Gabby Douglas says she was ‘homeless, bullied’ before winning Olympic gold

Washington: Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas has penned a new book that reveals how tough her life was before she became was one of the shining stars of the 2012 London Olympics.

As the 16-year-old, Douglas recalled in her new book, "Grace, Gold & Glory," she started out life homeless, her family living in the back of a van for nearly a year after she was born. One of the few African Americans in the sport of gymnastics, Douglas claimed she was cruelly taunted by her former coach and teammates at Excalibur Gym, in Virginia Beach, who told her to get a nose job and sometimes described her as "their slave,”. However, Douglas wrote that her Olympic dreams never wavered. “Yes I`ve had a lot of hardships in my life and in my career, but I never let that hurt what I do in the gym. I`ve always put my heart into gymnastics and pushed myself every single day, no matter what else was going on,” she said. ANI