Good piece on Osaka
- Thread starter NYShoreGuy
- Start date
So all we have to do nowadays is claim mental issues and we have a free pass for all personal decisions and performances?
She doesn’t have mental illness. She has lived a privileged life the last 5-8 years.
Fact is, she woke up yesterday after her worst performance since she was a child and had no idea on how to handle it. That’s not mental illness. That’s just being unprepared.
In return for that she decides to quit on her teammates, her coaches and her fans on the worlds biggest stage.
I don’t want to hear another athlete claim they “worked their whole life” for this moment just to watch them quit when it gets tough.
I am not passing judgment and have empathy for those who deal with mental wellness unlike some others here (not you). However my point is that there is no set time that this may occur. So this has nothing to do with my hubris or whether fans were in the stands because it is the most consumed event in world from a content platform.
Simone Biles ‘super frustrated’ after shocking withdrawal from Olympics gymnastics competition
Simone Biles indicated her shocking withdrawal from the women’s gymnastics team competition Tuesday in Tokyo was due to the emotional toll she is feeling.
nypost.com
Simone Biles ‘super frustrated’ after shocking withdrawal from Olympics gymnastics competition
By Peter BotteSimone Biles indicated her shocking withdrawal from the women’s gymnastics team competition Tuesday in Tokyo was due to the emotional toll she is feeling as “the head star” of the Olympics rather than any physical injury.
Biles also said she was inspired to “focus on my well-being” by Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka, who withdrew from the French Open in May and skipped Wimbledon earlier this month for mental-health reasons before she was eliminated earlier Tuesday from the women’s tennis singles competition.
“There’s more to life than just gymnastics,” Biles told reporters in a mixed-zone press conference alongside her teammates, who earned the silver medal following her departure. “It’s very unfortunate that it happened at this stage, because I definitely wanted it to go a little bit better. Take it one day at a time and we’re gonna see how the rest goes.”
USA Gymnastics said earlier in a statement that Biles withdrawal following her vault rotation was due to a unspecified “medical issue,” adding that the 24-year-old star “will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.”
The four-time Olympic gold medalist indicated, however, that she plans to compete in the all-around competition that begins Thursday and the individual apparatus events.
“Physically, I feel good, I’m in shape,” the 24-year-old Biles told NBC’s Hoda Kotb “Emotionally, that kind of varies on the time and the moment. Coming here to the Olympics and being the head star of the Olympics is not an easy feat, so we’re just trying to take it one day at a time and we’ll see.
“I’m OK, just super frustrated of how the night went, but super proud of these girls and now we’re silver medalists. Something we’ll cherish forever. We hope America still loves us.”
Biles also revealed that her teammates “were freaking out” when she informed them of her decision to drop out of the competition.
“They were crying, and I was like, ‘You guys need to relax, you’re gonna be fine without me. Go out there, kick some butt just like you’ve done in training, and just lay it out on the floor and see what happens,’” Biles said.
“There’s more to life than just gymnastics,” Biles told reporters in a mixed-zone press conference alongside her teammates, who earned the silver medal following her departure. “It’s very unfortunate that it happened at this stage, because I definitely wanted it to go a little bit better. Take it one day at a time and we’re gonna see how the rest goes…”
Says everything you need to know right there. In another words, I lost so I’ll quit. I’m sorry, it’s pathetic.
I feel bad for the girls that worked their butt off and we’re left off the team.
Says everything you need to know right there. In another words, I lost so I’ll quit. I’m sorry, it’s pathetic.
I feel bad for the girls that worked their butt off and we’re left off the team.
Steve that takes a ton of guts to make a post like that. You should be proud of yourself for sharing?
We all have issues traversing through life. And I doubt anyone of us hasn't needed some form of help now and then. I have and I have no doubt everyone one of you has as well.
Maybe thinking about the days or weeks when you have felt that way will allow us to have more compassion when others need help facing a pressure that's too overwhelming in the moment.
Didn't take guts, I'm not ashamed of it, and hopefully I can help others get through something like this. Happened twice in my life and I hate to see anyone feel like I did during those episodes.
