What are the twisties?

Biles explains condition that led to pullout

Golfing great Ernie Els once six-putted from three feet on one hole.

Those are the “yips.” Yankees second baseman Chuck Knoblauch got to a point in his career when he couldn't throw the ball to first consistently anymore. That was coined “Steve Sax Syndrome” after the Dodgers second sacker who went through the same thing.

Now, we've got the “twisties”— which all-time American gymnast Simone Biles endured at the Tokyo Olympics this past week. It's the same sort of performance anxiety as the golf and baseball examples, only way more perilous, since it could end with a broken neck.

The frightening disorientation, which can happen despite doing the same manoeuvre for years without issue, can cause a gymnast to lose her sense of space and dimension while in the air. It can cost her control of her body, force unintended extra twists or flips and lead to an unsafe landing.

“Sometimes, I can't even fathom twisting,” Biles posted to her Instagram account Friday, calling it the strangest and weirdest thing. “I seriously cannot comprehend how to twist. It's honestly petrifying trying to do a skill but not having your mind and body in sync. Something you have to take literally day by day, turn by turn.”

Biles has experienced this uncertainty before, which is a common condition for many gymnasts — just never at the Olympics, which is her sport's biggest stage.

It forced her to pull out of the team event and skip the all-around competition. She has not yet ruled herself out of the individual apparatus finals, but there are some challenges to confront there.

“It's never transferred to bars and beam before for me, it strictly likes floor and vault,” she said of the twisties. “Go figure, the scariest two.”

Biles has been applauded for deciding to step back for her physical and mental health. She also made it clear she did not give up in the middle of a competition.

“I didn't have a bad performance and quit. I've had plenty of bad performances throughout my career and finished the competition. I simply got so lost my safety was at risk, as well as a team medal. Therefore the