OKAY! So, if you made it here, you are paying attention to the 2020 Olympics (taking place in 2021). You know who Simone Biles is, and probably know that she's considered the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) in gymnastics.
You were probably at least mildly shocked, as I was, that she withdrew from team competition in the all-round yesterday. Her withdrawal meant that the remaining three gymnasts had to be nearly perfect, as every one of their scores were counted. That's a LOT of pressure to put on three athletes, and you may have reacted as I did when it turned out to be a "mental issue". I thought, "What the heck? She's trained how many years to be here, and she can't 'mentally' be prepared?! She needs to suck it up! She's the GOAT! She can't let them down!" I've watched my daughter compete in gymnastics, and watched the pain and injuries increase as the season goes on, and I've watched every single girl just "suck it up" for the team.
And yet...and yet...there is MORE to consider here.
Last night, I watched as Simone did her first vault of the all-around competition, and listened as a former gymnast "broke it down". Simone faltered at the end, and this gymnast said, "She got lost! She lost track of where she was!"
Lightbulb for me. No more criticism of Simone Biles for me for having a "mental issue". And, you should not be criticizing her either.
If she had stayed and competed, she would definitely have injured or killed herself. Because gymnastics is a hugely mental sport--you HAVE to be in the moment every. single. nanosecond. If you are not thinking about what comes next, if you are not counting and planning where to put your body in the every next moment, you will hurt yourself. Sometimes badly. "She got lost" means Simone was not mentally in that nanosecond--for whatever reason, she lost track of where her body was and what it was supposed to do next. I cannot think of another sport that requires that mental awareness at EVERY moment. You cannot be on autopilot ever in gymnastics--your body never "knows just what to do". You cannot "get in a zone" except to exclude all other mental "noise". And Simone Biles just could not do that.
That she was aware of that, that she knew her mind so well, means this: Simone Biles is still the GOAT. I get that now, and I apologize to her for doubting. I thank her for representing the US, and for being a role model--that can be enough.