This is just a weird interview on so many levels. Can you imagine being the coach in this situation? What are her teammates thinking? She bails at the last minute on the team competition but says she plans to compete in the all-around individual? Not a good look.Simone Biles ‘super frustrated’ after shocking withdrawal from Olympics gymnastics competition
Simone Biles indicated her shocking withdrawal from the women’s gymnastics team competition Tuesday in Tokyo was due to the emotional toll she is feeling.
Simone Biles ‘super frustrated’ after shocking withdrawal from Olympics gymnastics competition
By Peter Botte
Simone Biles indicated her shocking withdrawal from the women’s gymnastics team competition Tuesday in Tokyo was due to the emotional toll she is feeling as “the head star” of the Olympics rather than any physical injury.
Biles also said she was inspired to “focus on my well-being” by Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka, who withdrew from the French Open in May and skipped Wimbledon earlier this month for mental-health reasons before she was eliminated earlier Tuesday from the women’s tennis singles competition.
“There’s more to life than just gymnastics,” Biles told reporters in a mixed-zone press conference alongside her teammates, who earned the silver medal following her departure. “It’s very unfortunate that it happened at this stage, because I definitely wanted it to go a little bit better. Take it one day at a time and we’re gonna see how the rest goes.”
USA Gymnastics said earlier in a statement that Biles withdrawal following her vault rotation was due to a unspecified “medical issue,” adding that the 24-year-old star “will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.”
The four-time Olympic gold medalist indicated, however, that she plans to compete in the all-around competition that begins Thursday and the individual apparatus events.
“Physically, I feel good, I’m in shape,” the 24-year-old Biles told NBC’s Hoda Kotb “Emotionally, that kind of varies on the time and the moment. Coming here to the Olympics and being the head star of the Olympics is not an easy feat, so we’re just trying to take it one day at a time and we’ll see.
“I’m OK, just super frustrated of how the night went, but super proud of these girls and now we’re silver medalists. Something we’ll cherish forever. We hope America still loves us.”
Biles also revealed that her teammates “were freaking out” when she informed them of her decision to drop out of the competition.
“They were crying, and I was like, ‘You guys need to relax, you’re gonna be fine without me. Go out there, kick some butt just like you’ve done in training, and just lay it out on the floor and see what happens,’” Biles said.
Athletes like Simone Biles helping break stigma around mental health
The world’s top athletes get where they get because they aren’t just highly skilled and devoted to their craft, but because they exhibit a single-minded focus that can seem otherworldly.
nypost.com
Athletes like Simone Biles helping break stigma around mental health
By Mike VaccaroIt was Roger Maris’ 27th birthday, Sept. 10, 1961, and to Milton Gross he looked 10 years older. They were sitting in front of Maris’ locker, the Post columnist and the slugger who had hit his 56th home run the day before.
“It’s hard,” Maris told Gross. “You can’t know how rough it gets. It’s a long year, a tough one. It gets you down.”
Gross asked Maris if the pursuit of Babe Ruth’s sacred record of 60 homers in a year was worth it.
“Each one I hit is more exciting,” Maris said, “but it gets to you.”
The next day, Maris would visit a barber shop near the Stadium to get his crew-cut trimmed, and that’s when the stress he was eating every day became apparent. There were bare patches visible, even amid Maris’ high-and-tight.
“It was only when Roger started losing his hair that we understood what kind of pressure he was under,” his teammate, Clete Boyer, would say many years later.
The world’s top athletes get where they get because they aren’t just highly skilled and devoted to their craft, but because they exhibit a single-minded focus that can seem otherworldly. But even that doesn’t guard them from stress, from pressure, from anxiety. Not always.
We see that now, more visibly, because athletes are more willing to admit their frailties now. Tuesday it was Simone Biles, the highest-profile gymnast in the world, bowing out of the team competition at the Tokyo Olympics because she wasn’t in, her words, “the right headspace.” This comes a few months after tennis player Naomi Osaka cited mental health as a reason for bypassing post-match press conferences.
