Fisk, being the first ever Historically Black College or University to have a gymnastics program in 2022, is now facing a new kind of spotlight where a key voice from within the program is revealing the internal culture that led to the end of the program.

Naimah Muhammad is breaking her silence on the 'profound distress' that forced her retirement from Fisk University. The gymnastics pioneer stepped away in March 2026, citing a toxic administrative culture. She alleges that leadership failures and the loss of professional coaching led to the program's collapse.

Naimah Muhammad, a pioneer at Fisk, released a statement through Gymnastics Now, revealing that the environment at Fisk had become a source of profound distress rather than pride. She expressed her anxiety attacks ahead of her competition days and the feeling that she was being set up to fail.

This internal pressure had finally led to her shocking decision to retire in March, just a month earlier, before the NCAA Gymnastics Championships 2026 would begin in April.

The shock of her early retirement is the result of the communication breakdown. In her statement, she spoke about how gymnasts often felt like a “burden” to the school, and it was difficult to have a clear conversation about the program with the administration.

"Throughout the season, I dealt with inconsistencies through the new leadership in an unsustainable environment such as inappropriate language, lack of preparation for practices, and favoritism. In my experience that showed through not being spoken to or acknowledged for entire practices, relying on my teammates for assistance." She said.

At Fisk, the administration failure began with the replacement of the professional coach with the school's social media manager. Muhammad stated that it was "devastating to lose someone who meant so much to us.”

She also highlighted how, after the departure of the key coach, the athletes never received any clear communication from the administration regarding the untimely decision.

"The communication between athletes and administration was little to none and any feeling of appreciation was crushed. We were anxious, hesitant, and wary about who would be our new coach going into year three, and it wasn’t until the month before Fall 2024 semester began that our social media manager (now interim head coach) was formally announced as the new asst. coach, someone many of us were uneasy about from the beginning." She said.

The third year into the program devolved into a “battle between Fisk gymnastics and the new leadership,” creating a hazy environment where athletes were no longer competing for the scores but for the “lack of transparency and accountability.”

"I have waited until the end of the season to finally speak my truth, not to bring shame to the amazing program that we built, or tarnish a legacy, but to bring light and awareness to the well-being of student-athletes at all colleges and universities, especially HBCUs, and to show young girls you should always advocate and speak up for yourself." Naimah concluded.

Naimah Muhammad's Legacy

Naimah's legacy began in 2022 after becoming the first-ever gymnast to enroll in Fisk University's new program. She was the first person to compete for the Historically Black College or University gymnastics team.

At Fisk, she was the national icon of the Lady Bulldog2023 wass. Her best score was 9.725 in the NCAA Competition on Floor Exercise at George Washington in 2023.

Her performance of 9.600 on the floor in Las Vegas in 2023, was the first routine by any HBCU gymnast in history. She also played an important role in her Lady Bulldogs' record-breaking score of 194.600 at Missouri in 2025.

Muhammad chose to retire in March 2026 before the program's official conclusion. As highlighted by Capital B News, her presence on the mat has inspired a sea of young Black girls, which proves her achievement was not about scores entirely but about the space she created for an entire generation of athletes.

Read more at Gymnastics Digest!

Written by

Sebi Mehta

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi