Gold medalist has faced criticism over her appearance and been attacked for being ‘unpatriotic’, mother notes, asking: ‘What did she ever do to anyone?’

The American gymnast Gabby Douglas has suffered a barrage of online abuse for her appearance and a perceived lack of patriotism, according to the three-time gold medalist’s mother.

“She’s had to deal with people criticizing her hair, or people accusing her of bleaching her skin,” Douglas’ mother, Natalie Hawkins, told Reuters in an interview on Sunday.

“They said she had breast enhancements, they said she wasn’t smiling enough, she’s unpatriotic. Then it went to not supporting your team-mates. Now you’re ‘Crabby Gabby’.”

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The 20-year-old gymnast, who represented the US in the 2012 London games and won gold medals in the team and individual all-around competitions, did not place her hand over her heart as the national anthem played during a medal ceremony last week, drawing accusations that she was not sufficiently patriotic. The abuse has left Douglas “heartbroken”, her mother said.

Douglas apologized over Twitter shortly afterward, writing: “In response to a few tweets I saw tonight, I always stand at attention out of respect for our country whenever the national anthem is played.”

“I never meant any disrespect and apologize if I offended anyone,” she added. “I’m so overwhelmed at what our team accomplished today and overjoyed that we were able to bring home another gold for our country!”

But her mother said that the online abuse has continued. “You name it and she got trampled,” Hawkins said. “What did she ever do to anyone?”

In 2012, Douglas became the first African American gymnast to win the all-around medal, but online critics attacked the athlete, then 16, for her hair, and a Fox News pundit accused her of lacking patriotism because her pink leotard was not red, white or blue. Much of the criticism in 2012 carried racial overtones, and Hawkins said that four years later, as the US struggles with demonstrations over race and policing, she often hears similar concerns.

“I don’t want to believe [it’s a race attack] as I want to have more faith,” she said, before acknowledging: “Our country has a lot of unrest and turmoil recently and people are frustrated.”

“Maybe they just want to vent and they just see someone innocent,” she said, “and bully them.”

But no matter the root of the abuse, Hawkins said she disagreed with its stated causes.

“I don’t think respecting your country or your flag boils down to whether you put your hand over your heart or not,” Hawkins said. “It’s in your actions towards your country – how well are you abiding by its laws, how well are you helping your fellow citizens?

Hawkins, who raised four children as single mother, noted that Douglas family has deep roots in the US military: the gymnast’s grandmother served 30 years and her grandfather was a veteran of the Vietnam war. “Because of that, it was so insulting that they would accuse my daughter of being unpatriotic when we are so tied to the military family,” she said. “When the Star-Spangled Banner is played, most military members either salute or stand to attention.”

She said she has advised her daughter to stay offline while the US team remains in competition. “They keep attacking her about not smiling but they don’t know what she is dealing with,” she said of the critics. “If they did, this would not be a conversation.”

Douglas and her team-mates have dominated the 2016 gymnastics competitions, led by 19-year-old Simone Biles, the winner of Rio’s all-around contest, and another 2012 veteran, 22-year-old Aly Raisman.

“We’ve been brought to many tears because I don’t know what she’s done to warrant such an attack,” Hawkins said. “She knows she still has a job to do for Team USA.”

“It’s a huge honor for me to be her mother as she’s the bravest person I know.”