How ridiculous. For saying that she is deserving of being called the greatest of all time but that quitting is not brave, I get removed and called a racist? Can someone explain this to me and where I went over the line? I'm genuinely confused here.

Sorry Jub. I miss read your post. Post restored.

 

I forgot about that aspect of it, you are right. And it is definitely something that can continue to affect you. The story continues to make the headlines and that can make it harder.

 

I've always admired an athlete who knew when to hang it up. An athlete who had the strength and courage to admit that they no longer had the skill, the reflexes, the mental clearness, or determination to go on. I've always found it to be a shame when an athlete continued a little too long, and ended up tarnishing his/her career and/or possibly hurting him/herself.

I'm not suggesting that Simone Biles' career is over. She may very well be able to train at her own speed without the pressure, get rid of the twisties, and regain her form, but I do admire her for recognizing that it was time to (possibly temporarily) hang it up.

 

So Rob and others in this camp---

Should that time have been before the trials, where another budding superstar might have gotten the spot to go to Tokyo, and participate fully, not have the remaining team shuffle the roster during the Olympics with those that were already there. I can't imagine nerves and mental anguish at that level occur within a few days, especially for someone who's been there, done that, over and over. I can see someone who's never been there, but not her.

In a way, this reminds me of all the major sport All Star games where the 15 year veteran with horrible stats makes the team based on 'name'. (at this point in time, not last year, or some ambiguous future).

I won't downplay mental issues in any way. However, those athletes who have risen to the top... it's part of the rise and part of the job. Every job has its benefits and risks. You're a pro athlete, you want to be the GOAT. With that comes press-conferences, intense scrutiny, and other things that I can't even fathom (to Jerry's point), but you chose that path, and the reward is millions of dollars annually as an athlete, spokeswoman. I chose IT, I get f'd on migration weekends, outages, escalation and budget overruns and get paid well enough to have the lifestyle Cindy and I want.

 

I can't answer that question, nor can anyone else. We don't know when the demons started to haunt her. I think it's entirely possible that they started immediately before the Olympics. She was performing well in the practice sessions leading up to the Olympics. It was only in Tokyo that her performance started to fall off. And, to her credit, as soon as she realized that it was over for her, she had the strength and courage to step aside.

As far as asking our athletes to "tough it out like John Wayne", I think that's Hollywood History at best, and pure nonsense at worst. Even John Wayne didn't tough it out in real life.

Gary, your comparison to the ballplayer who gets elected to the All Star Game is what I was talking about when I said that many athletes don't know when to hang up their spikes. Mickey Mantle is a prime example of what I'm talking about. Mantle had a stellar career, but he played two years too long and ended up with a career batting average below .300. His last two years were horrible. I do understand that he continued to play for the money, but I'd have more respect for him if he had retired two years earlier. This is true of many athletes (and politicians and business people as well). This however is not the case with Simone Biles. I believe she did know when to hang them up. And, by withdrawing from the Olympics she gave her teammates a chance to shine and cleared the path for Suni Lee to win the gold and claim a place in the spotlight.

I've always had a great deal of respect for Simone for her abilities and accomplishments. Now I have even more respect for her.

 

That's fair Rob. I suspect we'll retain our own opinions of the past week.

This conversation isn't about this: I've always had a great deal of respect for Simone for her abilities and accomplishments. I didn't see anyone comment negatively there at all and suspect we're all in that camp.

 

^ Keep in mind that she came down with the "twisties", many gymnasts experience that at some point in time. She has had it before and it was very evident that she had some sort of balance issue. I would regard it as a physical issue though others refer to it as some sort of mental disconnect. She said it happened after she arrived in Japan. Her spatial awareness was affected when she was flying in the air. She could not tell where she was landing, that was very evident. She did the right thing to withdrawal.

 

Thanks for pointing out that important fact, zero. As I understand it, the "twisties" in gymnastics are just as real and just as debilitating as the "yips" are in golf, and just as poorly understood. The difference is in a sport where athletes are throwing themselves through the air, the twisties are far more dangerous. I don't think this was an issue prior to some point during gymnastics prelims or perhaps as late as the team finals. Either way it is unfair to criticize the timing of her withdrawal. I'm sure she left for Tokyo feeling fit and confident.

 

Mike, I might call "the twisties" a little ore critical than the yips.
I don't think anyone ever broke their neck with the yips. unless you're talking about the neck of their putter.

 

There was a slow motion video of Simone being airborne and you can see her eyes totally off center like she was looking around in a panic as she was coming down, it looked really scary and she landed away from her intended spot.