I am calling Simone a quitter. I am usually not the tough guy, but she has been in this game a long time. Took lots of money from sponsors who thought that they were paying the Olympic Champion. (I guess she did not feel stress in that.) The greatest lesson in playing sports at all level is the value of the team. She ignored her team.
She deserves the benefit of the doubt. She is the most decorated gymnast in the world. Ever. It sucks that she isn’t in the right state of mind to compete, but the Olympics is the premier event in her sport. She’s trained for this and it’s been her focus forever. You think she’s quitting because she’s lazy?
She’s been in the sport since she was a little kid and performed under the brightest lights and sharpest microscopes. Maybe we should trust her judgment? She’s endured sexual molestation BECAUSE she was on the US Olympic team and had that molestation become very public and she didn’t run and hide. She continued to compete.
Maybe she’s earned the benefit of the doubt, or at the very least her country’s support?
She quit because, quitters would rather quit than try their best and lose. Shalise Manzi Young of course had an article today about all athletes having it hard but black female athletes have it harder than anyone else - total bullshit. Stars of today aren't team oriented and are all about the brand. She is no different. Still think she's great, but she gets an asterisk now, because she is Scottie Pippen.
^^^ of course her race is mentioned as part of your response because...it's an all-consuming topic for you. I'm no athlete, but it seems to me she's risking breaking her neck if she's not in focus. Her decision, and she's still a champion.
She has won many Golds for the USA already. Most girls don't keep doing it for as long as she has. I have no problem with her. Let her be. Give the spotlight to the next young star.
Gymnastics is the most physically and mentally grueling competition sport in existence. Unless you've experienced it you can never fully understand. The amount of dedication you must have to the sport to make it to her level is extraordinary. They train constantly, several hours per day 6 days per week under constant scrutiny to scrub out the most minor imperfections since each one is a "deduction."
Indeed she has had to train like this since she was a small child, spending a majority of her days in the gym, several hours each day, since she was at least 7 and possibly younger. They eat, sleep and breathe gymnastics. They don't have any friends outside of the gym because they don't have the time, so they become bonded with their team mates. Each season they are preparing for a series of USAG competitions to gain recognition and "score out" of their levels so they can move up. The pressure is intense and constant and lasts throughout their formative years.
So after she spent almost all of her life going through all of this, the notion that she casually quit is absurd. Anyone who thinks otherwise is simply ignorant.
I haven't been following this closely, but from what I've seen/read, she has proven that she's not a quitter a thousand times over.
So, I have no problem with her decision.
I’m sorry, but pulling out at that point in the competition was a disservice to her teammates and country. Leading up to the Olympics she fueled the fire that got her the GOAT title, so she brought some of the pressure on herself.
In the examination of Olympic sports, there are many true team sports, and those athletes understand their role within the team. Then there are sports that are largely individual - which can morph into team settings. I think this can be a challenge for certain athletes - as they may not function so well in this setting. Tennis and gymnastics are both individual sports that become team oriented during the Olympics.
Tennis - and Naomi Osaka - may have experienced some issues with her mental health and early departure. Her loss hurt her - and her teammates - and it hurt her country’s medal count. Naomi is far from achieving a GOAT moniker.
Sadly, Simone took on too much, and rather than confirm her status as a super human athlete, so showed that she is human, and makes errors. There is nothing wrong with showing your humanness. But there is something inappropriate about taking yourself out of a team competition when you don’t perform up to your own elevated standards. Once she dropped out, team USA was left without their best athlete.
So, if this was only an individual gymnastics competition, I would agree. However, it is the Olympics, and there’s more here than just her.
Does anyone remember Kerri Strug? Who performed a vault with an injured leg? That was a great teammate. I would not fault her for stopping.
Hi level competition is stressful to say the least. People reach their breaking point, especially when things go wrong.
Women are generally given the benefit of the doubt. A man would be called a quitter, flake, weak, choke-artist, etc.
