After suffering from a “medical issue,” Simone Biles withdrew from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics women’s gymnastics team finals. The gold medalist is still being assessed for further competition, but her fans are already calling her the greatest of all time, no matter what might happen in Tokyo this summer.
Biles last competed in team finals on the vault, where she was seen walking off the mat and being attended to by the Team USA doctor Marcia Faustin before leaving the arena entirely. Shortly after her departure, USA Gymnastics released an official statement about her withdrawal from the team finals, “Simone Biles has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue. She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.” The American team of Sunisa Lee, Grace McCallum and Jordan Chiles, who was subbed in to compete in the uneven bars in place of Biles, went on to win silver without the gold medalist, with the Russian team taking gold. Biles returned to support her teammates, congratulating them and hugging them on the sidelines after their silver medal win.
It’s unclear what the medical issue might be, or whether or not the four-time gold medalist will continue to compete at the Olympics. Biles has qualified for all four event finals later in the Games and is scheduled to compete in the all-around finals, which she won at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, on Thursday.
The pressure on Simone Biles heading into the Tokyo Olympics was enormous. Not only because of the expectations thrust on her by fans and the media (she even had her own Twitter emoji of a goat to symbolize her greatest of all time status), but also because she was unable to have her family come with her as a support system. On Monday she shared an emotional Instagram post where she admitted that pressure can be a real struggle to overcome, especially when she doesn’t feel she performed at her best, “it wasn’t an easy day or my best but I got through it. I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times. I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn’t affect me but damn sometimes it’s hard hahaha! The olympics is no joke! BUT I’m happy my family was able to be with me virtually. they mean the world to me!”
Biles’ future at the Tokyo Olympics remains unknown. But she has already won so much. Not just by being an incredible athlete, but also by cheering on her teammates and being a positive role model for kids everywhere. Medals or no medals.
0 comments:
Post a Comment