With all the strides we have made, we are still a society who’s default response to mental-health issues is, often, to wish them away – especially among high-performance, high-achieving athletes. They are the very best of the very best. It is often difficult to understand or relate to their struggles.
Yet Michael Phelps – the greatest swimmer who ever lived, who amassed 23 golds and 28 medals in five different Olympics from 2000 to 2016 – eloquently described the unique difficulties all high-end athletes endure – some with aplomb, some less so – in an HBO documentary he recently narrated titled, “The Weight of Gold”:
“For me, I don’t want to say I would have done anything differently if I could do it all over again. I was competitive. I was hungry. I loved it. I chose it. But the truth was that my focus got incredibly narrow and intense really quickly which would have ramifications later in life. Even if it wasn’t possible to realize that at the time.”
The theme of that documentary is “It’s OK to not be OK,” and even many of us who can’t relate to the struggle of a world-class athlete have been touched by the unique challenges of mental illness – in ourselves, in our families, among our friends.
But it is still a difficult boulder to reverse. “Choking” is a term we use readily in sports, and this isn’t to say it isn’t a real issue. In the same day, Sunday, I wrote columns about the U.S. men’s basketball team blowing a late seven-point lead to France and the Yankees bullpen kicking away a late four-run lead; you’d better believe the theme of both was similar.
That’s part of the game, yes. But so is this inconvenient fact: human beings do the choking, and do the competing, and actually put themselves, willingly, in the arena. Sometimes that leads, directly or indirectly to dire consequences.
Donnie Moore, the Angels pitcher who wound up killing himself and shooting his wife three years after serving up a key home run in the 1986 ALCS, is one notable tale (though he had issues beyond that one fateful pitch). Drew Robinson, a Giants prospect, shot himself in the head in April 2020 and survived; later he told ESPN’s Jeff Passan of the tortures coursing through him: “Who would care if I’m gone?”
But these things affect different people differently. A few years ago I called up Ryan Bucchianeri when he was running for Congress. In 1993, Bucchianeri was a freshman at Navy who missed an 18-yard field goal – the shortest possible field goal – that blew the Army-Navy football game.
While many civilians were touched by his modesty – “I tried my best, sir,” was one postgame response – many of his teammates and classmates never forgave him. He was shunned. He was taunted. And he didn’t make the travel squad either of his final two years at the Academy when a new coach came in and wanted to flush the bad karma.
“I was asked a lot, ‘How do you survive that?’” Bucchianeri told me. “But I wasn’t wired that way. But I’ve known others … maybe it would have been different. Every case is different.”
That complex wiring system is more visible now than ever. Sometimes you are wired like Roger Maris and Ryan Bucchianeri. Sometimes you aren’t. We learn that more each day.
“We just have to change the perception that problems with mental health are something to hide,” Phelps says in the HBO documentary. “And in a world where Olympians are leading the way forward to breaking down that stigma, the impact could be massive.”
I totally agree with her decision. We have no idea what she deals with on a regular basis or her history of mental illness. Even though she hasn’t made it previously known doesn’t mean she hasn’t had issues in the past but just chose not to disclose them. She even said leading up to the event she was dealing with a lot of anxiety and it seems like it became too much during competition. What do some here want her to do. Go back out there when she has clearly lost her focus and do even worse or cause an injury? Instead she was being a good teammate by being honest that she was not herself and instead of costing her team a victory, take herself out and let those who were ready compete take the reigns. KW has even taken out players(Desi) when they are not focused and it is hurting the team.
You think she really enjoys sitting on the sideline?? At least she stood by her teammates and cheered them on. I pray that she tunes out the ignorant voices and just focuses on getting herself healthy.
You think she really enjoys sitting on the sideline?? At least she stood by her teammates and cheered them on. I pray that she tunes out the ignorant voices and just focuses on getting herself healthy.
Are these type of mental health issues unique to sports figures? Probably no more than any other profession. There are certainly these kinds of pressures in just about any profession. Pick any. Guy on the floor at the Stock exchange, healthcare worker, The working mom that is expected to be the perfect mother and forge a career path.
