Gymnastics superstar Simone Biles was sensationally pulled out of the team final because of a ‘mental error’ in a shock decision that saw the US lose out on the gold medal to Russia at the Tokyo Olympics.    

The 24-year-old – who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event – was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday.   

Shortly after the dramatic error, Simone left the stadium with her trainer and was closely followed by medical staff – sparking fears that she had sustained a serious injury.

Moments later, it was announced that she had been pulled out of Team USA’s uneven bars lineup, and shortly after, it was revealed that she had been taken out of the competition altogether. 

According to NBC’s commentators, Simone’s coach confirmed that the athlete had not been injured, explaining that she her withdrawal from the final was the result of a ‘mental issue’, although USA Gymnastics later released a statement blaming the decision on a ‘medical’ problem while noting that Simone would be ‘assessed’ before the individual finals. 

‘Simone Biles has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue,’ the statement said.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

The gymnastics legend qualified for all five individual event finals – the all-around, floor exercise, beam, vault, and uneven bars – and she had been hoping to add six more gold medals, including one in the team final, to her already-impressive tally of Olympic titles, however USAG’s statement indicates that this quest could well be brought to a very swift and dramatic end.  

Simone Biles has been pulled out of the team final after just one event following a shock error on vault that resulted in her lowest score in years

Simone Biles has been pulled out of the team final after just one event following a shock error on vault that resulted in her lowest score in years

Simone Biles has been pulled out of the team final after just one event following a shock error on vault that resulted in her lowest score in years 

The 24-year-old - who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event - was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday

The 24-year-old - who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event - was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday

The 24-year-old - who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event - was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday

The 24-year-old - who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event - was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday

The 24-year-old – who had been expected to lead the US to gold in the team event – was withdrawn from the lineup after flubbing her vault in the opening minutes of the team final competition in Tokyo on Tuesday

Simone made a very uncharacteristic - and very severe - error during her vault, bailing out of her intended skill mid-way through and only completing one-and-a-half twists instead of two-and-a-half

Simone made a very uncharacteristic - and very severe - error during her vault, bailing out of her intended skill mid-way through and only completing one-and-a-half twists instead of two-and-a-half

Simone made a very uncharacteristic – and very severe – error during her vault, bailing out of her intended skill mid-way through and only completing one-and-a-half twists instead of two-and-a-half 

Simone's coach said that the athlete has not been injured, explaining that she had been withdrawal from the final was the result of a 'mental issue', although USA Gymnastics later released a statement blaming the decision on a 'medical issue'

Simone's coach said that the athlete has not been injured, explaining that she had been withdrawal from the final was the result of a 'mental issue', although USA Gymnastics later released a statement blaming the decision on a 'medical issue'

Simone’s coach said that the athlete has not been injured, explaining that she had been withdrawal from the final was the result of a ‘mental issue’, although USA Gymnastics later released a statement blaming the decision on a ‘medical issue’

Simone, who made history earlier this year when she became the first-ever female gymnast to perform the incredibly risky and complicated Yurchenko double pike vault, stunned spectators when she made a very uncharacteristic error in the team final, bailing out of the skill she had planned to do while in mid-air.  

The shock decision to pull Simone out of the competition comes just one day after she spoke out about her struggle to cope with the pressure of the 'weight of the world on her shoulders' following Team USA's lackluster performance in the team qualifiers

The shock decision to pull Simone out of the competition comes just one day after she spoke out about her struggle to cope with the pressure of the 'weight of the world on her shoulders' following Team USA's lackluster performance in the team qualifiers

The shock decision to pull Simone out of the competition comes just one day after she spoke out about her struggle to cope with the pressure of the ‘weight of the world on her shoulders’ following Team USA’s lackluster performance in the team qualifiers  

The gymnastics GOAT was supposed to execute a Yurchenko vault with two-and-a-half twists, but bailed out at the last second and only performed one-and-a-half twists, resulting in a much lower starting score.  

To add insult to injury, Simone’s knees then buckled on the landing, propelling her towards the mat – although she narrowly avoided falling to the ground. 

Her resulting score – 13.766 – is the lowest she has received in years. 

Simone returned to the stadium as the dramatic news of her withdrawal was shared, putting on her tracksuit over her leotard in a move that confirmed her exit from the competition. 

Jordan Chiles then stepped up to the uneven bars to take her place along with Sunisa Lee and Grace McCallum, having already fallen into second place behind rivals Russian Olympic Committee who scored highest on the vault. 

Simone is now taking on the role of cheerleader, standing alongside her teammates – first-time Olympians Suni, Jordan, and Grace – providing support as they competed the final three events without her. 

