American gymnastics star Simone Biles on Tuesday pulled out of an Olympic competition the United States had been widely favored to win.
As a result, Russia won the women’s team gymnastics event on Tuesday. The United States finished second for the silver medal, while Britain won the bronze medal.
The United States had been seeking its third straight gold in the woman’s team event. Team USA last won a silver medal in the 2008 games, when China took the gold.
“Simone has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue,” USA Gymnastics said in a statement. “She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.”
Prior to that announcement, however, NBC’s Monica Alba tweeted that Biles had not been injured and was having what her coach termed “a mental issue.”
Biles had left the competition area after finishing her vault. She took off her bar grips, hugged her teammates and donned a jacket and sweatpants.
The 24-year-old has struggled in the Tokyo Games to repeat the level she achieved in the 2016 Olympics, when she won five gold medals.
“Simone, on the first event of the first rotation of the team competition … she bailed out of her vault,” CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan said.
It was unclear Tuesday if she would compete further in upcoming individual events.
