?I?m Kind of Shocked? – American TV Presenter Sean Hannity Aggressively Defends Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka

Simone Biles shocked the world when she produced a performance short of perfection in the Tokyo Olympics. During the team final, the 24-year-old lost awareness while attempting a complicated maneuver on the vault, which is her specialty.

In the coming days, Biles withdrew from multiple finals which saw the USA’s chances of more gold medals decrease. However, she threw more spotlight on mental health issues after Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka pulled out of the French Open earlier this year citing the same reason.

Recently, popular Fox News figure Sean Hannity came out in support of both athletes.

Sean Hannity was shocked by negative comments on Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka

Although Osaka won her opening match in the French Open, she withdrew from the tournament after missing the post-match press conference. Her withdrawal placed a spotlight on the importance of mental health, which Biles accentuated after she withdrew from three individual finals at the Tokyo Olympics.

Despite many across the world supporting them, there were some who mocked them for this decision. During his show titled Hannity, the 59-year-old admitted comments made on them by people shocked him.

He said, “To be honest, and this may surprise you, I?m kind of shocked people have actually been so mean and cruel in many cases, passing judgment of both these incredible female athletes. Can we just be a little more respectful?”

He later admitted that both superstars sacrificed a lot to be the best, which meant they deserved better.?“Remember, they are under tremendous pressure,” said Hannity.

“They?re all very young and sometimes all of us need to take a deep breath, relax, reset, move forward. These young women have both sacrificed years and years over a decade of their life to become some of the greatest athletes in their respective sports.”

READ MORE: ?We All Learned From You?: Taylor Swift Backs Simone Biles With Regards to Mental Health Issues She Suffered at Tokyo Olympics 2020

Hannity: People seem pretty heartless in their comments

While defending Biles and Osaka, he called out people passing negative comments. In addition, he also called for people to be more understanding towards those suffering at a young age.

He said,?“None of us ever know what someone, especially any young person, what they might be going through that you don’t know about. You just don?t know.”

“They?re under tremendous pressure, and I?m sorry, but some people seem pretty heartless in their comments.”

Amidst the debate, Biles chose to take part in the balance beam final. She left Tokyo with a bronze medal to add to her silver medal from last week’s team event.

WATCH STORY: Tokyo Olympics 2020: Simone Biles Heartbreaking Withdrawal, Michael Phelps Supporting Her, Everything Else You Need to Know