Simone Biles flooded with support as she drops out of team gymnastics final at Tokyo 2020
‘We’re all still rooting for Simone Biles’, says CNN’s host Omar Jimenez after 24-year-old’s withdrawal
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Your support makes all the difference.Simon Biles revived an outpouring of support from her fans and Team USA after she was forced out of the women’s team gymnastics competition at Tokyo 2020 with an injury.
In a statement on Tuesday, Team USA said the gymnast – a favourite for a gold medal at the games – “has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue” and that it “was thinking of you, Simone”.
It added that the 24-year-old “will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions”, after showing no obvious signs of injury before withdrawing.
Ms Biles left the arena after her lowest ever score on the vault at an Olympics, with 13.766 for her first rotation.
After the announcement that Ms Biles had pulled out of the competition, commentators for NBC allegedly told viewers that it was “not injury related” and that her coach said “it’s a mental issue that Simone is having” – although it remains unclear.
On Monday, the gymnast admitted to feeling the “weight of the world” on her shoulders after Team USA came in second in the qualifiers. She wrote in an Instagram post that she also felt the pressure to perform at Tokyo 2020.
“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,” Ms Biles wrote. “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!”
The gymnast received a flood of support from fans and public figures alike on Tuesday, including from CNN anchor Omar Jimenez, who tweeted: “We’re all still rooting for Simone Biles”.
Pat McAfee, a former wrestler and commentator, added: “Dear Simone Biles, although I’m just a VERY dumb Sports Stooge, I felt obligated to remind you. You’re the greatest of all time ... ain’t nothing that happens in Tokyo can change that.”
“Your effort, commitment, and UNBELIEVABLE talent have been a gift to us fans,” he added.
Joy Reid, and host of MSNBC’s “The ReidOut,”, also wrote of the Team USA gymnast: “God bless the great Simone Biles. And that is all”.
Tuesday’s competition finished with the the Russian Olympic Committee – talking the place of Russia, which has been banned from the Olympics – finishing ahead of Team USA for the first time in 11 years. The bronze medal was taken by Team GB.
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