyKayla Skinner apologizes for critical Olympic team comments

Originally appeared on E! Online

MyKayla Skinner is addressing backlash over her comments about Team USA.

After sparking controversy with a since-deleted YouTube video, the retired Olympic gymnast issued an apology.

"I feel like a lot of you guys had misinterpreted or misunderstood exactly what I was meaning or had said," Skinner shared in a July 3 Instagram Story video. "A lot of the stuff that I was talking about wasn't always necessarily about the current team, because I love and support all the girls that made it and I'm so proud of them."

"It was more about going back into my own gym," the 27-year-old continued, adding that the "work ethic is different" compared to when "we were doing gymnastics" with former national team coordinator Márta Károlyi. "And I'm not sticking up for Márta or saying what she did was good, I'm just saying it was different."

Skinner went on to note it wasn't her intention to hurt anyone's feelings with her comments.

"Sorry for anything that got out of context or seemed hurtful," the athlete added. "Throughout the video, I was so pumped for the girls and it was so fun watching trials and doing a live with everybody.”

"I love those girls and I'm seriously so happy for them," Skinner said. "I would never do anything to make them feel otherwise. So, sorry if that came out wrong, that was not my intentions at all."

In her YouTube video, Skinner — who stepped in for Simone Biles at the Tokyo Olympics, winning a silver medal on vault — shared her thoughts on the new era of gymnasts.

"Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn't like what it used to be," she said. "Just notice like, I mean, obviously a lot of girls don't work as hard."

"The girls just don't have the work ethic," Skinner added. "And it's hard too because of SafeSport. Like, coaches can't get on athletes and they have to be really careful what they say. Which, in some ways is really good, but at the same time, to get to where you need to be in gymnastics you do have to be, I feel like, a little aggressive and a little intense."

Skinner's comments were quickly met with backlash on social media.

In fact, on July 3, Biles seemingly weighed in on the controversy, posting on Threads, "not everyone needs a mic and a platform."