Biles not alone under pressure
Pandemic shining spotlight on the overwhelming mental health issues facing athletes
TOKYO — Even before Naomi Osaka appeared on stage to light the Olympic torch, these Games were aflame with the issue of athletes’ mental health.
Osaka had inserted it into the conversation in the run-up to Tokyo, with her honest fragility and withdrawal from the French Open and Wimbledon.
Then Simone Biles made mental health the Games’ biggest story.
That this is a huge issue only comes as a surprise to those who have had blinders on in recent years. Particularly in America.
“One of the things this pandemic has revealed is how poorly equipped we are to handle stress,” said Robert Andrews, a Houstonbased sports psychologist. “We are so highly reactive to things, quick to lash out. For a country with such resources, our emotional intelligence is so poor.”
The pandemic has created a mental health crisis around the globe. But that phenomenon is intensified for athletes here by the relentless pressure of the Olympics cycle, and an entire year of uncertainty and training in relative isolation.
Andrews, who is working with several athletes at these Games, including swimmer Simone Manuel and gymnast Sam Mikulak, could see a ticking time bomb in Biles. She withdrew from the team competition after a near-crash in vault and opted out of the all-around, citing her mental health. On Saturday morning in Japan, she withdrew from the vault and uneven bars finals; her status for the remaining events, floor and balance beam, remains uncertain.
“Think of all that Simone has been through,” Andrews said.
There was the sexual abuse by Larry Nassar (several victims have said the Olympics are particularly triggering). Her childhood was spent in abject poverty. She has revolutionized her sport and remained competing, in part, to hold the federation accountable for its past misdeeds.
Another load Biles carries, one that hasn’t been talked about much, is as a black woman under an intense spotlight in today’s racially charged America.
“Our society doesn’t like strong women in general, and it really doesn’t seem to like strong black women,” Andrews said.
All of that has placed an exceptional burden on Biles.
“You can only hold a beach ball under water for so long before it pops up.” Andrews said. “Simone has been holding down a bunch of beach balls.
“Her brain said: It’s too much.” The mental pressure at these Games is unique. It is absurd to compare — as some have tried to do — the Tokyo Olympics to, say, a Super Bowl or the NBA Finals.
Olympic athletes train their entire lives for their one shot, the pressure building continuously as the Games approach. The pandemic and postponement have made their preparation even more stressful and precarious.
“I can’t imagine the added amount of stress and anxiety — 2021 was expected to be their year to relax,” said Michaela George, an epidemiologist and assistant professor of global public health at Dominican University. “The fatigue and the mental load will have a burnout effect. It can make them less focused.”
Another reason the Tokyo Olympics are unlike any other Games is the saturation of social media. This is not new: Twitter was on the scene at the Beijing Olympics, Instagram had been born by London. But with each Olympic cycle, social media becomes more omnipresent and suffocating.
Biles engaged with her 6.2 million Instagram followers on Friday, answering questions in her story about the “twisties.” She wrote “it’s petrifying trying to do a skill but not having your mind & body in sync,” and that she’s had them before, but never in all four events, like she’s experiencing now.
“Could be triggered by stress, I hear, but I’m also not sure how true that is,” Biles wrote.
Athletes are pressured to be their own brands, to grow their followers, to post constantly to satisfy sponsors and agents and to capitalize on their moment in the spotlight.
But it’s a double-edged sword. Ostensibly social media gives athletes the power to control their own message, yet athletes often find they can’t control social media.
“It’s like pouring gasoline on a fire,” Andrews said. “You scroll through, you see something, you have an emotional reaction.”
Sure, there is an outpouring of love from fans. But there is also, in our increasingly fractured society, a steady flow of hate and criticism. Katie Ledecky spoke of the constant feeling of being watched and judged. The venom hurled digitally at athletes like Biles and Osaka is appalling.
“We’re perpetuating psychological warfare on ourselves,” Andrews said. “Now you can’t have a conversation about a vaccination or a gymnast without getting into a political fight.”
Andrews encourages all the athletes to disengage from social media.
To delete the apps off their phone. And many of them have.
Australia’s star swimmer, Ariarne Titmus, said she had deleted all her social media and had to have her best friend log onto her Instagram account to post about her accomplishments in Tokyo. The friend reported Titmus’ notifications were out of control.
“It can be a bit overwhelming,” Titmus said. “I try to keep away from external pressure.”
U.S. women’s soccer player Crystal Dunn does the same thing and, consequently, hasn’t heard the criticism of how the team looked in group play.
“I’m not on social media, so I have no idea,” Dunn said. “It’s been the best thing.”
Athletes are increasingly comfortable with understanding and addressing their mental health as part of their wellness. NBA player Kevin Love was one of the first, describing a panic attack in 2017. Michael Phelps said he contemplated suicide.
Rory McElroy has opened up about his own battles with depression. Playing golf here at the Olympics, he expressed his full support for Biles.
“I live in the United States, and anything that came on the TV about the Olympics, it was Simone Biles,” McIlroy said. “You’ve got 300-whatever million (in the U.S.) so the weight on her shoulders is massive.
“Just as I thought Naomi Osaka was right to do what she did at the French Open and take time off and get herself in the right place. I 100 percent agree with what Simone is doing.”
Athletes are learning what they need, through the help of people like Andrews. In addition to disengaging from social media and getting help through talk therapy, Andrews encourages athletes to surround themselves with people who love them and find ways to calm themselves down. Massage, hot tubs and meditation can help calm the brain, as well as structured therapies such as Eye Movement Desensitization.
“I’ve spent a lot of time trying to develop a self-love and self-care that can power me through stressful times,” said American soccer player Christen Press, who says she relies on a twice daily meditation practice. “We all have history and baggage. And I think as people, knowing our responsibility is to take care of ourselves and love ourselves first, can help us take care of each other in a more beautiful way.”
The first step to dealing with mental health is recognizing its importance.
“I’m just glad,” said McIlroy, “that the conversation has started.”