Tokyo Olympics 2020: It’s okay not to be okay

Simone Biles, a 24-year-old American athlete draws back from team gymnast competition at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Mental health has been weighing heavily on athletes during the Olympics and could be a rising issue nowadays due to the pressure there is on one.

Jessica Bartley, a psychologist, and director of mental health services at the Olympics and Paralympics has brought forward that there were requests daily during the Games to support athletes’ mental health.

These requests did not usually come from the athlete at most times “a tip from someone around the athlete, who alerted us to a situation,” she says. 

With the stress and pressure one goes through, the world has been facing a wave of bleakness due to the Covid-19 that has also affected the mental health of many especially athletes away from home who were quarantined and those who received unexpected news from back home, also the fear of not being able to perform well at the Games.

Bartley and her team were eyes on and ready to attend to athletes’ mental state as this way key during this year’s Olympics.

Simone Biles was not the only athlete to shockingly exit due to mental health pressure. Naomi Osaka, Tokyo Olympics athlete who lit the Olympics flame at the opening ceremony, faced a sudden exit in tennis.

Speaking about mental health, these two young powerful women who paved a history in the world of sport, brought forward their mental health issues embracing a powerful move that precipitated a global movement about mental health. 

After a conversation with E! Online, Biles brought forward the struggles she received after prioritizing her mental health; 

“It wasn’t an easy decision, so it hurts that people were like, ‘Oh she quit or she did this’ because I’ve worked five years for that, why would I quit? At the end of the day, we’re not just athletes or entertainment, we’re human too and we have real emotions. I feel like I push things under the rug. I just kind of went along with it, but it was something bigger than me at that moment. After the team finals or so we went to the village and I honestly expected to feel a little bit embarrassed and people were still coming up to me saying how much I meant and done for them in their world and that was just the craziest feeling ever.”

Micheal Phelps, the retired Olympics icon with a total of 28 medals who struggled himself with depression who in an interview with CNN in 2018 confessed to using drugs to self-medicate and contemplate suicide, said watching Biles struggle on Tuesday “broke my heart.”

Biles has brought ahead a highlight to her health state and being strong, becoming a huge idol for many today. 

Biles action towards prioritizing her health has brought forward to many that no matter what is on the table for someone but taking this step out especially in front of the whole world has become no longer a boundary even though the whole world is watching, her powerful move will become an inspiration to others.

Athletes going through hardship due to mental state issues have not been new to the Games it has been there all along.

Is the world doing enough about mental health?

"I just think it's something that people should be more aware of." -  Simone Biles