Tokyo Olympics: Simone Biles speaks about her struggle with 'twisties' in new Insta post

Gymnast Simone Biles revealed in social media posts on July 30, that she is still struggling with her health. This post comes just days after she withdrew from the team and individual all-around finals at the Tokyo Olympics. She put up a post on her Instagram talking about her struggles but later deleted it. She put up a post saying, “For anyone saying I quit, I didn’t quit.” She added, “My mind & body are simply not in sync, as you can see here.” She shared a video of her falling onto a mat while practising an uneven bars dismount and wrote, “I don’t think you realize how dangerous this is on hard/competition surface. Nor do I have to explain why I put health first. Physical health is mental health”. 

Simone Biles on what made her withdraw from the Tokyo Olympics 2020

Biles called it a case of the “twisties” and said they typically last “two or more weeks” and may be “triggered by stress.” Biles said, “No, this was not happening before I left the USA”. She continued to say, “It randomly started happening after prelims competition the VERY next morning. By that time, NO, an alternate was not allowed to be placed in my position for you ‘know it alls'". Biles explained that she withdrew from the two Olympics events because she didn’t want to risk “losing a medal (of any colour) for the girls / US” – or put her own health and safety in jeopardy.

Why did Simone Biles withdraw from the Tokyo Olympics 2020 and repercussions?

When Biles withdrew from the events, the team of Russian athletes won gold for the first time in nearly three decades. “We also have to focus on ourselves, because at the end of the day we’re human, too,” Biles had said. She made a statement after the decision to withdraw and said, “So, we have to protect our mind and our body, rather than just go out there and do what the world wants us to do”. Biles’ decision to withdraw has been receiving praise from most Netizens, while she has received backlash for this as well. 

(IMAGE: AP)