Beyond Simone Biles & Others’ Career Successes, Biased Judgment Still Haunts Gymnastics Coach: “Say Something Crazy”

Pushing to add gymnastics to the athletics departments of the historically Black colleges and universities was not an easy task. But an Amos P. Godby High School alumna was determined to get her way. Derrin Moore founded the Brown Girls Do Gymnastics organization in 2015 to support her cause and found success years later. But how did she take the initiative in the first place?

Her organization aims to give access to gymnastics to girls belonging to the Black community and give them a fairer chance at success in the field. All this came about after a pivotal judging incident during a competition, left Moore dissatisfied.

The incident that led Moore to start Brown Girls Do Gymnastics

On NBC’s “My New Favorite Olympian” podcast, Simone Biles’ close friend Jordan Chiles shared her involvement with Brown Girls Do Gymnastics. Derrin Moore, who also joined the podcast, recounted a moment at a rural Georgia competition where her team of brown girls faced biased judgment.

Moore proclaimed, “We were in rural Georgia and all of our girls did really well on the vault. I mean to the point that like at least two of the girls on that team had just won state competition the year before for vault you know… They’re vaulting and they keep getting the scores are super low like sixes and seven and I was like what is going on.”

Moore decided to confront the judge to ask what was going on. Narrating the incident further, Moore said the judge, “tapped me on my hand. I always remember that part, it was like she’s about to say something crazy.”

According to Moore, the judge casually dismissed her concerns and patronizingly commented, “‘You know, don’t worry. You’re doing a really good job keeping these girls off the street.’ I was just like wait a second.” 

This remark struck a nerve with Moore, highlighting the judge’s prejudiced assumption that these girls must come from troubled backgrounds. She emphasized, “Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but, you know, it was just like everybody comes from a different background,” noting that some of the girls’ parents were well-off. It’s important to note that this bias existed despite the rise of gymnasts such as Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas, and others from the Black and Brown communities who came before them.

In the 2012 London Olympics, Douglas became the first African-American woman to win the individual all-around gold. By 2015, Biles was also a three-time World all-around champion, hence, these biases wouldn’t have sat well with Moore.

Frustrated but determined, Moore channeled that anger into creating Brown Girls Do Gymnastics, aiming to challenge stereotypes and provide opportunities for young girls in the Black community in the sport.

The organization was founded as a subsidiary of Brown Girls Do, an Atlanta-based advocacy organization promoting Black women and girls in various fields. Moore approached TaKiyah Wallace, the founder of Brown Girls Do, about adding a gymnastics unit and the rest is history.

In 2018, Jordan Chiles, who had finished second in the individual all-around at the 2017 Nationals, chose to support Moore’s organization. In the NBC podcast, she highlighted the reason behind her choice.

“I like giving back to my to any community um I’m a giver this is my love language so knowing that I have the ability to you know help fund or do do anything to support their Foundation definitely makes me feel in position to just give out the love,” Chiles said. The endorsement from a rising star like Chiles, motivated Moore further.

In 2020, she began pitching gymnastic programs to HBCU presidents and athletic directors, but was met with rejections. Moore kept banging on the door and Fisk University answered in 2022.

How Derrin Moore and Brown Girls Do Gymnastics made history?

Derrin Moore and Brown Girls Do Gymnastics set out to make a real difference. According to NCAA data, in 2021, only 9% of Division I athletes on women’s college gymnastics teams identified as Black women, a statistic that BGDG looked to change.

In 2016, she started an Instagram account called Brown Girls Do Gymnastics, hoping to raise the sport’s profile among Black Americans, coinciding with the rise of Olympic stars like Simone Biles and Gabby Douglas. Over the years, they pushed for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to embrace gymnastics programs, giving black gymnasts a shot at pursuing their athletic dreams without having to forego an HBCU education.

Then, in January 2022, Fisk University in Tennessee made history by launching the first-ever HBCU gymnastics team—42 years after the sport was introduced to colleges and universities.

Jordynn Cromartie, a talented gymnast torn between her dreams and practicality, was set to join Utah State’s team when a dinner chat with her uncle, a Fisk board member, sparked a game-changing question: ‘Why not Fisk?’ Jordynn’s answer—that HBCUs lacked gymnastics teams—provoked action.

Her uncle dialed up Derrin Moore, setting off a chain of events that would make history. With a compelling pitch and the backing of a generous donation, Moore convinced Fisk’s trustees that gymnastics at an HBCU was not just possible but crucial.

Enter Corrine Tarver, a trailblazer in NCAA gymnastics, now leading the Fisk Bulldogs. Her recruiting pitch was simple yet powerful: “Want to be a part of history?” And just like that, the Fisk Bulldogs gymnastics team was born, all thanks to Derrin Moore and Brown Girls Do Gymnastics.

In February 2023, Talladega College in Alabama, became the second HBCU campus to launch a women’s gymnastics program with the help of BGDG. Moore’s efforts and persistence have begun to pay off after all.

Today, gymnasts like Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles have partnered with the nonprofit, shining a spotlight on Moore’s inspiring mission. What are your thoughts on this incredible journey? Share in the comments below!