Maybe there are some more extreme examples in sports or maybe not,, but let’s take a step back and analyze whether these in some cases are self-inflicted. The money, the adoration that comes with self-promotion on social media, etc. but I would argue mental health issues are prevalent in every profession.
If Biles really wants to get healthy, the first step should be getting help immediately and exiting the Olympics.
Maybe there are some more extreme examples in sports or maybe not,, but let’s take a step back and analyze whether these in some cases are self-inflicted. The money, the adoration that comes with self-promotion on social media, etc. but I would argue mental health issues are prevalent in every profession.
If Biles really wants to get healthy, the first step should be getting help immediately and exiting the Olympics.
A
anon_ezos2e9wn1ob0
Guest
Mental health is a big thing. I know many people I love that have had terrible bouts. Until you experience the helpless feeling and panic that consumes you for days + months it is hard to imagine or understand. A physical injury can be overcome with toughness, the mental game is a whole different ballgame. I hope she gets help, and I don't think she should be competing Thursday if she really is dealing with this.
She has four gold medals at a young age - I think that speaks plenty about talent, courage, perseverance and not quitting. Mental health challenges don’t go away when you deem it opportune for them to do so.
Exactly. Not to mention she along with several other athletes were sexually assaulted by Larry Nassar. People forget about that and who knows the life long damage that experience did to her and many others.
It was there with Arnie. With Tiger. Arod. With the Mick. It’s been going on forever, no matter your stance on the current news stories. Perhaps the “issues” (for lack of a better term) are exacerbated or at least more public with the current media forms. Perhaps not. Either way mental illness is of course real.
dont go away? it seems like they started to exist once it was an opportune time for them to do so.
gold medals has nothing to do with anything. this could happen to even the worst atheltes. her pulling out for mental health is certainly fine, but the way it looks like she quit on her teammates and will reevaluate for her solo events. hard to look past those optics.
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its also becoming ridiculous that anxiety is purposefully ignored as a normal, healthy, standard emotion that a lot of times served a purpose in humans.
maybe sports leagues, olympics, etc need to carry bigger rosters to account for those who need to take games off and allow other athletes compete who are ready to. additional. that way athletes will feel more compelled that they are giving a spot to a teammate rather than wasting a spot. this would be additional to alternates , or minors that can be moved in due to physical injury.
Video shows what Simone Biles told her Olympic teammates as she withdrew from team competition
“I’m sorry. I love you guys, but you’re gonna be just fine.”
ftw.usatoday.com
Simone Biles’ Olympic Team Final Withdrawal Could Help Athletes Put Their Mental Health First
Biles suddenly decided to withdraw from the team competition, but the pressure likely was building well before the event
none of her teammates looked happy when biles was continuing to joke around in the medal lineup.
looks like shes out today in the all around. if shes serious about her mental health this is the right move.
heres another reason for biles. sounds like a case of "wasnt at her best" so she dropped out. which is something every person ever goes through frequently.
"just wasnt in rythem" oh no. "felt like she was performing like she wasnt the very best" oh no!
it honestly sounds like i should get ready for a world where the best athletes take a pass because theyre performing poorly and they call it a syndrome.
news.yahoo.com
the larry nassar thing is life changing. but if shes operaring that not being #1 = and illness then she should retire and seek the appropriate help. which is perfectly fine.
"just wasnt in rythem" oh no. "felt like she was performing like she wasnt the very best" oh no!
it honestly sounds like i should get ready for a world where the best athletes take a pass because theyre performing poorly and they call it a syndrome.
The 'frightening' phenomenon Simone Biles experienced before her Olympics withdrawal
The 'frightening' phenomenon Simone Biles experienced before her Olympics withdrawal
the larry nassar thing is life changing. but if shes operaring that not being #1 = and illness then she should retire and seek the appropriate help. which is perfectly fine.
