# Summer Olympics 2021 ongoing discussion **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** olympic-sports-track\ **Created:** [July 23, 2021, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137 "2021-07-23T12:00:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/242 "2021-07-27T21:42:34Z")
I agree with all you stated. However, they were not guaranteed gold medals. They got silver, which ain’t bad! Biles’ participation may have even risked that - we’ll never know. As an aside, and not picking on you or anyone, but I really wish we’d collectively (especially in the media) stop thinking that anything less than a gold medal is a total and complete failure. The team won a sliver medal at the Olympics - I think most of them this is their first trip. And they are all so young, so there are likely more Olympics in store for them. Whatever is going on with Biles, not getting the team a gold medal should not be a concern for her (yes, I get that she has been built-up into a deity and has embraced it, but still). ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/243 "2021-07-27T21:47:09Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > There’s another wrinkle, too, which is that Biles withdrew from the _team_ competition, rather than the individual, and seems to be hinting that she in fact plans to participate in the individual. If she does this, I think it will feel icky – basically denying her teammates her help earning team gold medals but forcing them to complete against her for the individual ones. She has leaned into the “greatest of all time” label a bit, and has drawn the lions share of the attention and accolades in the run-up to the Olympics; it’s difficult to put into words why this combination of factors would bother me if I were one of her teammates, but it would. America demands gold medals, you don’t build the best Olympics history in the world by celebrating first place loser. ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/244 "2021-07-27T22:00:46Z")
If Biles wasn’t on form ( and I am no expert but her first vault was not good) but stayed with the team she could have wrecked their chances for any medals , standing down and letting someone else more capable and on form go was the right thing to do. I would doubt that decison was made in a vacuum. I guess she will see how she feels over the next day and make appropriate calls on if she will or will not participate further. In other news the men’s synchronized high dive had me “how the hell do they do that?” gawping. Very close between Great Britain and China , but several weeks of daylight between them and the rest of the field. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/245 "2021-07-27T22:07:23Z")
From a safety standpoint, if she wasn’t there and it meant she wasn’t sure of completing a routine, then she definitely should have quit because of the yips. Gymnastics are dangerous enough without that. I think there are reasonable questions that can be asked, including whether or not she should have even gone to Tokyo if she was in that much physical and mental pain, if she could have pulled out entirely before that vault, and how much external pressure has hurt. But I’m also getting tired of all these takes about how brave she is for pulling out. If you want mental health to be taken the same as physical health, then it’s ridiculous to say that stopping due to mental health is brave and stopping because of an injury is just sport. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/246 "2021-07-27T22:29:36Z")
> [@phxjcc](#): > > Look, it 4 years, she will be forgotten She won’t. > [@snowthx](#): > > but I really wish we’d collectively (especially in the media) stop thinking that anything less than a gold medal is a total and complete failure Agree 100% ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/247 "2021-07-27T22:48:04Z")
If you have not watched the kayaking, where they slalom through gates down a very intense rapid river, you need to. It’s super impressive. Like, I’m so impressed with all of the people even doing it at all. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/248 "2021-07-27T23:09:44Z")
Yeah, she’s so good they had to ban moves named after her for fear people would injure themselves trying to replicate it (or is this exaggerated?) From my understanding she’s pretty clearly the best ever. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/249 "2021-07-27T23:33:22Z")
[Moderating] I’ve had some reports that discussion of Biles was getting off-topic. It’s my judgement as a moderator that “Summer Olympics 2021” is an awfully broad topic, and she’s an Olympic athlete, and so discussion of her is, in fact, on-topic. Carry on. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/250 "2021-07-28T00:23:09Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#): > > America demands gold medals, you don’t build the best Olympics history in the world by celebrating first place loser. Worse, they placed second to the Russians, who aren’t allowed to compete as Russia due to doping-related sanctions. So they literally lost to a no-name team. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/251 "2021-07-28T00:36:47Z")
If she were in singles competition sure. But three other women were denied the chance to win gold. No one forced her to compete in this event. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/252 "2021-07-28T00:38:11Z")
I disagree. The swimming styles require different techniques and different muscles. Also, the more competition the better. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/253 "2021-07-28T00:50:57Z")