"I’m sorry, but pulling out at that point in the competition was a disservice to her teammates and country"
Pulling out at that point was a SERVICE to her teammates and country. She got the twisties, once that happens, she's putting herself at risk and her team at risk. The most decorated gymnast in history didn't pull out casually
Simple fact is that being weak, mental health and blaming other people is very in among athletes. She fell in the trials and looked awful. Had it been about team, she quits then, but its never about team with today's athletes. Mental health is today's go to excuse and nothing more. A real winner?? Kerri Strug, who badly sprained her ankle, had it taped, ran down the runway, vaulted and landed it on that bad ankle to win team gold. Biles WAS great, but like many prior greats (hey Willie Mays, John Bucyk, Brooks Robinson) she stayed too long and lost it. If she had said that, she'd get respect. Is it racist to criticize here to anyone other than Random?
I didn’t say that she pulled out casually. It must not have been an easy choice. But, her performances could have helped her team.
I have not been checking the news to see what the latest is regarding Simone, once we understand the true reasons for her pulling out, we can better understand what happened.
@scrub “however, heading into this Olympics, if she was not prepared (mentally & physically) she should have bowed out and allowed another great USA athlete to compete.”
They send alternates to Japan in case of injury. She didn’t prevent someone else from going unless you are talking about another alternate, who likely would not actually compete.
@cash
I’m not sure I understand your Naomi Osaka comparison. She competed and was beaten. I don’t think you were saying osaka should’ve quit if she wasn’t in her best form? Or that it would’ve been better if Biles competed knowing she wasn’t at her best?
It’s getting ridiculous in here she did the right thing for both ghee well-being and for the USA Olympic team, by her pulling out she actually helped her team accomplish silver if she would have stayed in the team would have finished out of the medals, I’m sure she knew that she’d be criticized mercilessly by the same negative comments that many make here yet she did the right thing and I give her kudos and hope she continues to find success in her life. She is an inspiration and a worthy role model.
Coming into these games I honestly was thinking she's 24, which is geriatric for women's gymnastics.
She's definitely one of the greats but her time is likely coming to an end.
Every elite athlete goes through an occasional slump. And almost every time it's more mental than physical. Stress, pressure put upon oneself, and expectations of teammates, fans and media play a big role in that. Case in point: Alex Rodriguez, one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, always choked in the post season. Jeter, on the other hand, seemed to thrive on the added pressure and excelled in the fall. However, as he was approaching the 3,000 hit mark, he slumped for several games. As soon as 2,999 was behind him it seemed he started to breath again and he was instantly back to his old self, getting 4 more consecutive hits in that same game, finishing 5 for 5 with a total of 3,003. He was the first to admit that the pressure leading up to that day had affected him in a way he wasn't used to.
I agree with Rick and Subraman. The connection between mind and body is probably more important in gymnastics than any other sport. If Biles' head wasn't in the right place then I think she deserves a lot of credit for stepping back and giving others the chance to excel. She handled it maturely and honorably. A selfless act of teamwork.
The thing that bugs me about the whole situation (and I'm not saying it's her fault) is the way the media immediately started with all the "mental health" talk. They are simply incapable of reporting on ANYTHING objectively, without a left wing bleeding heart context placed around it. They're offering her up as some kind of martyr; a victim. Everything in media today has to have a good guy and a bad guy. They just can't accept the fact that there's a limit to how much pressure someone can take before their performance begins to decline. That doesn't mean they have "mental health" issues. It just means they're human.
I know shit about gymnastics, but did a little -- very little -- reading about some of the things she said. Aside from general mental health, she mentioned she got "the twisties". Sounds cute, but it's evidently a super serious thing in the gymnastics world, and very difficult to recover from. Normally a gymnast can instinctively "feel" where she is in the air, and muscle-memory adjust her position so that and she twist and flips, she ends up with the proper rotation to end up on her feet. The twisties is when a gymnast just loses that body and position sense, they don't know where they are in the air, their muscle memory isn't adjusting, and now they have to THINK their way through, which leads to enormous mistakes (and in gymnastics, the power, speed, and height is so high that the consequences can be serious). Once a gymnast gets the twisties, they're in their head and it's very difficult to get out.
Like I said, I read one article so I'm not an expert. But evidently all competitive gymnasts know what the twisties are, and it's considered serious and very difficult to address. This does not seem to be a matter of "felt a lot of pressure, dropped out".
