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Irene Pyne

The USA gymnastics body officially announced yesterday that Olympic champion Simone Biles would be withdrawing from the final competition round at the Tokyo Games to focus on her mental health. The authority tweeted that they “wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritising her well-being”.

After further medical evaluation, Simone Biles has withdrawn from the final individual all-around competition. We wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many. pic.twitter.com/6ILdtSQF7o
— USA Gymnastics (@USAGym) July 28, 2021


But the 24-year-old gymnast is definitely not the only celebrity athlete that has struggled with mental health issues. A report published by the Athletes for Hope organisation in the US revealed that 35 per cent of elite athletes have suffered from some kind of mental health crisis.
Here are five sports celebrities who’ve said, it’s OK not to be OK – kick-starting a conversation we should have had a long time ago about mental health and the pressure of the spotlight.
Meet Hong Kong’s Olympics hero Siobhan Haughey – who just won silver in Tokyo

Going to bed thinking about @Simone_Biles saying, “We hope America still loves us.”
Goodness.
We more than love you. We adore you. We cherish you. We admire you. We feel for you. We are rooting for you.
Thanks for taking care of yourself. We all need that example.
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) July 28, 2021

Simone Biles
The support for Biles both online and within her Olympic team has been incredible, since her withdrawal from the women’s individual all-around final. Three-time Olympic gold medallist and former teammate Aly Raisman said in an interview with ESPN, that she was “very proud of Simone, and I can’t imagine the bravery that it takes to just say, ‘I’m not going to do it today’”.

Swimmer Michael Phelps showed solidarity with his fellow Olympian in an interview with NBC, saying, “We carry a lot of weight on our shoulders, and it’s challenging, especially when we have the lights on us and all of these expectations being thrown on top of us.”
Naomi Osaka
At the Tokyo Games, Japan’s Naomi Osaka experienced a surprising 6-1, 6-4 loss to the Czech Republic’s Markéta Vondroušová at the third round of the Olympic tennis tournament. In subsequent interviews, it appeared that Osaka felt her mental health break made it harder for her to handle the pressure of being the face of the Tokyo Games.

In an opinion piece for Time magazine, written before her third-round match, Osaka described her decision to tend to her mental health before the Olympics. She wrote: “I felt under a great amount of pressure to disclose my symptoms – frankly because the press and the tournament did not believe me. I do not wish that on anyone and hope that we can enact measures to protect athletes, especially the fragile ones.”
The Osaka native also noted that she is naturally introverted, and felt “uncomfortable” at the idea of being a spokesperson for mental health for athletes. However, she also said, “Michael Phelps told me that by speaking up I may have saved a life. If that’s true, then it was all worth it.”
Meet the 13-year-old Japanese skateboarder who just won Olympic gold
Michael Phelps
Phelps shared his struggles with depression and suicide after the 2012 Olympics, revealing in 2018 that he was “extremely thankful that I did not take my life”. The Olympic swimmer shared his personal story at the fourth annual conference of The Kennedy Forum, a mental health advocacy group in the US.

When he was asked to specify when he felt his struggles with mental health began, the swimmer said that he had started noticing a pattern: “Really, after every Olympics I think I fell into a major state of depression.” He said that the feeling of sharing his experiences, and potentially helping to save lives, was “light years better than winning the Olympic gold medal”.
Ronda Rousey
The former UFC fighter broached the topic of suicide on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2016. Both her father and grandfather had taken their own lives and, after her December 2016 defeat at the UFC 207 against bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes, Rousey admitted that she too had contemplated suicide.

The professional wrestler later helped to open Didi Hirsch’s Suicide Prevention Center in 2019 and, when interviewed by TMZ, said, “My message that I would give is: reach out, don’t tough it out.”
Olympics 2020: can sports’ oldest brand survive the Covid-19 furore?
Serena Williams
In 2018, the 23-time grand slam champion opened up on Instagram about her struggle with post-partum “emotions” after she gave birth to her daughter Alexis Olympia in September 2017.












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A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams)



In the No Filter – Mamamia podcast, she explained her choice of the word “emotions” rather than post-partum depression, a common mental health issue that affects more than one in every 10 women within a year of their giving birth. Williams said she: “felt like it was really important to talk about because a lot of people feel like the word ‘depression’ is bad, and just because you’re going through things doesn’t necessarily mean it’s depression.”
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If you are having suicidal thoughts, or you know someone who is, help is available. For Hong Kong, dial +852 2896 0000 for The Samaritans or +852 2382 0000 for Suicide Prevention Services. In the US, call The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on +1 800 273 8255. For a list of other nations’ helplines, see this page.


