Simone Biles feared US team exclusion post-Tokyo 2020 withdrawal
Though she has received more accolades than any other gymnast in history, Simone Biles has also faced harsh criticism. Following her unannounced withdrawal from most of the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, the gymnast began to feel as though her entire country despised her.
In sports history, one of the most discussed and studied events has been Biles’ retirement in Tokyo. Four years prior, at Rio de Janeiro, the American had taken home four of the six gold medals up for grabs along with a bronze. She was deceived by her mental state in Tokyo, nevertheless.
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Biles made the decision to announce her retirement from competition following an especially bad bout of “twisties,” a lack of spatial awareness during spinning components. The gymnast was devastated, despite the fact that she later came back to win bronze in the horse vault.
“If I could’ve got on a plane and flown home, I would’ve done it,” In a recent interview, the gymnast made this admission.
Simone believed she was despised by everyone.
In an interview with the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, Biles recollected that while she immediately considered going back home, she also considered, “But as soon as I landed, I was like, ‘Oh, America hates me. The world is gonna hate me, and I can only see what they’re saying on Twitter right now.’ That was my first thought.”
Simone Biles is addressing the viral comments her husband, Jonathan Owens, made during a podcast interview on "Call Her Daddy" in December. https://t.co/gshSLkSlFt https://t.co/gshSLkSlFt
— ABC30 Fresno (@ABC30) April 18, 2024
She became so consumed with remorse that she said, “I thought I was going to be banned from America.” The American squad trailed the Russian squad and could only win silver without Biles in the rotation.
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Biles returned to the competition with a more subdued routine and took home the bronze medal in the vault after a few days of recovery and alone practice at the Juntendo University facilities.
The future of Simone Biles
Following a few years off the competition scene, Biles married Chicago Bears star Jonathan Owens and went back to Antwerp for the World Championships. There, she won four gold medals, one of which was in floor exercises, and a silver in vault.
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The gymnast is currently getting ready for the June Team USA tryouts in an attempt to compete at the Olympics again in Paris in 2024.