Piers Morgan slammed for criticizing Simone Biles’ decision to withdraw
Piers Morgan criticized Simone Biles’ decision to drop out of the gymnastics team finals and for “quitting on her team” in a column, drawing backlash.
nypost.com
Piers Morgan slammed for criticizing Simone Biles’ decision to withdraw
By Gabrielle Fonrouge
In a column for Daily Mail, Piers Morgan opined that Simone Biles' act cost Team USA a coveted gold medal.
GC Images
Piers Morgan criticized Simone Biles’ decision to drop out of the gymnastics team finals and for “quitting on her team” in a new column Wednesday, drawing backlash from fans who said the longtime broadcaster was being insensitive to her mental health struggles.
“I don’t think it’s remotely courageous, heroic or inspiring to quit,” Piers wrote in the column, published in the Daily Mail.
“When you call yourself the GOAT in sport, you can’t then quit the moment things get tough or you make a mistake. Something that I’m sure Simone Biles, in her heart, must realise because she’s a great champion and great champions just don’t do that.”
On Tuesday, Biles stunned the world when she announced she’d be dropping out of the gymnastics team finals in Tokyo so she could focus on her mental health and on Wednesday, USA Gymnastics announced she was also opting out of Thursday’s all-around contest.
“Physically, I feel good, I’m in shape,” Biles said of the decision to leave her team, which ended up winning the silver medal in her absence.
“Emotionally, that kind of varies on the time and moment. Coming to the Olympics and being head star isn’t an easy feat.
“I feel like I’m also not having as much fun. This Olympic Games, I wanted it to be for myself, but I came in and I felt like I was still doing it for other people. It hurts my heart that doing what I love has been kind of taken away from me to please other people.”
Morgan slammed Biles’ comments and said the Olympics aren’t about “fun,” nor are they for any individual athlete.
“You are part of Team USA, representing the United States of America, and hundreds of millions of American people watching back home, not to mention all the sponsors who’ve paid huge sums to support you,” Morgan wrote.
“And when you quit, you were performing as part of a gymnastics team, not yourself.”
Twitter users were quick to jump on Morgan’s comments and call him out for walking off the set of “Good Morning Britain” during an argument earlier this year with a co-worker about Meghan Markle, which the broadcaster admitted was “wrong,” “gutless and cowardly” in his column.
Fans of Biles said mental health concerns must be taken seriously and her ability to speak out about them and opt out of the contest was an act of courage.
“When someone takes their own life, the amount of times you hear ‘if only they’d reached out’ but when someone speaks out about their mental health you get tweets like this,” Madz_27 tweeted in response to Morgan.
“I just knew you’d attack Simone like this,” James Donnelly added.
“Have you ever thought that mental health issues has gone on for decades, but because of stigma, taboo, or just scared, it’s been kept secret. But now we are more open to discussing the subject, more will open up. And that IS inspiring.”
Adam Forder wrote “kids need to see that their role models are human beings too” while Milly Gilbert noted the sexual abuse Biles suffered at the hands of sicko sports doctor Larry Nassar.
“She was sexually assaulted over and over again,” Gilbert tweeted.
“She was sexually assaulted and now has her own gym for young girls to protect them.”
About two hours after the column posted, Morgan tweeted a photo of him and Biles and encouraged her to return to the contest.
“You can either listen to snowflake Twitter, @Simone_Biles – or listen to me. You’re a great champion, & great champions get back on their feet when they get knocked down,” Morgan wrote.
“So, re-engage in these Games, win Gold, & inspire with the power of resilience not resignation. Go for it.”
Not sure tweeting is the best tact right now. She needs to focus on her health and this continues to take the spotlight away from the team that is still competing.
Totally agree with this take.
I think the pressure and mental anguish are very real. So if the moment is overwhelming, step away from the moment and let those competing have theirs.
I don’t want to hear from or about Simoan Biles this week. I want to hear about Sunisa Lee, Grace McCallum and Jordan Chiles. Biles can have her spotlight back after the games.
