Simone Biles does not regret calling out MyKayla Skinner in defense of her current Team USA teammates after their impressive performance at the Paris Olympics.
The US’ most decorated gymnast said she believes it was the right move before Skinner, who was Biles’ former teammate in the 2021 Tokyo Games, made a plea to Biles to tell her social media followers to stop sending her hate comments.
“It’s important because you have to teach them to use their voices,” Biles told People on Tuesday. “And if not, you’re a voice for the voiceless, which is okay.
“I just felt like it was right in that moment to stand up for them, because they’re so young and they haven’t fully stood in their power yet.”
After Biles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles, and Hezly Rivera won gold at the team all-around final in Paris, the seven-time gold medalist captioned an Instagram post using similar language to Skinner’s criticism of the team’s “work ethic” in a since-deleted YouTube video.
Skinner, who retired from gymnastics three years ago after winning a silver medal in Tokyo, claimed that the team of women were getting “lazy.”
“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 in a picked up clip from the deleted YouTube video and has since gone viral on X.
“Lack of talent, lazy, olympic champions ❤️????????????,” Biles’ Instagram caption reads.
Biles, 27, later revealed that she has been blocked by Skinner on Instagram.
“For somebody to stand up, I know it meant a lot for [my teammates],” she added to People.
The Post’s latest coverage on Simone Biles vs. MyKayla Skinner drama
On Tuesday, Skinner claimed in an Instagram video to have received tons of “hateful comments” and “death threats.”
Skinner put out an Instagram video asking Biles to help put an end to the wave of comments that have attacked herself, her husband Jonas Harmer and their 23-month-old daughter Charlotte Jane.
“Simone, I am asking you directly and publicly, to please put a stop to this. Please ask your followers to stop, you have been an incredible champion for mental health awareness and a lot of people need your help now,” Skinner said.
Skinner apologized on social media last month for comments towards the team and said she sent out messages to each of the five gymnasts ahead of the Paris Games.
In Tuesday’s video, she said she had only heard back from one gymnast.
“Only Simone had responded and she told me that she was proud of me,” Skinner said. “You guys can imagine my surprise last week when I was celebrating our team winning gold just to see this brought up all over again by a caption on an Instagram post.”
Biles walked away from Paris with four more medals — three gold and one silver — and she may not be done just yet.
She didn’t rule out coming back for the 2028 Los Angeles Games when she would be 31 years old.