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Simone Biles pulls out of Women’s Team Final at 2021 Olympics due to ‘medical issue’

By Josh Hill

TOKYO, JAPAN - JULY 27: Simone Biles of Team United States looks on during the Women's Team Final on day four of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on July 27, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
TOKYO, JAPAN - JULY 27: Simone Biles of Team United States looks on during the Women's Team Final on day four of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on July 27, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /
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Team USA superstar gymnast Simone Biles pulled out of the Women’s Team Final on Tuesday after suffering an apparent injury. 

Simone Biles is out of the Women’s Team Final at the Tokyo Olympics.

Team USA suffered one of its biggest blows of the Tokyo Olympics on Tuesday when star gymnast Simone Biles pulled out of the Women’s Team Final in the middle of the event.

As Biles was set to compete in the vault portion of the competition, something went wrong that forced her to bail out of completing her Amanar vault. She performed a different routine, received a score of 13.766 and was seen walking off the floor with her bag and a trainer.

Biles was expected to be a part of the uneven bars, but was replaced by Jordan Chiles. She was reportedly visibly upset and soon after left the arena.

Chiles, Suni Lee and Grace McCallum continued the event without Biles.

Simone Biles not competing after suffering apparent injury

Immediate speculation was that Biles has injured herself either prior to the vault or during her run. NBC later began to clarify that the injury may have instead been a mental injury.

“We’ve just been told that, with regards to Simone withdrawing, it is not injury-related. It is a mental issue that Simone is having,” NBC’s John Roethlisberger said during the broadcast of the event.

Later, USA Gymnastics released a statement that further explained what had happened, stating that the reason for Biles exiting the competition was indeed a ”medical issue”  and that she would be further evaluated on Tuesday.

“Simone Biles has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue,” the statement read. “She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.”

It’s worth noting that the use of the phrase ‘medial issue’ doesn’t confirm that the injury was traditionally physical, as mental health injuries can and do occur that cause athletes to miss time the same as a pulled or strained muscle.

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