McKayla Maroney shock retirement: Everything to know about the Olympic medalist quitting gymnastics at 20 which was linked to Larry Nassar's scandal

Olympic gold-medalist and world champion McKayla Maroney retired from gymnastics in early 2016. Many expected to see her competing in the Rio Olympics, and were taken aback by her decision.

The gymnast announced her exit from the sport in an interview with the GymCastic Podcast on February 23, 2016. Her agent confirmed the news a day later.

“I don’t want anybody to ever think that McKayla is retiring. I don’t even want people to use that word. The only difference is I’m not competing anymore.”

Leading up to 2016, McKayla was forced to deal with multiple setbacks. She struggled with several injuries, including a broken toe in her right foot, a fractured left tibia on her left leg, and a knee surgery.

Speaking in an Inside Gymnastics interview, McKayla Maroney described what she felt when she fractured her tibia:

“I thought that somebody in the crowd shot me in the leg. When your tibia fractures, it’s the loudest bone that breaks in the body. So I heard a gunshot, and it wasn’t a gunshot. It was my leg snapping, my tibia snapping. It didn’t even hurt.”

Many assumed that the injuries were the cause of the Olympic medalist's early retirement. However, in October 2017, she alleged that USA team physician Larry Nassar had repeatedly molested her, starting when she was 13-years-old, up until her retirement.

In December, the same year, Maroney filed a suit against Nassar, Michigan State University, the United States Olympic Committee and USA Gymnastics.

She accused the United States Olympic committee and USA Gymnastics of covering up the sexual abuse by asking her to sign a $1.25 million confidentiality agreement, which she accepted.

Since then fans have speculated that the reason behind McKayla's retirement includes the sexual abuse she faced at the hands of Larry Nassar.

What does McKayla Maroney do now?

McKayla Maroney enjoyed a storied gymnastics career, winning a gold in the team event, and a silver in the vault at the 2012 London Olympics. She also has three world championships golds to her name, one in the team event and two in the vault.

After her retirement, the gymnast focused her talents on singing. She released three singles in 2020, titled Wake Up Call, Covid Lockdown, and Spose To Do. She even made guest appearances on a few TV shows including Hart of Dixie, Bones, and Superstore.

As of now McKayla has 1.4 million followers on Instagram and runs a page called Glowy that deals with all things wellness, beauty and mental health.