Simone Biles of the United States reappeared at the Olympic Games on Tuesday; she earned bronze in the balance beam final and added, “I did it for myself.”
It will be her first competitive outing in Tokyo since abruptly withdrawing from the women’s team finals; this happened last week with Biles proclaiming her decision to take a vacation to recover her psychological health.
Biles Had the Opportunity to Break the Record for Most Gymnastics Gold
The 24-year-old competed for the eight-woman finals at the Ariake Gymnast Centre in the very first week of the Games after winning bronze on the balance beam in Rio de Janeiro five years earlier. The multiple Gold medalist then revealed she was in fact afflicted from “twisties,” an instance where gymnasts are unable to position themselves while in mid-air.
U.S. gymnast Simone Biles' hasty and unexpected retreat from the Woke Tokyo Olympics has left a list of sponsors coming up short. https://t.co/inZenhRQxT
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) July 28, 2021
As a consequence, she abruptly withdrew in last week’s inaugural qualifying tournament after one vault, as well as the all-around finals and three of the four equipment finals (floor, vault, and uneven bars). The 24-year-old went to Tokyo with the goal of matching the Olympic all-time gymnastic milestone of nine golds.
She has chronicled her psychiatric problems during the Olympics in regular updates on her social networking sites, eliciting both praise and condemnation. Biles equaled Shannon Miller’s record of seven Olympic medals for an American athlete.
🇨🇳❤️🇺🇸 just in Olympic pic.twitter.com/BQjwzUtn2q
— 一盏灯💡 (@YIZHANDENG1001) August 5, 2021
The Chinese Seem to Like Her
Hua Chunying, the Chinese Foreign Agency’s most prominent official, praised American gymnast Simone Biles in a social media post on Thursday, supposedly for demonstrating grace to Chinese opponent Guan Chenchen.
“Proud of you,” Hua said in her message. TRUE #Olympic spirit,” Biles wrote on Instagram, besides two photographs showing her laughing and hugging an athlete who seemed to be Guan.
It seemed to be a signal to the American because the shot clearly indicates Biles, but not the other athlete. The snapshot appears to be taken when the two athletes fought against each other in the balance beam final in the week, with Chen winning gold and Biles taking bronze.
Proud of you. TRUE #Olympic spirit. pic.twitter.com/uuRfCeIwrz
— Hua Chunying 华春莹 (@SpokespersonCHN) August 5, 2021
Ignoring Beijing’s ban on locals using the US social media site, Hua regularly shares Chinese disinformation on Twitter. Top state demagogues are granted privileges by the Communist Party, and they are allowed to participate in Twitter.
Hua’s post came after the other American Olympian athlete, Sunisa Lee, was praised for hugging Guan after she earned her Olympic gold in the Global Times.
Guan’s accomplishment was a source of pride for so many Chinese, but the heartfelt support provided to Guan by 18-year-old US athlete Sunisa Lee on the grounds of the competition also drew attention, according to the Times.
Lee won a gold medal in the single gymnastics all-around event before the individual event competitions began, a detail that was left out of the Times article.
