Simone Biles out of the team final at the Olympics – Corriere.it

The record-chasing champion retires and the US loses gold. The Federation: injury to be evaluated. But the American media: mental stress. His prophetic post

The diamond splintered under the weight of the world. Simone Biles, the indestructible, human woman. And on a Japanese evening he made the first fake leap in his career, leaving his dream team, the USA, to his fate. And without gold. An earthquake, which changes everything. The cold shower comes when it’s 9pm in Tokyo: Biles doesn’t compete in the team gymnastics competition. It stopped after the vault. She curled up after landing, then left the competition field accompanied by the team doctor. returned to the platform after several minutes with the right ankle visibly bandaged. A blow that prevents her from continuing the All Around and therefore to fulfill the dream of winning 5 golds in the same Olympic competition. It remains to be seen whether I will also miss the other finals (that of the free body on 2 August will also involve our Vanessa Ferrari). She explains it like this: After the performance I did in the vault, I didn’t want to go on. Injuries? No. Just a little damage to my pride. We must protect our mind and body and not do what the world asks us to do.

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But speculations have already started on the reasons for the withdrawal of the Martian. The American network Nbc has collected the statement of the coach according to which Simone is not mentally calm, as if behind the forfeit there were no physical reasons but psychological pressure. The American Federation simply spoke of physical conditions to be assessed day by day, without clarifying whether this means the definitive abandonment of the Games.

Biles, and the US team, had to defend the team title against Russia. Almost a matter of national pride. The United States has conquered the event in all the Olympics since 2011, but Russia is a growing power, even if in Japan it is the representative of the Russian Olympic Committee (the abbreviation on the ROC uniform, ed) because the country was deprived of its flag and anthem for doping offenses. And in fact, taking advantage of Simone’s absence, the Russians won gold in a race that saw our blue fairies (Alice D’Amato, Asia D’Amato, Vanessa Ferrari, Martina Maggio) touch the bronze, seeing themselves overcome to the photo finish from Great Britain.

Simone’s exit from the scene surprising but not quite. There is a long outburst on social media that had already foreshadowed clouds. as if I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders, the 24-year-old Texan champion came out on Instagram. I know I blow it away and make it look like the pressure doesn’t hit me, but damn it sometimes hard: Hahaha! The Olympics are no joke! He had almost prophesied.

The darkness was approaching and Simone was trying to chase it away, thinking of home: I’m happy that my family was able to be with me virtually, they mean the world to me !, the post continued. And he shared a selfie with a background monitor showing her parents encouraging her from America.

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