How Simone Biles Redefined Gymnastics and Cemented Her Legacy
Simone Biles has been heralded as the greatest gymnast of all time for years. And with that title comes an unimaginable amount of pressure to be perfect. In addition to this immense pressure, Biles is a survivor of sexual assault, which, as she has revealed, has had significant impacts on her mental well-being. Leading into the Olympics, Simone Biles had high hopes to win many more gold medals, and further solidify her status as the G.O.A.T. What happened was not what was expected, but Biles found another way to win – and to become an even more revolutionary figure in the world of sports than ever before – by prioritizing her mental health.
After qualifying for the individual all-around and finals on all events, Simone Biles began the team all-around, only to drop out after competing on the vault. She decided to step back to protect her mental health, explaining that she got the "twisties" in midair, rendering her unable to distinguish up from down. Not wanting to put herself at risk of injury, or penalize her team, Biles withdrew from the rest of the competition (Craven). She later competed on the balance beam and won bronze. Biles said that prioritizing mental well-being “shows how strong of a competitor and person that you really are, rather than just battle through it,” (Morrison, Aaron, et al.). Biles’ decision was so monumental because top athletes don’t often drop out of competition without a physical injury, and until recently, talking about mental health so publicly wasn’t done. Even though there was some criticism, Biles' decision and reasoning were widely praised, signaling a shift in how we view mental health (Craven). In the past, Biles would have soldiered on and powered through whatever she was feeling. At the Tokyo Olympics, she knew that she had to get a step back, and her decision to put herself first may have a greater impact than any of her achievements on the mat (Graves). Learn more:
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Experts say Biles . . . will transcend the sport, pushing for mental health and wellness, and ushering it past the last remnants of its darkest period — the Larry Nassar scandal" (Hampton). |
It wasn’t easy pulling out of all those competitions . . . . People just thought it was easy, but I physically and mentally was not in the right head space, and I didn’t want to jeopardize my health and safety. Because at the end of the day, it’s not worth it. My mental health and physical health is above all medals that I could ever win" said Biles (Svrluga). |