Decorated athlete Simone Biles admits her 2021 Summer Olympic struggles caused her to worry about how others thought of her.
While appearing on the Call Her Daddy podcast, the seven-time Olympic medalist opened up about how she felt while fighting “twisties” during the Tokyo Olympic Games.
“In training, I was having ‘twisties’ already,” Simone Biles recalled. According to Health.com, the term “twisties” refers to a certain type of mental block that gymnasts experience. This condition can cause a “disconnection” between the mind and body.
Biles continued by stating she was trying to push past the twisties but had some struggles. “I would literally tell my teammates, ‘I’m fighting demons. I’m fighting demons right now but I’m going to do it for you guys.’ The cords were not connected.”
Unfortunately, the twisties ended up getting the best of her. After stumbling in the vault portion of the Olympic gymnastics event, Biles withdrew from the team competition final.
Following the event withdrawal, Simone Biles thought she had let America down. “If I could’ve got on a plane and flown home, I would’ve done it,” she explained.
“But as soon as I landed, I was like, ‘Oh, America hates me. The world is gonna hate me, and I can only see what they’re saying on Twitter right now.’ That was my first thought.”
Biles also thought was going to be “banned” from America. However, the reaction was the complete opposite of what she was expecting. Many fans and fellow athletes rallied around her, completely understanding her need to focus on her mental and emotional well-being.
Simone Biles Revealed Her to Approach the 2024 Summer Olympic Games After 2021 ‘Twisties’ Incident
During a Sept. 2023 interview on TODAY, Simone Biles revealed how she was planning to approach the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris after her 2021 Tokyo “twisties” incident.
“I think I have to take care of myself a little bit more and listen to my body,” she explained. “And making sure that I’m making time for the important things in my life rather than before.”
Biles also spoke about the lifestyle she had leading up to the 2021 Tokoyo Olympics. “It was just like go, go, go, and, then, making time after.”
“This time around, it’s like being intentional, going to therapy, making sure everything is aligned so that I can do the best in the gym and be, like a good wife [to Jonathan Owens], a good daughter, a good friend, all the good things.”
Simone Biles is set to make her Olympics season debut in May at the U.S. Classic in Connecticut. The U.S. Championship will also take place next month in Texas.
The 2024 Olympic Gymnastics team will be unveiled in June weeks before the Summer Games in Paris.