I think its greed and selfishness. She doesn't want to potentially get beaten and is only looking out for her self. Not her team. There are athletes who compete despite the deaths of loved ones and other problems and it drives them to strive more. Simone is an entitled brat with gps.
Icee, that makes no sense. She’s likely going to lose endorsements. If she stayed in and won she’d have earned huge endorsements. If she stayed in and lost she’d also have endorsements. She didn’t gain anything re endorsements by dropping out. She’s already the GOAT. Nothing to protect.
If you're flying through the air, spinning and flipping, and don't know where you are in the air... I'm no gravity expert / neurosurgeon, but that sounds like it might be a little bit of a problem. If it's because you're in your own head, i.e. it wasn't just a one-time thing, sounds like more of a problem.
The endorsements play into it. If everyone went “Ben Simmons” on her, they’d have to pull all her commercials.
So the media plays her up to be “a courageous hero”, not a loser “headcase” like Ben, and the money keeps flowing.
@JimmyMcnulty My reference to Naomi Osaka was a bit of a stretch.
I knew my views weren’t going to be popular - and I wasn’t posting to create an argument. I respect Simone Biles accomplishments. I also think she’s had to deal with a lot personally. She is one of the greatest Olympic gymnasts of all time.
I included her because she mentioned she was having mental health issues earlier in the summer, and she decided she wasn’t going to do press conferences after her matches. She said the press conferences caused her anxiety.
Naomi is an elite individual athlete - who is not a GOAT - but she’s also mentioned mental health issues. This is part of the deal. These folks compete intensely and they reap huge financial benefits - and they enjoy other benefits of fame. Naomi uses her fame to promote social justice issues. But, when she doesn’t want to do press, it doesn’t sit well with me.
She lost and I agree that’s different.
===> "Normally a gymnast can instinctively "feel" where she is in the air, and muscle-memory adjust her position so that and she twist and flips, she ends up with the proper rotation to end up on her feet. The twisties is when a gymnast just loses that body and position sense, they don't know where they are in the air, their muscle memory isn't adjusting, and now they have to THINK their way through, which leads to enormous mistakes (and in gymnastics, the power, speed, and height is so high that the consequences can be serious). Once a gymnast gets the twisties, they're in their head and it's very difficult to get out."
This 100%. One of my kids was a competitive gymnast for some years. Because they cannot see where they're going with many of these complicated routines, including anytime they go backwards, they rely completely upon carefully drilled and timed muscle memory to land where they're supposed to. They practice these routines, in whole or in part, literally thousands of times until it becomes like breathing.
When a gymnast gets the twisties, it means that her brain is getting in the way. When that happens she's fucked and stands a high chance of getting seriously injured or even killed. If that is what she was going through she did the right thing by pulling out.
Simone Biles is a typical Millenial or Gen Z quitter. She should hang her head in shame. She took a spot on the team from another girl who would have stayed in the game, instead of feeling entitled to "mental health" time-outs. She owes an apology to her teammates, her coach, the US Olympic Committee, her sponsors, and the girl(s) who did not make the cut because she took the spot. She should return whatever sponsorship money she took, laser of that tattoo, and GO GET A JOB (preferably one that provides PTO for "mental health days").
Michael Jordan had his best games when he was physically ill or suffering from food poisoning.
Tom Brady (I'm no fan of his) just won ANOTHER superbowl at an ancient age in any sport, with a NEW TEAM, and an injured knee.
What do these men have in common? They stayed in the game, for love of the game, for love of their teammates, and led those teams to victory. Those are not the ones who quit. They are literally champions, and truly GOATs.
She didn't claim twisties when she fell at the Olympic trials; she didn't claim twisties after she was terrible (for her) in the prelims. She claimed twisties when her quitting went over badly. If she had come out and said I am withdrawing because I just cannot do it right now and I am concerned about my safety, it would be one thing. Its another because of all the excuse making. Larry Bird hitting the floor and breaking his cheekbone and coming back after half time; Willis Reed limping badly and providing an emotional spark for the Knicks - this was bravery years ago. Now its brave to quit?
No one lost a spot, unless you want to count an alternate who would’ve made the trip and not competed. Also, US gymnast Suni Lee won the gold this morning in the all around individual, which is great. Biles and the other USA gymnasts were in the stands.
And, what? The same moronic nmdia and youth culture that calls quitting bravery also tried to cancel a medical school professor who mentioned "pregnant women" or "women who are pregnant" for gender bias. The sheer stupidity of it all is indescribable.
I do find it bizarre (and quite arrogant) that she wears that sequined "goat" on her leotard. Generally if you're truly a G.O.A.T. the moniker is attached to you by others, and the more humble you are the more you validate the appropriateness of the unofficial title (the exception being Muhammad Ali, lol). I'm pretty sure that if Tom Brady was seen constantly wearing a "goat" emblem on his clothing, a lot of people would have something negative to say about that.
I didn't know much about Simone Biles before this thread started. Sure I'd heard the name and knew she was an Olympic champion. Now having read and heard a lot more, I'd say that I didn't lose any respect because she dropped out of competition. However, seeing that "goat" on her leotard did cause me to lose some respect.
I've always maintained that athletes have the right to make the call on whether or not to press on. Just like pro football players have the right to make the call to retire early before they get one too many concussions,
so it goes with gymnasts not pressing on with the "twisties". (This is the first I heard this term. I gather one of rich's daughters, or daughter's friends had a bad experience with it.) Whether or note SB actually developed the twisties, or is using it as a crutch for a performance lapse, we'll never know for sure. Her long term health, her call. For a competitive athlete in any sport, it can be a difficult call when to say when.
That said, IMO, the press calling her a hero for merely making a judgement call is way overblown. IMO, a true hero is someone who despite adversity, presses on, even if it means death. The passengers who stormed the cockpit of United 93 to overpower the terrorist hijackers knowing that they were going to crash and die (but would foil the hijackers plan to crash into the Capital, or some other DC target killing many more people are true heroes. Or soldiers that got seasick in landing craft, but pressed on to storm the beaches at Normandy, etc., etc.
Most of you guys posting negative about Simone Biles, were the ones that on the other thread said you weren't interested in watching the Olympics, so why do you even care anyway, and why such anger displayed to a young girl sheesh.
Why do you assume anger from printed words? She's 24 and a world traveler so spare us the young girl crapola. Rick - she is entitled to quit and I have no preference either way because any sport that uses a judging system isn't sport I like or usually watch. This is not something that just came up; I have no way of knowing if she is telling the truth; I don't recall any gymnast ever dying in a routine and histrionics undermines arguments. What I care about is this pathetically stupid fascination society has with making weak people brave. She quit. Her choice. Chose needs to be respected. Calling her brave is bullshit. Using mental health as a sign of bravery is beyond bullshit. My younger brother had cancer for 14 months before he died. To make sure his family was ok financially he worked full time for all but the last 3 months, because by then all he could do was die. That's bravery. He never quit and he stopped working the day he couldn't get out of bed any more.
Mental issues rarely, if ever, all of a sudden appear without warning. There are usually days or months or years of signs of trouble. The problem many have with her is why did she even go to Tokyo. If she was under so much stress why didn’t she gracefully bow out beforehand. The way played out makes her look like a whiny quitter. after a poor score
Marginal yay. Ultimate spinner, gymnast strength and flexibility, sure I'd do her.
Wait. What? A 46 comment thread about her withdrawing from competition. Sorry, Yay or nay used mean something else. Never-mind.
Women’s finals start in 15 minutes. We already know the USA won. Are you watching or does your patriotism/snowflakism end with yelling at faceless user names on the internet?
A lot of small pecker machismo on this thread.
You never know what's going on in someone's head. I've struggled with mental illness my whole life, and guess what, we know how to hide our shit. I've aced my professional position (on a much smaller stage) and was being groomed for higher things, before it all went to hell. I had to take leave because I was a danger to myself and others, completely unable to modulate emotions. In her line of work, even a split second loss of focus could lead to paralysis or death.
I feel for her, she was the one great Team USA story heading in. And at 24, she's a senior citizen in the gymnastics world.
Biles haters can FOAD.
MisterOrange I hope SJG doesn’t read your comment. Once he hears about Simone having GOAT on her clothing, he’s going to recruit her to join his organization!
>Her replacement just won the Gold in the All-Around.
