The USA Gymnastics team had to finish out their run at the Tokyo Olympics without their brightest star.
According to the USA Gymnastics official Twitter account, Biles has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue, one which she seemed to have sustained after landing a vault — one which she did not complete as intended — and exiting the floor.
Biles posted an image and message to her Instagram on Monday, beginning with an acknowledgment that the prelims were over and the finals were coming up. Then, she launched into a deeper, personal message:
It wasn't an easy day or my best but I got through it. I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times. I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn't affect me but damn sometimes it's hard hahaha! The olympics is no joke! BUT I'm happy my family was able to be with me virtually🤍 they mean the world to me!
As ESPN notes, though she has withdrawn from the team final, it remains to be seen if she will also be unable to participate in the all-around final on Thursday night or the event finals later on in the competition. A four-time Olympic gold medalist, all in the 2016 Rio Games, Biles struggled out of the gate in the 2020 Games but qualified for every individual final in Tokyo.
After Biles' withdrawal, the United States' long run at the top of the sport came to an end.
The team representing the Russia Olympic Committee overtook the short-handed U.S. team, posting a score of 169.258 to win the country's first Olympic team gold in nearly 30 years, according to the Associated Press.
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