Simone Biles withdraws from all-around gymnastics competition

U.S. gymnast Simone Biles has withdrawn from Thursday’s individual all-around competition at the Tokyo Olympics, one day after dropping out of the team final.

USA Gymnastics said the four-time Olympic gold medalist made the decision “in order to focus on her mental health” following “further medical evaluation.”

The group said Biles will be “evaluated daily” to determine if she will participate in the individual event finals, which are scheduled for next week.

“We wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many,” USA Gymnastics wrote in a statement on Wednesday.

After further medical evaluation, Simone Biles has withdrawn from the final individual all-around competition. We wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many. pic.twitter.com/6ILdtSQF7o

— USA Gymnastics (@USAGym) July 28, 2021

Jade Carey, who earned the ninth-highest score in qualifications, will now compete in the all-around competition.

Biles’s decision to withdraw from the all-around competition comes one day after USA Gymnastics announced she was not competing in the team final competition “due to a medical issue.”

Speaking to reporters after her decision went public, Biles said she wasn’t in the right place mentally before the event, adding that she has been “fighting all of those demons.”

“At the end of the day, I have to do what was right for me,” Biles said. “It just sucks that it happened at the Olympic Games.”

“We’re going to take it a day at a time and see what happens,” she added. “I have to focus on my mental health and not jeopardize my health and wellbeing.”

The USA gymnastics team ultimately won a silver medal in the team final, falling behind the Russian team.

Biles won the all-around competition at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and had hoped to become the first woman in 53 years to win back-to-back titles, The New York Times noted.