Actually a girl named Jade Carey was Biles replacement in the individual all-around event.
[view link][view link]
For the team competition Biles was replaced by Jordan Chiles in uneven bars and balance beam and Suni Lee replaced her in floor exercise.
Idk why, but I felt like she was Maverick from "Top Gun" when he lost his confidence and called it in. Her vault was not good and could've ended up so much worse (resulting in injury) and that poor performance really shook her confidence (i.e. mental health).
While there have been two differing opinions on her dropping from competition, I will say that "The Best" athletes have superior mental focus and confidence that allows them to consistently perform at a high level. In fact, some of the best athletes train their mind as well as their body, which is what makes them great! Persevering in the face of adversity is a skill.
Gymnastics is both physically and mentally grueling as you're always in search of perfection. It's not only the "what" but also the "how" that you're scored on. She could perform all the moves, but if her form is off or her toes aren't pointed or elbows are bent wrong, they deduct points. That sounds extremely demanding and especially difficult from a mental perspective. I just hope she's able to get the help she needs and maybe this will serve as a turning point in sport that athletes are human, even though we look at them as superhuman.
I have never felt worse for anybody than the spoiled, pampered, whiny athlete of today. The death defying gymnast wow. Pampered, spoiled athlete. Its ok to protect yourself, but spare us the hero bullshit. She could fall and get badly hurt? You mean like hucking a 25 foot cliff in the woods at Big Sky, which I do recreationally and did in February? Danger is called exciting entertainment and when it turns to fear you quit to protect yourself. Cool. Doesn't make you brave or a hero.
"Larry Bird hitting the floor and breaking his cheekbone and coming back after half time; Willis Reed limping badly and providing an emotional spark for the Knicks - this was bravery years ago. Now its brave to quit?"
^^^And Simone Biles has won championships with broken bones and kidney stones, if I recall correctly. So I guess that makes her brave, too.
And the truth is that we don't know what is going on with Simone, neither mentally nor physically. She has competed with injuries before. It's not characteristic at all for her to just quit, so I'm sure there's something serious going on that precluded her from safely competing.
Calling her spoiled and pampered is kind of ridiculous. You clearly don't understand how hard gymnasts work, especially at the elite level. My sister was nowhere near elite and was still going to gymnastics practice 20+ hours a week at age 10. Imagine the amount of training Biles has had to do and the hours she has put in. It is extremely difficult work and hard on your body. Not to mention the years of abuse she endured while doing so. That was not pampering. She has worked hard for - and deserves - each one of her accolades.
LOL at some other idiot saying she should "GO GET A JOB." 🤣
Real GOAT’s (Jordan, Brady) don’t change their Twitter handle or put a picture of a GOAT on their uniform. They leave it up to the public to decide
Not a especially a fan of Tom Brady - but can you imagine when he fell behind 28-3 to the Falcons in the Super Bowl he told his teammates
“I played like shit in the first half - I’m quitting”
Um yeah, the opinions of a bunch of old farts who wheeze getting off the couch are so incredibly relevant when talking about a world class athlete. 🤦♂️
Plenty of athletes take adderall. It is prescribed for ADHD. And she is allowed to use it in Japan.
"'A special arrangement is in place specifically for the Tokyo 2020 [2021] Olympic and Paralympic Games to allow athletes taking these medicines for therapeutic use, and with an approved Therapeutic Use Exemption, to import personal supplies for the treatment of their medical condition while they are in Japan,' a document provided via Team USA says."
Athletes are allowed to use Adderall with a TUE, even in sports where it is "banned." Something like 10% of all MLB players use adderall too, legally like Biles, with a TUE.
She’s given everything for her country. She’s spent nearly three quarters of her life giving to the sport and her country. She was molested because she gave to her country and continued to compete. She’s performed on the biggest stages and succeeded under immense pressure. She is tough. She is objectively the greatest of all time. Michael Jordan? I think he’s the goat but remember when he quit for two years to play baseball? Remember when he came back and then quit again, only to come back and play for the wizards? Did he do that for his teammates or was he being selfish? Simone is supporting her teammates and they are supporting her.
Don’t like that she withdrew? Post a video of yourself doing a cartwheel.
