Explosive Article on Simone Biles: ‘No, We Shouldn’t Cheer Quitting Over Mental Health’

By
David Rufful
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OPINION | This article contains commentary that reflects the author's opinion.

Should Simone Biles’ decision to quit at the Olympics be celebrated?

A controversial opinion article published by Amanda Prestigiacomo at the Daily Wire argues that Americans should not applaud the charismatic gymnastics superstar Simone Biles for quitting despite mental health issues.

Prestigiacomo notes, “The applause was fierce” when tennis star Naomi Osaka dropped out of the French Open due to mental health struggles.

Osaka quickly became the media’s “Golden Girl” for “getting real” about mental health. This is now considered the “ultimate act of self-care.”

Prestigiacomo disagrees.

Biles confirms she was influenced by Osaka: “She even said so following her decision to pull out of the finals.”

Here’s the critical part of Prestigiacomo’s argument:

Mental health, of course, is a serious issue.

But there’s also no doubt that “mental health” has become incredibly trendy — peruse on TikTok for ten minutes and count up how many young people you can view bragging about their self-described mental illness, anxiety, or breakdowns as if they were a badge of honor.

The allure of tending to one’s mental health, too, has become a convenient way to excuse a lack of effort, our shortcomings, or our decisions to quit on things we have committed to rather than face potential outcomes of failure.

And that’s the heart of the issue here. We cannot as a society applaud, praise, and reward young women, or anyone, for choosing to quit rather than possibly fail.

Mental toughness is a crucial part of sports, and it’s a crucial part of life. This is not to belittle mental health struggles, or to say we can always overcome pressures and other anxieties with mental toughness. We can’t.

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