9 Great Responses to Use If You Hear Simone Biles Slander

Simone Biles, the greatest gymnast in history, withdrew from the team competition and the all-around competition at the Olympics 2021 in Tokyo this week. “I had to do what's right for me and not jeopardize my health and well-being,” she told press. 

Immediately far-right commentators, trolls, and generally creepy men lashed out at the 24-year-old gymnast. They called her a quitter, weak, and a coward. They accused her of abandoning her teammates. They even implied that she's not a good American. It's not worth singling out these critics—getting attention for raging at a strong Black woman is exactly what they want. 

But there are probably nice, reasonable people in your life who are critical of Biles's decision too. It's not particularly compassionate, but it's understandable—if you don't rabidly follow Biles (can't relate), you might look at this situation and just see a person breaking her commitment. Most of us were raised on stories of athletes being celebrated for putting their physical and mental health at risk to compete. We saw Kerri Strug as an 18-year-old U.S. gymnast win a gold medal on a broken foot, and we were told that was heroic. (Strugg never competed again—more on that below.) 

This is exactly the unhealthy narrative Simone Biles is countering—she's showing every current and future athlete that saving your own life is more important than getting a medal. She's helping us unlearn a crazy, exploitative, and just plain unnecessary mentality. Let's let her take a well-deserved break, and do some of that unlearning together. 

Here are some ways to talk about Simone Biles's historic week, whether you're arguing with creeps, a misguided friend, or even your own inner skeptic: 

They say: “She's weak—she should have pushed through it.” 

You say: Whoah! Obviously, her physical strength speaks for itself. Long before she set foot in Tokyo, she had already solidified her status as the greatest gymnast of all time. And I think you're forgetting that she became the greatest gymnast of all time while holding national organizations accountable for the fact that former doctor Larry Nassar abused her and hundreds of other gymnasts. She's shown strength beyond comprehension. 

In fact, she pushed herself to go to the Tokyo Olympics to do something even harder than gymnastics. As the final Olympic gymnast who survived Nassar, she has said that she feels responsible for continuing to hold U.S. Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic Committee accountable for what she and other gymnasts say was a failure to keep them safe. “I feel like if there weren't a remaining survivor in the sport, they would've just brushed it to the side,” she said ahead of the Games. “But since I'm still here, and I have quite a social media presence and platform—they have to do something.” 

We have no idea what it feels like to have the eyes of the world on you as you deal with the fallout of assault. But we know Biles isn't weak. 

They say: She’s a quitter

You say: I disagree—is every person who’s ever taken a sick day a quitter? Biles's historic decision will influence untold numbers of future athletes—and women—who will learn that it is okay to ask for help or take a break. Anyway, were you more upset about Simone Biles dropping out of the Olympics or about Larry Nassar abusing hundreds of gymnasts? 

They say: Well, she's no longer the GOAT (greatest of all time). 

You say: Simone Biles is the greatest of all time because she’s capable of executing the hardest moves ever performed in gymnastics. She already has four Olympic golds and 19 world championship titles. Having a mental health challenge does not change that. 

By the way—you seem really into gymnastics! Who do you think has the greatest chance to take gold on the uneven bars this year? The USA's Sunisa Lee? Or maybe Nina Derwael from Belgium? Or you in it less for the athletics and more for the gossip? 

They say: She should have at least tried to compete. 

You say: She did—and it was dangerous. Think of it this way: If a swimmer makes a mistake, she's embarrassed. If a gymnast makes a mistake, she could break her neck. Forget the fact that you and I can't even do a backflip; Biles has four moves named after her, moves few other gymnasts can even attempt. She's literally the only person qualified to say whether or not she can compete. 

To get technical, former Team USA gymnast Laurie Hernandez says that Biles got “lost in the air” during her vault. If you are unfamiliar with or nauseated by that concept, that’s a good sign that you should not hold confident opinions about Biles’s career! Former U.S. competitive gymnast Olivia Dunne notes that when she got “the twisties,” she had to go through weeks of restorative physical and mental coaching to recover. And Dunne points out something that should be obvious: No athlete goes through that much training to drop out of a competition on a whim. 

They say: “A real athlete fights through the pain.” 

You say: Maybe we should reframe that. 

In 1996, U.S. gymnast Dominique Moceanu won an Olympic gold medal at 14 years old, to wild praise. What a trooper! Or is there more to the story? On Wednesday, Moceanu took to Twitter to clarify what really happened. “I was 14 y/o w/ a tibial stress fracture, left alone w/ no cervical spine exam after this fall,” she tweeted. “I competed in the Olympic floor final minutes later. Simone Biles's decision demonstrates that we have a say in our own health—'a say' I NEVER felt I had as an Olympian.” 

Many have ridiculed Biles, pointing to Moceanu's teammate Kerri Strug as a heroic example. Strug famously won team USA a gold medal by competing with a third-degree sprained ankle. The world watched as Strug, only 18, bounded toward the apparatus on her injury, completed a perfect vault, landed on both feet, hopped off her injured foot, and collapsed in agony. She appeared on the medal podium after struggling off a gurney. 

At 18, her career was over—she never competed in gymnastics again. Still convinced that Strug's story is a sunny, all-American triumph? Many people remember coach Bela Karolyi carrying Strug off the mat. Fewer remember that Larry Nassar was waiting, hand outstretched, on the sidelines. 

On Tuesday, Strug tweeted her support for Biles.

They say: “Part of being an athlete is getting over the stress.”

You say: To a certain extent, of course. But there's a difference between game-day stress and debilitating, life-threatening mental health issues. Take Michael Phelps, perhaps the person who can most empathize with Biles's situation. He has said that he was suicidal in the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics. We see athletes only at their high points. We don't see what Phelps described. “I am extremely thankful that I did not take my life,” he has said of the depression he faced after every one of his Olympic Games. Talking about his feelings, he has also said, was a better feeling than winning a gold medal. 

On Tuesday, he applauded Biles's decision. Aren't he and Biles role models for prioritizing their mental health? 

They say: “She abandoned her team.”

You say: They wouldn't be a very good team if they wanted their teammate to risk breaking her neck! Luckily, Simone’s teammates don’t seem to feel that way. And by the way, they earned a silver medal—don’t erase their hard work!

They say: “I feel sorry for the girls who would have had a spot on the team if Simone hadn’t competed.”

You say: You will be thrilled to learn about Olympic alternates! Jade Carey, who was already set to compete in Tokyo but didn't qualify for the team event, will take Biles's spot in the individual all-around. Go Jade! 

They say: “But she let us down! She let down the USA.” 

You say: Simone Biles is not a government employee, an elected official, or a member of the military. She is a private citizen who has given her life to gymnastics, often to the glory of her country. She and her family have made huge physical, financial, and emotional sacrifices to allow her to win four Olympic gold medals for the United States, and 19 world championships. In the process, she survived abuse for which she has not seen justice. She owes you nothing. 

Jenny Singer is a staff writer for Glamour. You can follow her on Twitter. 

Originally Appeared on Glamour