Simone Biles made JD Vance eat his words after the Republican vice presidential candidate called the gymnast “weak” for withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympics.
During the postponed Games, Biles withdrew after suffering from “twisties,” a form of mental block that can cause gymnasts to lose their spatial awareness in the air.
Vance weighed in on the story in 2021, before he was a senator in Ohio and long before Donald Trump selected him as his running mate for this year’s election.
His comments have now resurfaced after Biles made a glorious comeback at the Paris Olympics, where she led the US to team gold and cemented her place among the greatest athletes of all time.
“I think it’s understandable that she was under tremendous pressure,” Vance said at the time.
JD Vance called Simone Biles ‘weak’ after gymnast withdrew from Tokyo Olympics
Gymnastics great Biles returned to the Paris Games and led the US to gold earlier this week
“What I find so strange about this, and it’s more reflective of the media than Simone Biles, is that we’ve tried to turn a very tragic moment — Simone Biles leaving the Olympic team — into this act of heroism.”
“And I think it reflects poorly on our therapeutic society when we praise people not for their strong or heroic moments, but for their weakest moments.”
Vance added: ‘Being an athlete at that level is incredibly tough… a normal reaction at this point would be to say, ‘It’s just too bad she’s going through this. It’s too bad she quit.’
“But instead, I think our press has turned this into this weird therapeutic moment. ‘Let’s praise her for doing this.’ And I think that’s where the real problem lies.”
During the postponed Tokyo Games, Biles withdrew due to the ‘twisties’
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Biles became the most decorated U.S. gymnast of all time with her victory on Tuesday, but she has since been embroiled in a bitter feud with her former teammate MyKayla Skinner.
After the win, Biles couldn’t help but criticize Skinner, who has recently caused a stir by questioning the current U.S. team’s “work ethic” and dedication to their craft.
The eight-time Olympic medalist shared a photo of herself and her teammates — Jordan Chiles, Hezly Rivera, Jade Carey and Suni Lee — holding an American flag with the caption: “lack of talent, lazy, Olympic champions.”
And to show her support for Biles, Lee joined her fellow American star in mocking Skinner by writing in the comments: “put a finger down if Simone Biles just killed you,” accompanied by a hand emoji.