|
While Biles did not rewrite the Olympic record book asplanned,
she did leave an indelible mark on the Tokyo Games,changing the
narrative from winning medals to championingathlete mental
health and well-being.
Suddenly everyday conversation revolved around "thetwisties", a
type of mental block where gymnasts are disorientedduring their
gravity-defying skills and something few outsidethe sport had
heard of prior to the Tokyo Olympics.
The 24-year-old had come to Japan eyeing a record haul ofsix
golds, which would have made her the most successful
femaleOlympian of all-time across any sport. But instead she
suffereda crisis of confidence dropping out of the opening
event, theteam competition, after just one vault.
For the next week Biles' story would overshadow everythingelse
that happened at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre, and much ofthe
Games, as she withdrew from event after event.
Not even the coronation of Japan's Daiki Hashimoto, thewinner of
the men's all-around and high bar gold, plus a silverin the
men's team, as successor to his country's gymnasticsgreat 'King'
Kohei Uchimura, could nudge Biles out of theOlympic spotlight.
The winner of four gold medals at the 2016 Olympics, Bilescould
only look on from the sidelines as first the team titleshe led
the United States to in Rio went to the Russian OlympicCommittee
(ROC), then her individual all-around crown wasclaimed by team
mate Sunisa Lee.
Another U.S. team mate, Jade Carey, would replace her asgold
medallist on the floor and Brazil's Rebeca Andrade wouldclaim
her vault title.
But in one last dramatic twist, Biles would return to actionon
the balance beam for the final event of the women'sgymnastics
competition on Tuesday, hoping to end a tumultuousGames on a
golden high.
There would be no storybook ending. The final gold would goto
China's Guan Chenchen, but a courageous Biles would be hailedas
a champion nonetheless after taking the bronze, the same asshe
did five years earlier in Rio.
A team silver and the beam bronze bring Biles' careerOlympic
haul to seven medals, but that falls far below thetarget many
had set for the powerhouse American.
It was that pressure and expectation that appeared to
derailBiles' Olympics, and she spoke with remarkable candour
about herdecision to prioritise her mental and physical
well-being.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) acknowledged thatmore
needs to be done for athlete well-being, particularly thosewho
have spoken about the crushing weight that comes withcompeting
in the Olympic pressure cooker.
"More could be done," said IOC spokesman Mark Adams, addingthat
it was a matter that the organisation had been working onfor
some time.
As Biles exited the Olympic stage, she used it to issue adefiant
reminder that athletes are human after all.
"Mentally I still have a lot of things that I have to workon but
to bring the topic of conversation on mental health tolight
means the world to me," said Biles.
"People have to realise that at the end of the day we'rehumans,
we're not just entertainment."
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Tokyo; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell
and Michael Perry)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
|