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Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Simone Biles wasn’t the first – before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Naomi Osaka, Michael Phelps and Serena Williams spoke up about mental health in sports

Star athletes who have spoken out about their mental health struggles include Michael Phelps, Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka. Photos: AP, AFP, Reuters

Simone Biles waits before competing in the vault event of the artistic gymnastics women’s team final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, on July 28. Photo: AFP

Naomi Osaka of Japan walks off after losing her third round match against Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics at Ariake Tennis Park in Tokyo, Japan, on July 27. Photo: Reuters

Michael Phelps. Photo: @omega/Instagram

Ronda Rousey reacts following her TKO defeat against Amanda Nunes during UFC 207 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, US, in December 2016. Photo: USA Today Sports

6 LGBT athletes who made history at the Olympic Games, from Tom Daley and Caster Semenya to Ian Thorpe

Matthew Mitcham, Ian Thorpe and Tom Daley: gay athletic stars who have broken barriers in the world of sport. Photos: @matthewmitcham88; @homenajesbacanes; @tomdaley/Instagram

The National Stadium during an athletics test event for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Tokyo on May 9, 2021. Photo: AFP

Equestrian Robert Dover became the first openly gay person to compete at the Olympics. Photo: @dovers_world/ Instagram

Matthew Mitcham is the first openly gay Olympic gold medallist. Photo: @matthewmitcham88/Instagram

Olympic medal winner Tom Daley is also a television personality and YouTube vlogger. Photo: @tomdaley/Instagram

Australian swimming champion Ian Thorpe is one of the most awarded athletes in recent memory who publicly came out after he retired from international competition. Photo: @dorothys_bffs/ Instagram

Australian Natalie Cook won both bronze and gold Olympic medals. Photo: @dawncorcoran/Facebook

South African intersex icon and middle-distance running world champion, Caster Semenya has broken records, but is now unable to participate in the Tokyo games. Photo: @947Joburg/Facebook

UFC rich list: from Conor McGregor to Khabib Nurmagomedov, the 5 richest fighters ever – net worths ranked

Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor and Brock Lesnar rank among the UFC’s highest-earning fighters ever. Photos: @khabib_nurmagomedov; @thenotoriousmma; @brock._.lesnar/Instagram

B.J. Penn and his luxurious cars. Photo: @bjpenn/Instagram

Brock Lesnar rocking the shades. Photo: @brock._.lesnar/Instagram

George St-Pierre chilling outside. Photo: @georgesstpierre/Instagram

Khabib Nurmagomedov with Islam Makhachev. Photo: Instagram

“The Notorious” Conor McGregor and his luxurious car. Photo: @thenotoriousmma/Instagram

Are LeBron James’ IRL mansion and family in Space Jam: A New Legacy? 4 burning questions about the NBA star and his new Hollywood film

Basketball player/actor LeBron James arrives at the Warner Bros. Pictures world premiere of Space Jam: A New Legacy at the Regal LA Live in Los Angeles, California, on July 12, 2021. Photo: AFP

LeBron James in Space Jam: A New Legacy. Photo: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

LeBron James’ home in Space Jam: A New Legacy. Photo: USAT

LeBron James, left, with director Malcolm D. Lee on the set of Space Jam: A New Legacy. Photo: Warner Bros. Entertainment via AP

LeBron James, his daughter Zhuri James and wife Savannah Brinson James pose for a photo during the Space Jam: A New Legacy movie premiere at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, on July 12, 2021. Photo: ZUMA Wire/DPA

A scene in Space Jam: A New Legacy. Photo: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Space Jam: A New Legacy. Photo: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Instagram’s 2021 rich list: Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest earner, pushing Dwayne Johnson into second with Ariana Grande third

Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian: three of the A-list celebs to make it into Instagram’s highest earners per post list for 2021. Photo: @cristiano, @kimkardashian, @kyliejenner/Instagram

Kendall Jenner with her dog. Photo: @kendalljenner/Instagram

Singer Justin Bieber. Photo: @justinbieber/Instagram

Beyoncé Knowles. Photo: @beyonceknowsles/Instagram

Barcelona’s Argentinian forward Lionel Messi poses with his trophy during the Ballon d’Or 2019 awards ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, France, in December 2019. Photo: Xinhua

Kim Kardashian. Photo: @kimkardashian/Instagram

Selena Gomez. Photo: @selenagomez/Instagram

Kylie Jenner. Photo: Instagram/kyliejenner

Singer Ariana Grande. Photo: @arianagrande/Instagram

Actor and former wrestler Dwayne Johnson. Photo: @therock/Instagram

Juventus’ professional footballer Cristiano Ronaldo. Photo: @cristiano/Instagram

How UFC fighter Conor McGregor became the highest-paid athlete in the world – he earned US$180 million in the past year alone, more than even Tiger Woods or Cristiano Ronaldo

UFC fighter Conor McGregor has transcended his sport to make much more money today through endorsements and as an entrepreneur. Photo: @thenotoriousmma/Instagram

Conor McGregor brings the bling. Photo: @thenotoriousmma/Instagram

Conor McGregor punches US fighter Dustin Poirier in a lightweight fight during the UFC 257 event at Etihad Arena on Abu Dhabi’s Fight Island in the United Arab Emirates in January 2021. Photo: Zuffa LLC

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Olympic champion Simone Biles withdrew from the final individual all-around competition at Tokyo on July 28, supported by fellow gymnasts like Aly Raisman
Ronda Rousey opened up on Ellen about her suicidal thoughts following her UFC 207 defeat against Amanda Nunes – and she’s not the only athlete who’s struggled


Olympic champion Simone Biles just withdrew from the final in Tokyo to focus on her mental health – and Naomi Osaka, Michael Phelps and Serena Williams have had their own struggles too
