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When I wrote about Naomi Osaka withdrawing from the French Open a couple of months ago, I talked about how Naomi withdrawing was a result of the press’s constant discussion of Naomi’s desire not to speak to the press during the tournament. If say Ash Barty had decided not to speak to the press, you would’ve heard it mentioned a few times and that would’ve been it.
I mention this because some of the reactions to Simone Biles withdrawing from the Team Gymnastics Final today, mostly from white men, involve people being HYPERCRITICAL of Simone and saying she let her team down.
So let me explain why that’s not true. Firstly, Simone said she wasn’t where she needed to be mentally today. She said she didn’t want to “do something stupid” and take Team USA completely out of medal contention. So she actually chose to withdraw for the benefit of the team. Secondly, in qualifying, Team USA came in second because Simone wasn’t performing her best. Today, Team USA…came in second. So Simone’s withdrawal literally didn’t affect the end result of the Final.
Let’s be clear, the level of difficulty at which Simone Biles competes is dangerous. If she’s not feeling it mentally, she shouldn’t compete because she could seriously injure herself.
Unless you’re Simone Biles, whoever reads this will never experience the immense pressure Simone Biles is under in this Olympics as the face of it, as far as America is concerned at least. She is the greatest gymnast in HISTORY, woman or man, and the most decorated…
