At the 2021 Olympic Games gymnast Simone Biles, one of the greatest and most dominant gymnasts of all times (multiple world & Olympic world champion) stated on Instagram that she was “[feeling] the weight of the world on [her] shoulders” and that she felt affected by the pressure of the Olympics.
Biles withdrew from the rest of the team competition, citing mental health issues and explaining that she was inspired by fellow female Olympian Naomi Osaka, who had withdrawn from the Wimbledon competition that year for similar reasons. The USA team went on to win the silver medal behind the Russian athletes.
On July 28, 2021, Biles withdrew from the finals of the individual all-around competition, again citing mental health concerns. Biles said that she experienced “the twisties”, a psychological phenomenon causing a gymnast to lose air awareness while performing twisting elements.
Her decision created varied response from sports fans ranging from full on support at how strong she is to favor mental health over glory, all the way to huge backlash.
3x ADCC world champion felt obliged to give his opinion. He is widely considered to be the best No Gi grappler in the world. Although Ryan is not an Olympic athlete, he has won the ADCC 3 times which is considered the Olympics of No Gi grappling.
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Joe Rogan addressing the situation:
