Simone Biles Withdrawal Puts Athletes’ Mental Health in Spotlight
- Athletes have been under additional mental duress in past year
- U.S. gymnast withdrew from events citing mental health concern
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U.S. gymnast Simone Biles’s decision to withdraw from the individual all-around final at the Tokyo Olympics is drawing further attention to the way the pandemic has exacerbated mental health issues facing the world’s top athletes.
The 24-year-old decided to drop out of the event to focus on her mental health, USA Gymnastics said in a statement Wednesday, a day after she withdrew from the women’s team final, in which the U.S. placed second.