I mean damn, taglines say “Simoan Biles and the US Women’s Gymnastics Team” this morning. At a minimum, it should read US Women’s Gymnastics and Simoan Biles. Step away, get well, don’t tweet, don’t steal your teammates spotlight with narcissistic interviews and tweets. You can control it Simoan, take the focus off you and direct it to your teammates this week.
Exactly...I am taking the view of what's best for Simone and what's best for the team. Instead of applauding the courage of the tweets....
Suni Lee wins gold in all-around gymnastics with Simone Biles sitting out Olympics
A wide-open meet due to Simone Biles’ withdrawal resulted in US gymnastics teammate Suni Lee seizing an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo to continue the Americans’ recent domination of the individual al…
nypost.com
Suni Lee wins gold in all-around gymnastics with Simone Biles sitting out Olympics
By Peter Botte
Suni Lee competes on balance beam during the Women's All-Around Final on day six of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Getty Images
A wide-open meet due to Simone Biles’ withdrawal resulted in U.S. gymnastics teammate Suni Lee seizing an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo to continue the Americans’ recent domination of the individual all-around competition.
With Biles seated in the stands after the defending gold medalist dropped out of the team and individual competitions for mental-health reasons, the 18-year-old Lee became the fifth straight American to win the marquee individual event at the Summer Games.
Suni Lee on the balance beam during all-around women’s competition.
Getty Images
Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade stepped out of bounds twice on the floor exercise with a chance to surpass Lee, but she still became the first gymnast in her country’s history to earn a medal in the all-around. Angelina Melnikova of the Russian Olympic Committee grabbed the bronze. Biles’ replacement, Jade Carey, finished eighth.
Team USA had earned the previous four Olympic golds in this event: Biles (2016 in Rio de Janeiro), Gabby Douglas (2012 in London), Nastia Liukin (2008 in Beijing) and Carly Patterson (2004 in Athens).
The 18-year-old Lee received a promising score of 14.600 with a double-twisting Yurchenko on her vault, not her strongest event, and the Minnesota native moved within seven-hundredths of point behind Andrade for the lead with a 15.300 with a stuck landing on the uneven bars. Lee nearly fell from the balance beam on a triple wolf turn but steadied herself for a score of 13.833, enough for her to take over the top spot by barely one-tenth of a point over Andrade entering the final rotation.
Suni Lee celebrates after the uneven bars during all-around women’s competition.
Getty Images
Lee’s score of 13.700 on floor exercise opened the door for Andrade to pass her to take the gold with a score of at least 13.801, but Andrade stepped outside the boundaries on two of her three tumbling passes for a 13.666.
Carey, who finished ninth overall in the preliminary round, made a small hop on her vault landing for a 15.200, one point behind Andrade in that rotation. But the 21-year-old Arizona resident scored a 13.5 on the uneven bars and then just an 11.533 following a fall from the balance beam to effectively eliminate her from medal contention.
Suni Lee celebrates after the uneven bars during all-around women’s competition.
Getty Images
The 24-year-old Biles had led the field following the qualifying round, but the four-time Olympic gold medalist withdrew following a faulty vault on her first rotation during Tuesday’s team competition finals.
Texas deputy AG apologizes for calling Simone Biles a ‘national embarrassment’
Texas Deputy Attorney General Aaron Reitz is apologizing for calling Simone Biles a “national embarrassment” following her withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
nypost.com
Texas Deputy AG apologizes for calling Simone Biles a ‘national embarrassment’
By Joshua Rhett Miller
Many criticized Deputy AG Aaron Reitz for his apology, saying the damage was already done.
Texas Deputy Attorney General Aaron Reitz is apologizing for calling Simone Biles a “national embarrassment” following her withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
In a since-deleted tweet, Reitz on Tuesday called the four-time Olympic gold medalist a “selfish, childish national embarrassment” while retweeting video of former US Olympian Kerri Strug competing at the 1996 games in Atlanta with a severely injured ankle.
“In a moment of frustration and disappointment, I opined on subjects for which I am not adequately versed,” Reitz said in a statement later Wednesday. “That was an error. I can’t imagine what Simone Biles is going through.”
Reitz went on to call Biles, 24, a “true patriot” and one of the “greatest gymnasts” of her time.
