U.S. gymnastics star Simone Biles has reportedly been pulled out of the women's gymnastics team final at the Tokyo Olympics due to a "mental issue" after just one event following a balk on her vault The shocking development comes just days after she spoke out about her struggle to deal with the pressure of the Olympics.
Biles, 24, who was expected to lead the United States to gold in the team event, was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the first few opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday. Her exit has left the team shocked.
Big Shock
Biles appeared to have an injury but according to the live Peacock broadcast, her withdrawal was not due to a physical injury, but a "mental issue she is having." Biles, who has an illustrious career, made a shock error on vault within the opening minutes of the team final competition that resulted in her lowest score in years.
Shortly after the error, the four-time Olympic gold medalist was seen being attended by a trainer and left the floor at Ariake Gymnastics Center. Not many realized at that time that she would eventually pull out after that. During the second apparatus rotation, the uneven bars, Biles and was replaced by reserve Jordan Chiles.
Moments later it was announced that she has pulled out and won't be competing in the finals anymore. Later, her coach her coach confirmed to reporters on the ground that she has not been injured, explaining that the decision was due to a "mental issue" that was taking a toll on her performance.
Unceremonious Exit
On Tuesday, Biles made a couple of uncharacteristic mistakes on the floor exercise and vault in the qualifying round, scoring an unimpressive 13.766 on her vault, opening up early out of a twist and taking a hop forward upon landing.
Biles had led the all-around standings after the qualifying round on Sunday. However, despite putting up a great show, the American team trailed the Russian Olympic Committee squad entering the finals.
On Monday, Simone took to Instagram to share her upset over her performance, while revealing that she "feels like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders."
"Now to prepare for finals. It wasn't an easy day or my best but I got through it," Simone admitted on Instagram. "I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times."
"I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn't affect me but damn sometimes it's hard hahaha! The Olympics is no joke!" Understandably, the mental issue was taking a toll on her but no one expected her to pull out in the middle of the match.
