Simone Biles Seemingly Shades Former Teammate Who Accused USA Gymnasts of Lacking ‘Work Ethic’
It was pure elation when Team USA won gold in women’s gymnastics at the Paris Olympics, but captain Simone Biles took the opportunity to shade her former teammate who accused the team of lacking in work ethic.
“Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn’t like what it used to be. Just notice like, I mean, obviously a lot of girls don’t work as hard. The girls just don’t have the work ethic,” Skinner said. “It was not my intention to offend or disrespect any of the athletes or take away from their hard work,” she posted to Instagram on July 6, walking back on her earlier comment. “Your hard work and dedication has paid off and I congratulate each and every one of you.”
On July 30, Team USA took home the gold medal and Biles took to Instagram to celebrate. “lack of talent, lazy, olympic champions ❤️🥇” she wrote in the caption, seemingly responding to McKayla Skinner’s comment in a since-deleted YouTube Video.
In the comments section, another fellow gymnast, McKayla Maroney, wrote, “It doesn’t get more iconic than this.. She f’d around n found out fr. Feels like I need to apologize just to redeem my first name.” Maroney was a part of Team USA’s “Fierce Five” in the 2012 London Olympics where she won a gold medal in the team and an individual silver medal in the vault event.
Skinner and Biles competed together at the Tokyo Olympics, with Biles withdrawing early citing the “twisties”—a condition which the Cleveland Clinic describes the twisties as “a mental block that creates a dangerous disconnect between mind and body while gymnasts are airborne.” Biles still won a silver and bronze medal, while Skinner took home a silver and then retired shortly after.
