“Do Not Want to Go”: Witnessing Simone Biles’ Twisties Firsthand, Legendary Gymnast Questions Paris Olympics 2024 Decision

The awareness regarding mental health issues in sports was before the Tokyo Olympics as well. However, Simone Biles bowing out from the 2021 Olympics because of her ‘twisties’ (a rare situation when body and mind are not in sync while trying high-level elements) added a voice to it. At the time, several athletes backed her decision to move out of the Olympic village.

One such support came from Alex Bowen, a Team USA member from the men’s water polo team. In his acknowledgment, the athlete said, “To be able to overcome your own ego and step aside, that’s huge.” Once again, Simone Biles has received similar cheering for her stand in the Tokyo Olympics, but this time, it has come from one of her opponents in the 2021 Games. But the context remains the same – Olympic participation with a notwithstanding mental state. 

Simone Biles inspires fellow gymnasts irrespective of sides 

Italian gymnast Vanessa Ferrari is on her fifth Olympic endeavor, eyeing a fitting end to her career through an achievement from the Parisian contest. Even so, with such a goal in mind, she can side with her mental well-being if there comes any question regarding it, defying her target. In her recent conversation with the Olympics. com, the veteran informed, “I want to be competitive. I am the first to say that if I am not in the right form, I do not want to go.” Surprisingly, Vanessa Ferrari can think of taking such a step after getting inspired by Simone Biles in the Tokyo Olympics. There remains a riveting backstory. 

In the Tokyo Olympics, Vanessa Ferrari defeated Simone Biles in the qualification round of floor exercise. But she remained sympathetic when Simone informed her about the decision to withdraw from the contest. However, Vanessa Ferrari had supported Simone Biles’ step then. 

Furthermore, after equalizing her status with the American opponent, Vanessa elaborated, “If you struggle with disorientation in the air, it can be very scary.” Eventually, in the same floor exercise in Tokyo, Ferrari achieved her target to earn an Olympic medal. Three years later, she is putting effort into changing her medal color. But on the question of mental state, she stands firm on her Paris Olympics participation. But what did Simone Biles carry out in Tokyo that even after these years her stand echoes in the annals of sports? 

The issues keep repeating despite brave standings 

Before Simone Biles could speak out about the niggling mental state in continuing the sports, Micheal Phelps put a volume on it in the 2020 documentary The Weight of Gold. The most decorated Olympian had blamed the excessive pressure of expectations from the fans that harmed. The same tone echoed in Japanese gymnast, Mai Murakami’s statement, who felt evaporated despite winning the bronze medal in Tokyo, fearing the criticism from her countrymen. However, Simone jotted down these points and proved that athletes are “still human.”

Talking about the criticism part, Simone Biles grieved over the fact of coming under public scrutiny bearing the mountainous pressure of being the face of the nation in high-level competitions. Protesting such condemnation, she said, “People have no idea what is going on behind the scenes, and just judge us from our social media.” In her conversation in the Call Her Daddy podcast as well, Simone Biles described the public criticism part in length. 

Simone Biles was expected to bring another gold medal from the Olympics. But her exit from the game might not have been received positively. “I thought I was gonna be banned from America. Because that’s what they tell you; don’t come back. If it’s not gold, gold or bust, don’t come back,”  she described in that podcast. This part remains the same. 

While measuring her path to the Paris Olympics, Vanessa Ferrari is fighting with her age, physical boundaries, and form. These factors are competent enough to harm the confidence level that may double the pressure from expectations of representing the country. Now, as the Paris Olympics occasion is inching closer, Vanessa may prefer fewer issues with mental health.