“I apologize to her, and wish her well,” Reitz’s statement continued, adding that his previous critique did not represent the views of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Reitz’s mea culpa came hours after Paxton tweeted that he learned of a “very inappropriate tweet” by one of his employees, saying ther matter would be handled internally.
“I know Simone Biles – she is a fantastic athlete but an even better person,” Paxton tweeted of his fellow Texan. “Mental health is far more important than any athletic competition and I fully support her decision.”
Some praised Reitz for his apology, while others done the damage was already done.
“Can’t unring that bell, son,” one reply read. “Your true nature is already displayed.”
Biles was in the stands late Thursday in Tokyo during the women’s gymnastics all-around final, cheering on her teammates after winning the event in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. The face of Team USA shocked the sports world two days earlier with her withdrawal from the team competition due to the mental toll of the lofty expectations she faced.
Biles tweeted a message to her 1.5 million followers late Wednesday, saying the “outpouring” of love and support she’s received since her contentious decision made her realize she’s “more” than her accomplishments in gymnastics, “which I never truly believed before.”
Biles had told reporters there was “more to life than just gymnastics” after Team USA won the silver medal in the women’s team competition in her absence.
”This medal is all of them and the coaches and nothing to do with me,” Biles added. “I tried to go out there for the team, and they stepped up to the plate.”
That is truly unbelievable. He should be removed, not because of the tweet itself but because do you really want someone in a position of decision making that cannot in real time so a cost-benefit analysis of posting a tweet?Texas deputy AG apologizes for calling Simone Biles a ‘national embarrassment’
Texas Deputy Attorney General Aaron Reitz is apologizing for calling Simone Biles a “national embarrassment” following her withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
Texas Deputy AG apologizes for calling Simone Biles a ‘national embarrassment’
By Joshua Rhett Miller
Many criticized Deputy AG Aaron Reitz for his apology, saying the damage was already done.
Texas Deputy Attorney General Aaron Reitz is apologizing for calling Simone Biles a “national embarrassment” following her withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
In a since-deleted tweet, Reitz on Tuesday called the four-time Olympic gold medalist a “selfish, childish national embarrassment” while retweeting video of former US Olympian Kerri Strug competing at the 1996 games in Atlanta with a severely injured ankle.
“In a moment of frustration and disappointment, I opined on subjects for which I am not adequately versed,” Reitz said in a statement later Wednesday. “That was an error. I can’t imagine what Simone Biles is going through.”
Reitz went on to call Biles, 24, a “true patriot” and one of the “greatest gymnasts” of her time.
“I apologize to her, and wish her well,” Reitz’s statement continued, adding that his previous critique did not represent the views of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Reitz’s mea culpa came hours after Paxton tweeted that he learned of a “very inappropriate tweet” by one of his employees, saying ther matter would be handled internally.
“I know Simone Biles – she is a fantastic athlete but an even better person,” Paxton tweeted of his fellow Texan. “Mental health is far more important than any athletic competition and I fully support her decision.”
Some praised Reitz for his apology, while others done the damage was already done.
“Can’t unring that bell, son,” one reply read. “Your true nature is already displayed.”
Biles was in the stands late Thursday in Tokyo during the women’s gymnastics all-around final, cheering on her teammates after winning the event in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. The face of Team USA shocked the sports world two days earlier with her withdrawal from the team competition due to the mental toll of the lofty expectations she faced.
Biles tweeted a message to her 1.5 million followers late Wednesday, saying the “outpouring” of love and support she’s received since her contentious decision made her realize she’s “more” than her accomplishments in gymnastics, “which I never truly believed before.”
Biles had told reporters there was “more to life than just gymnastics” after Team USA won the silver medal in the women’s team competition in her absence.
”This medal is all of them and the coaches and nothing to do with me,” Biles added. “I tried to go out there for the team, and they stepped up to the plate.”
What was to gain?
What was to lose?
If you cannot figure that out in the moment before posting a public tweet, you’re really not intelligent enough to be in a position of power.
