BREAKING NEWS: Simone Biles announces retirement from US Olympic gymnastics team in stunning comeback

Simone Biles stepped away from ‘caustic’ gymnastics for mental health. Now she’s back
Posted by Savannah Stewart

Simone Biles of Team USA in action during the women’s gymnastics balance beam finals on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on August 3, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. After documenting training practices – now viewed as abusive – of elite gymnastics in her 1995 book, “Little Girls in Pretty Boxes,” sports journalist and author Joan Ryan found herself unable to watch the sport.

“Once you know what’s going on, you can’t unknow it,” Ryan told CNN Sport. “So you can’t ignore it.”

But nearly three decades later, as the 2024 Olympics approach, Ryan “went all in because I didn’t want to watch gymnastics for a long time.” Simone Biles is at least part of the reason.

Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens attend the Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers game on December 28, 2021 in Houston, Texas. Gymnastics star Simone Billes and NFL player Jonathan Owens are married.
Two years ago, Viles surprised fans around the world when he withdrawn from the five finals at the 2020 Olympics of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She then disappeared from competitive gymnastics.

Now, the seven times Olympic medalist is back, scheduled for the American classic on Saturday at Hoffman Estates, Illinois. This time, the 26 -year -old Biles seems to be not only the most decorated gymnast in the US history, but also a model of imitation in efforts to pay attention to athletes’ spiritual health.

“I have never seen an athlete like Simon Birz,” Ryan said. “For her to step away because of gymnastics, because of what she went through, because of the culture in her sport, it highlights what this sport is all about.”

“Here’s this incredible woman who just seemed like she could do anything — a superhero. And yet that sport was corrosive enough and abusive enough that she really had to step away for her own mental health,” added Ryan.

Biles opted out of the team final in Tokyo while suffering from the “twisties,” a mental block that causes gymnasts to lose track of their position while midair. USA Gymnastics later announced that she had withdrawn from the individual all-around final, citing a need to prioritize her mental health, as well as the vault, floor and uneven bars finals. “Anytime you’re in a stressful situation, it makes you frustrated,” Biles told reporters at the time. “I have to focus on my mental health and make sure I’m not putting my health and well-being at risk.”

In the individual all-around final, Biles competed in place of ninth-place qualifying finisher Jade Carey. Carey, now a junior at Oregon State University, praised Biles’ decision.

“When Simone withdrew from the Olympic team final, I witnessed pure strength,” Carey told CNN Sports in an email. “It’s hard to take a step back and truly take care of yourself in our sport and that is what she showed the world.”

Biles returned to earn bronze on the balance beam — her 32nd medal between the Olympics and World Championships. Her 19 World Championships gold medals is the most by any gymnast in history. Her departure in 2021 was a surprise to fans who were accustomed to watching Biles easily dominate competitions after wowing audiences at the 2016 Rio Olympics by winning five medals, including four golds. Many expected her to perform just as well or even better in Tokyo.

But to some familiar with the sport’s intense physical and mental demands, Biles’ decision to pull out of competition was more unprecedented than surprising. “(Biles’ departure) was shocking because no one else in gymnastics stood up and said, ‘Enough is enough now, and I need to take care of myself regardless of what everyone else wants from me on the biggest stage on the planet,'” Ryan said. In her book, Ryan criticized USA Gymnastics (formerly USA Gymnastics) for prioritizing success over health while turning a blind eye to abusive training in the 1980s and 1990s and ignoring the devastating consequences, including eating disorders, depression and other mental health issues that were debilitating and sometimes deadly.