“Don’t like that she withdrew? Post a video of yourself doing a cartwheel.”
I belong to a lot of baseball groups on Facebook and that argument is made countless times by people to defend a player hitting .190
There’s is big difference. That’s his job. Not mine. And he’s getting paid $20 mil per year to hit a baseball. My skills are not relevant.
^
i would have have thought that the 69th comment would be nice
i realize ur disappointed in me biles but i did not even realize that she dropped out or whatever. i am focusing on the beach volleyball. u should try that mr motorhead
your welcome
@motorhead you don’t pay his salary unless you go to the games or buy from his sponsors, you have a choice it’s not that big of a thing.
She dropped out she has that right, it’s not like being forced to wear a mask.
LOL
"Nadia Comaneci was better than Simon Biles. ^^"
Simones Biles is obviously technically far better than Comaneci was. Even Comaneci herself has said that no one is even close to Biles and that most male gymnasts can't do the moves she does. Comaneci definitely wasn't executing the same caliber of moves as Simone Biles, so I'm interested as to how someone could seriously and honestly think Nadia is better. Lol though.
One flaw in that argument is that MJ never put a GOAT logo on his uniform
“GOAT” wasn’t a thing when Jordan was still playing. Biles wasn’t the first person to call herself the goat. She objectively is the best ever, and up until this week was still competing at the top. Different situation. The media narrative isn’t completely within her control but I get that some people don’t like brash athletes for whatever reason. Fine if you don’t like that she embraced the label. Doesn’t change the fact that she was or is the best and she had a serious setback. She’s done enough to get the benefit of the doubt.
No Quarterback has won more super bowls than Tom Brady and yet not everyone agrees that he is the best ever. Some people think LeBron is better than Michael Jordan. It takes imagination and intelligence to compare athletes from different eras. Comparing someone from an era where gymnastics was more about grace than sheer power takes an effort. Keep trying, but to young people with their "knowledge" of history and equivalence, it must seem more difficult than human flight. I guess unless you are the current world record holder in any event, you simply suck and can never be better lol; honestly though.
>“GOAT” wasn’t a thing when Jordan was still playing.
Sure it was. The annoying term GOAT is new but people have been discussing the greatest ever players since I was a kid at the least.
>Um yeah, the opinions of a bunch of old farts who wheeze getting off the couch are so incredibly relevant when talking about a world class athlete.
Athletes, actors, musicians don't exist without an audience.
Last night I heard one of the WOKE NBC announces proclaim I am so proud of her for “doing it her way”
I guess that’s snowflake code for it’s ok to quit after a poor score.
Have you seen some of the Olympic athletes (who aren’t worth 8 figures) really appreciate being there and are willing to give it their all.
>Have you seen some of the Olympic athletes (who aren’t worth 8 figures) really appreciate being there and are willing to give it their all.
look up Tamyra Mensah-Stock
No doubt competing at that level is very-stressful; and these are young people that are not necessarily fully-mature yet to be able to handle that stress – no one knows what she is really going thru but her – I give her the benefit of the doubt that she was not doing well and perhaps thought she was holding back the team vs helping the team by staying in the team-competition.
My issue is how the liberal-media is celebrating her as some kinda heroine for quitting – one thing is to understand she may have been going thru a tough-time – another thing is to celebrate quitting as some kinda virtue – I feel this sends the message to young-people that it’s ok to quit whenever things get tough and not only that it’s ok but that you’ll be celebrated for it as some kinda virtue – feels like an extension of the “everybody gets a trophy generation” where everybody has to feel good vs sticking it out thru tough-times.
Celebrating quitting is one more way the left is trying to destroy this country – i.e. anything that has been a traditional American virtue/value (e.g. hard-work; sacrifice; etc) the left wants to bring down.
"Does anyone remember Kerri Strug? Who performed a vault with an injured leg? That was a great teammate. I would not fault her for stopping."
I remember Kerri Strug, and I remember thinking it was one of the most courageous things I ever witnessed. That said, she did SO much damage to her ankle that she was never able to compete again! In retrospect, maybe not the best decision she could have made.
I think that it would have been easier for Biles to try, but she wouldn't have done well and could have easily done serious damage. She made the right choice.
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