NZ Herald Focus Sport's Cheree Kinnear recaps New Zealand's first gold medal as a potentially historic day dawns on day eight. Video / NZ Herald
US gymnast Simone Biles, who has been copping vile abuse following her decision to withdraw from the Tokyo Olympics, has returned to social media for the first time, with a heartbreaking message of thank you to those who've supported her.
"The outpouring love & support I've received has made me realize I'm more than my accomplishments and gymnastics which I never truly believed before," Biles wrote on Twitter.
Biles, who has won competitions with broken toes and kidney stones, is objectively one of the best athletes of her generation and a role model to those younger than her.
She is, indisputably, the greatest gymnast of all time, having won 27 gold medals, as well as having five world championship titles under her belt and four moves named after her.
Despite that, she has been viciously attacked by trolls online since she announced her decision to withdraw from the Olympics, citing mental health reasons.
"I have to focus on my mental health and not jeopardise my health and wellbeing," Biles said after the United States won silver without her on Tuesday.
"It just sucks when you're fighting with your own head."
She has been called "weak" and "a quitter" by people who could never achieve what she has.
"Simone Biles is a quitter," Amber Athey declared in The Spectator yesterday.
"Biles may be the most skilled gymnast ever, but a true champion is someone who perseveres even when the competition gets tough."
Charlie Kirk, a right-wing talking head, called Biles "immature", a "selfish sociopath" and a "shame to this country".
"We are raising a generation of weak people like Simone Biles," said Kirk, whose own record of strength and perseverance is limited to having dropped out of college.
"Simone Biles just showed the rest of the nation that when things get tough, you shatter into a million pieces."
Piers Morgan accused Biles of using mental health as an excuse.
Are ‘mental health issues’ now the go-to excuse for any poor performance in elite sport? What a joke. Just admit you did badly, made mistakes, and will strive to do better next time. Kids need strong role models not this nonsense.
He went on to critique the people lauding her choice, saying they were celebrating "losing, failure and quitting as greater achievements than winning, success and resilience".
"Sorry if it offends all the howling Twitter snowflake virtue signallers, but I don't think it's remotely courageous, heroic or inspiring to quit."
A number of athletes and people who actually know what they are talking about have come out in support of Biles, praising her for prioritising her mental health.
never been prouder to be apart of such an amazing team with an amazing group of girls. we stepped up when we needed to and did this for ourselves. we do not owe anyone a gold medal, we are WINNERS in our hearts. 🤍
....did she cost the team a gold medal?🏅or did her decision help her team win a silver medal? 🥈....because if she had a really bad performance her team would not have placed at all.
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"Michael Phelps told me that by speaking up I may have saved a life," she wrote in a Time essay earlier this month. "If that's true, then it was all worth it."
