"I was not physically capable" - When Simone Biles opened up about her struggles that led to heartbreaking withdrawal at the Tokyo Olympics

In a 2021 interview with The Cut, Simone Biles recalled her struggles that led to a heartbreaking withdrawal at the Tokyo Olympics. The gymnast concluded her Paris Olympics campaign with four medals three years later.

The 27-year-old gymnast faced several adversities during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and eventually had to withdraw from the middle of the event, citing 'twisties.' In the interview, she revealed all her difficulties while competing at the Games.

Biles got on the flight to Tokyo confident but wasn't aware of some developing situations, such as COVID testing and growing cases, that started making it harder for her. She also received pep talks from the coaches, but nothing worked for her.

"There was no crowd, no parents. Leading up to it, I got more and more nervous. I didn’t feel as confident as I should have been with as much training as we had. I was not physically capable. Every avenue we tried, my body was like, Simone, chill. Sit down. We’re not doing it. And I’ve never experienced that," Simone Biles said.

Simone Biles faced twisties, a mental block for gymnasts, while competing on the vault at the women's final performance. She wanted to do a 2.5-rotations flip but ended up doing 1.5, and it happened because she experienced the psycho-physiological block. Explaining the condition, she said:

"It’s so dangerous. It’s basically life or death. It’s a miracle I landed on my feet. If that was any other person, they would have gone out on a stretcher. As soon as I landed that vault, I went and told my coach: ‘I cannot continue.’"

However, Biles made a terrific comeback at the Paris Olympics this year. She won three gold medals in the team all-around event, individual all-around event, and vault event. She also won one silver medal in the floor exercise. She was bested by Rebeca Andrade.

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Simone Biles opens up about giving back to the community after her Paris Olympics success

Simone Biles sat in a conversation with US Weekly, where she spoke about her plans to give back to the community on Thanksgiving. The American gymnast has joined hands with DICK's Sporting Goods and will be taking part in a Texas-wide store decorating competition to help local youth sports organizations. She opened up about the initiative and said:

"Giving back to the community is a given. They’ve supported me throughout my entire career. At the end of the day, if I can do something to support them — to help uplift and to bring some holiday cheer, especially around some hard times like this — that’s what I’m going to do.

It’s just an absolutely amazing thing. I was like, ‘I definitely have to do this and get involved,’ especially with so many kids growing up in sports, helping to build their communities. I thought it was really important.”

Biles launched the second edition of the Gold Over America Tour in September to celebrate with Olympians after the Paris Olympics.