The shock error and remarkable decision to pull Simone out of the competition comes just days after the athlete opened up about her struggle to cope with the pressure of this year’s Olympics.  

Simone looked devastated as the news of her withdrawal was announced and she was seen being comforted by one of her coaches, Cecile Landi

Simone looked devastated as the news of her withdrawal was announced and she was seen being comforted by one of her coaches, Cecile Landi

Simone looked devastated as the news of her withdrawal was announced and she was seen being comforted by one of her coaches, Cecile Landi

Simone looked devastated as the news of her withdrawal was announced and she was seen being comforted by one of her coaches, Cecile Landi

Simone looked devastated as the news of her withdrawal was announced and she was seen being comforted by one of her coaches, Cecile Landi

Dramatic: Shortly after the vault, Simone was seen leaving the floor with a Team USA coach and a member of the medical staff, sparking fears that she had sustained a serious injury

Dramatic: Shortly after the vault, Simone was seen leaving the floor with a Team USA coach and a member of the medical staff, sparking fears that she had sustained a serious injury

Dramatic: Shortly after the vault, Simone was seen leaving the floor with a Team USA coach and a member of the medical staff, sparking fears that she had sustained a serious injury 

Following the team qualifiers – during which the US put on a very lackluster performance that saw them qualifying in second place, while the Russian Olympic Committee finished in first – Simone took to Instagram to share her upset over her performance, while revealing that she ‘feels like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders’.  

In qualifying for the finals, the U.S. team of gold-medal hopefuls were beaten into second place by Russia‘s athletes with Simone and teammates uncharacteristically faulting during their disciplines.  

‘Now to prepare for finals. It wasn’t an easy day or my best but I got through it,’ Simone admitted on Instagram.

‘I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times.

‘I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn’t affect me but damn sometimes it’s hard hahaha! The Olympics is no joke!’

Simone’s withdrawal from the competition has seriously damaged the US’s chances of earning gold in the team final, with Russia’s gymnasts pushing ahead in the wake of the gymnastics GOAT’s exit. 

The decision to pull her out of the final has also left the US with just three athletes, first-time Olympians Suni, Jordan, and Grace, meaning that they will all have to compete on every event. 

Initially, only Simone and Grace had been expected to take part in the all-around – meaning that they were the only two gymnasts who would have competed on all four events: vault, uneven bars, beam, and floor exercise.  

Simone returned to the stadium to cheer on her teammates, showing little sign of upset or pain, and was seen standing comfortably on her feet - suggesting that she has not sustained a serious injury

Simone returned to the stadium to cheer on her teammates, showing little sign of upset or pain, and was seen standing comfortably on her feet - suggesting that she has not sustained a serious injury

Simone returned to the stadium to cheer on her teammates, showing little sign of upset or pain, and was seen standing comfortably on her feet – suggesting that she has not sustained a serious injury

The decision to pull her out of the final has left the US with just three athletes, first-time Olympians Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Grace McCallum, meaning that they will all have to compete on every event

The decision to pull her out of the final has left the US with just three athletes, first-time Olympians Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Grace McCallum, meaning that they will all have to compete on every event

The decision to pull her out of the final has left the US with just three athletes, first-time Olympians Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Grace McCallum, meaning that they will all have to compete on every event

As well as the added pressure on Team USA’s other three athletes, the squad’s overall score will also take a huge hit; Simone’s routines on all four events are among those with the highest potential points, particularly when it comes to the vault, beam, and floor exercise. 

As her teammates performed on the balance beam, Simone stood by applauding.

She hugged Grace as she stepped off the beam, having taken her place in the lineup.

Despite the devastating result of her personal performance in the final, Simone made heroic efforts to keep her spirits up, and was seen joking and laughing with teammate and fellow Texan Jordan – showing no clear sign of any injury or pain. 

Following the third rotation, the US was trailing Russia by just eight tenths of a point, having put in a tremendous performance on the beam, where Simone is typically the highest-scoring athlete. 

The final event in the competition – the floor exercise – will now determine the overall result, and reveal whether the US can surge ahead to win gold despite the absence of its most talented athlete. 

Team USA’s hopes of finishing in first place suffered another dramatic blow when Simone’s home gym teammate and close friend Jordan, 20, fell during her floor routine, resulting in a score of just 11.7 – effectively ending the squad’s chances of winning.  

Grace, 18, and Suni, 18, executed fairly clean routines with few mistakes but it was not enough to push the US ahead of Russia’s gymnasts. 

Source: Daily Mail

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