I follow Jasmine onstage, letting her take the seat closest to Cynthia, who greets her warmly. In contrast to the dimly lit backstage, the lighting here is bright and white and blinding. Cynthia, clad in a pearly pink dress with a neat bob and gravity-defying eyelashes, looks like a Real Housewives star in the sense that she could just as easily be thirty-five or fifty. She says hello and asks how I am, but I’m too nervous to squeak out anything more than a hello. She and Jasmine make pleasant small talk, which seems frankly insane to me with just seconds to go before we’re on live television, but Jasmine looks unfussed. I’m relieved that she’s settling into her element.

“The producer says it’s Jasmine Floyd, not Floyd-Federov now, right?” Cynthia confirms.

“Floyd’s perfect, thanks,” Jasmine says.

Cynthia cocks her head like she’s connecting the dots. “You’re leaving your husband the coach, and speaking out about abuse in the sport?” she asks slowly.

Jasmine freezes next to me. “Well, um…”

“Five, four,” the cameraman calls out.

Cynthia raises an eyebrow, shuffles her papers, and clears her throat.

The cameraman falls silent, flashing three fingers, then two fingers, then pointing straight at us.

“Welcome back. The Olympics are just around the corner, but before you get too excited about watching the gymnastics, you might want to hear what two former athletes are saying about the sport,” Cynthia begins. Her voice is strong and smooth like honey. “Olympic gymnast Jasmine Floyd and her former teammate Avery Abrams claim that the culture of competitive gymnastics puts young athletes at risk, and they’re launching a new organization called the Elite Gymnastics Foundation to offer these gymnasts what they believe is much-needed support. Ladies, tell us more.”

“Thanks for having us, Cynthia. It’s always great to be here,” Jasmine says weakly.

We’ve practiced that Jasmine will deliver the announcement of the foundation, but now she seems shaken. I glance at her, unsure if I should take over her lines. On live television, every second feels like it stretches out for ten minutes. But finally, thankfully, she collects herself and launches into the speech we wrote together.