Simone Biles made JD Vance eat his words after the Republican vice presidential nominee called the gymnast “weak” for pulling out of the Tokyo Olympics.
During the rescheduled Games, Biles withdrew after suffering from “twisties,” a form of mental block that can cause gymnasts to lose 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 chose him as his running mate for this year’s election.
Her comments have resurfaced now after Biles made a glorious return to the Paris Olympics, where she led the United States to team gold and cemented her place among the greatest athletes of all time.
“I think it’s obviously understandable that she was under an incredible amount of pressure,” Vance said at the time.
JD Vance called Simone Biles “weak” after gymnast pulled out of Tokyo Olympics
Gymnast great Biles returned to the Paris Games and led the United States to gold earlier this week.
“What I find strange about this, and what’s reflected more in the media than on Simone Biles, is that we’ve tried to turn a very tragic moment (Simone Biles’ withdrawal from the Olympic team) into this act of heroism.”
“And I think it reflects rather poorly on our kind of therapeutic society that we try to praise people not for their moments of strength, not for their moments of heroism, but for their moments of greatest weakness.”
Vance added: “Being an athlete at that level is incredibly tough… a normal response at this point would be to say, ‘It’s a shame she’s going through this. It’s a shame she’s stopped doing it.'”
“But instead, what our press has done, I think, is turn this into some weird therapeutic moment. ‘Let’s praise her for doing this.’ And I think that’s really where the problem lies.”
During the rescheduled Tokyo Games, Biles withdrew after suffering ‘twisties’
Biles became the most decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast of all time following her victory on Tuesday, but has since been embroiled in a bitter feud with former teammate MyKayla Skinner.
After the win, Biles couldn’t resist taking a dig at Skinner, who recently sparked controversy 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 a U.S. flag with the caption: “lack of talent, laziness, Olympic champions.”
And to show her support for Biles, Lee joined her fellow USA star in mocking Skinner by writing in the comments section: “put a finger down if Simone Biles just killed you” along with a hand emoji.