Laurie Hernandez Talks How She Deals With 'Really Harsh' Trolls on Social Media

Laurie Hernandez Talks How She Deals With 'Really Harsh' Trolls on Social Media

Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez may be a gold medalist, but she still has to deal with trolls on social media.

“Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, they can be really harsh places,” the 17-year-old said in a new interview. “People feel some sense of empowerment, whether good or bad, when they are behind a screen and a username.”

“I’m always on social media, of course,” she continued to People, “so I’ve learned to ignore the online trolls in the comments, because I’ve realized that if you met that person in real life, they would never say that to your face. And if someone is mean, I’m like, ‘Well what are you going to do about it? You’re behind a screen!’”

Laurie also revealed that body-shaming “happens in sports,” but that her teammates help her to get through it.

She definitely isn’t alone. Her teammate Aly Raisman spoke out about staying positive and bullying earlier this summer.

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Photos: WENN
Posted to: Laurie Hernandez