The margin of error on vaults is dangerously low. It may not have looked like it, but she almost killed herself attempting it. Gymnastics is one of the most inherently dangerous sports in the Olympics. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/254 "2021-07-28T00:54:35Z")
She said that she has no physical injury. She quit. Remember the Japanese gymnast who competed in his event with torn knee ligaments? Again, it this were a singles competition sure step away. But her teammates were depending on her. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/255 "2021-07-28T01:39:14Z")
This story is long but worth reading. > **[Remembering Julissa Gomez](https://themedalcount.com/2021/01/22/remembering-julissa-gomez/)** > > People remember Julissa Gomez for the way her career ended, but the rest of her story should be remembered as well. These are shorter. > **[Julissa Gomez](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julissa_Gomez)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Julissa D'Anne Gomez (November 4, 1972 – August 8, 1991) was an American gymnast whose rapid rise through the ranks of elite gymnastics in the mid-1980s was cut short by a vaulting accident in 1988 that left her a quadriplegic. She eventually died from her injury. She was being coached by Al Fong, and had previously been coached by Bela Karolyi. > Her injury sparked major changes to the vaulting discipline of women's gymnastics with the goal of pre... > **[Christy Henrich](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christy_Henrich)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Christina "Christy" Renée Henrich (July 18, 1972 – July 26, 1994) was an American artistic gymnast. Her death from anorexia nervosa at age 22 led to major reforms in the way women's gymnastics is covered on television and in the news media. She was coached by Al Fong. > Training with Al Fong at the Great American Gymnastics Express (GAGE) club in Blue Springs, Missouri, Henrich made the U.S. national gymnastics team in 1986 after placing fifth all-... > **[Elena Mukhina](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elena_Mukhina)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > Elena Vyacheslavovna Mukhina (Russian: Елена Вячеславовна Мухина; first name sometimes rendered "Yelena", last name sometimes rendered "Muchina"; 1 June 1960 – 22 December 2006) was a Soviet gymnast who won the all-around title at the 1978 World Championships in Strasbourg, France. Her career was on the rise, and she was widely touted as the next great gymnastics star until 1979, when she broke a leg and missed several competitions. The rushed r... ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/256 "2021-07-28T01:42:57Z")
Here’s another gymnast from that era who showed great promise - but she dropped off the world rankings before she was 18 years old. > **[Kristie Phillips](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristie_Phillips)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Kristie Phillips-Bannister (born March 23, 1972), formerly known as Kristie Phillips, is a retired American elite gymnast. The 1987 senior U.S. National Champion and one of the American team's strongest and most visible competitors in the mid-1980s, Phillips was considered to be one of the front-runners for the 1988 U.S. Olympic team. By the Olympic Trials in 1988, however, she had endured several coaching changes and a growth spurt, and was only ... In the meantime, she continues to coach and judge gymnastics and competitive cheerleading. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/257 "2021-07-28T01:49:57Z")
Physical injuries are only one bona fide reason for withdrawing. Mental health issues are just as valid a reason. You seem to be assuming she let her teammates down without considering that she may not have been able to help it. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/258 "2021-07-28T01:51:16Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Remember the Japanese gymnast who competed in his event with torn knee ligaments? [Shun Fujimoto](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2008/aug/07/olympics20082). From the article: “Asked years later whether he would do it again, Fujimoto replied with an emphatic: ‘No, I would not’.” ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/259 "2021-07-28T01:58:18Z")
Since I cant remember a single athlete who did this at the last moment I am not convinced. This was a special time in the lives of her 3 teammates. Sometimes we have to suck it up and go out and do our best. Even if she wasnt at her best she would have been respected for giving her all for her teammates. This will look worse if she competes in her other events. Either way I wish her well. ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/260 "2021-07-28T02:17:58Z")
My son who is a high school swimmer just asked me “Do you know why nobody who wins the 200m Fly semi final looks happy?” “No” “Because they know they have to go and swim it again” Apparently a brutally exhausting race. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137/261 "2021-07-28T02:42:24Z")
The idea that those suffering–and I don’t use that word lightly–from mental issues merely need to “suck it up” is rather sad and discouraging. I respect her for recognizing that she simply could not compete; that also sends a worthwhile message. I’m glad you wish her well, though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/summer-olympics-2021-ongoing-discussion/947137.md?page=14)