Simone Biles and the rest of the USA women’s gymnastics team spent Wednesday celebrating their team gold medal at the Olympic Games in Paris — while also taking time to clap back at their critics.
“Lack of talent, lazy, Olympic champions,” Biles wrote in an Instagram post on Tuesday.
The superstars’ words were directed at one critic in particular: former Olympic teammate and former University of Utah gymnast MyKayla Skinner, who won a silver medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo in the individual vault competition.
Skinner was critical of this year’s Olympic team when it was announced.
“Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn’t what it used to be,” Skinner said in a video when the team was announced. “I mean, obviously, a lot of girls don’t work as hard. The girls just don’t have the work ethic.”
Skinner also said that had she returned to gymnastics, she would have qualified for the Olympic team. The video has since been deleted.
The reaction of the Olympic team was swift. Biles, though excluded from Skinner’s remarks, took offense, writing, “Not everyone needs a mic and a platform.”
Afterward, Skinner walked her comments back. On July 3, she said that she was referring to new U.S. SafeSport policies that prevented gymnast overwork. “It was more about going back into my own gym and the work ethic is different compared to when we were doing gymnastics in the Marta [Karolyi] era,” Skinner said.
Then, on July 6, Skinner issued a more formal apology.
“I want to formally apologize to Team USA and to our gymnastic community for my comments during my recent YouTube episodes of the Gymnastics Olympic Trials,” Skinner said in a statement. “It was not my intention to offend or disrespect any of the athletes or to take away from their hard work. Your hard work and dedication has paid off and I congratulate each and every one of you.
“Upon reflection, I was comparing the ‘Marta Era’ to the current era. I am coming to terms that I have not fully dealt with the emotional and verbal abuse I endured under Marta that perhaps led to my hurtful comments. I take full responsibility for what I said and deeply apologize.”
Still, Biles and the rest of the team remembered Skinner’s criticism after winning gold Tuesday. “Lack of talent, lazy, Olympic champions,” Biles boasted.
Biles indicated she had been blocked by Skinner on social media by Wednesday morning.
USA teammate Jordan Chiles posted a photo of Biles’ phone with proof of the block.
Skinner, meanwhile, has yet to post a response to Team USA’s victory.