Savannah Guthrie reunited with figure skater Gracie Gold on Tuesday's edition of Today, where the Olympic athlete spoke about her new tell-all memoir, in which she opens up about her struggle with mental illness.
Back in 2017, Gracie, a two-time U.S. national champion, took a break from skating to receive treatment for anxiety, depression and an eating disorder, all of which she discusses in her new book, Outofshapeworthlessloser – the name Gracie gave to the self-destructive voice inside her head.
The book also details when Gracie was sexually assaulted by a fellow skater at the age of 21. During Savannah's interview, the 52-year-old revealed that it "broke her heart" to read of the athlete's ordeal. Watch the moment in the video below.
Asking Gracie about the traumatic incident, Savannah said: "You really had to overcome a lot of traumas. You talk about your eating disorder and for the first time in this book, you talk about being raped at the age of 21 by a fellow skater in a chapter that broke my heart called 'Innocence Lost'. Are you hoping it will heal you to speak about it?"
© Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesGracie, 28, responded: "In a lot of ways, I already healed prior to the memoir. I needed to for myself but I had to put it in because it was a huge turning point in my life in terms of we turned and went downhill pretty quickly after that.
"I set out to write a hard-hitting memoir that was dark at times, funny in others and it felt inauthentic to leave that chapter of my life out."
Savannah went on to say that the U.S. Center for SafeSport, a nonprofit organization created in 2017 to reduce the sexual abuse of athletes, said there was "an unacceptable delay" in dealing with the investigation.
When asked if the investigation is still ongoing, Gracie said: "To my knowledge, it's still open. There was a delay but at that time, SafeSport was really new and with the waiting times, I didn't know what that process was. I just felt like I had to report it and say something about this person.
© NBC"I think we're moving towards a better future," she added.
Sharing her current attitude towards the sport, Gracie went on to say: "I still love skating and I want to say that again and again. It's just the culture and there are some toxic people in it."
Gracie's memoir reveals the "exclusive and harrowing story of her struggles in and out of the pressure-packed world of elite figure skating: the battles with her family, her coaches, the powers-that-be at her federation, and her deteriorating mental health", according to the synopsis.
© @graciegold95/Instagram"Told with unflinching honesty and stirring defiance, Outofshapeworthlessloser is not only a forceful reckoning from a world-class athlete but also an intimate account of surviving as a young woman in a society that rewards appearances more than anything and demands perfection at all costs."
