Simone Biles' aunt 'unexpectedly' passed away

Simone Biles’ aunt “unexpectedly” passed away while she was at the Olympic Games.

The 24-year-old gymnast withdrew from four individual finals for mental health reasons but returned to competition on Tuesday (03.08.21) and after winning bronze in the balance beam event, she told reporters she’d been hit by a personal tragedy on her father’s side.

And her coach, Cecile Canqueteau-Landi said: “That was another one, I was like, ‘Oh my God. This week needs to be over.’

“I asked her what do you need. And she said, ‘I just need some time.’ I said, ‘You call me, text me if you need anything I’ll be here. Whatever that is.’

“She called her parents. She said, ‘There’s nothing I can do from over here. So I’m just going to finish my week and when I get home we’ll deal with it.’ ”

Simone had “two sessions” with Team USA’s sports psychologist before being cleared to compete on Tuesday and her coach said she has been “openly talking about therapy.”

Cecile added: “I think honestly we all should do it. No shame on it.”

She then jokingly added: “And I think I might need to. It’s been one hell of a week. Some very high, some very low.”

Cecile also hopes Simone will take “some vacation” time.

She said: “I think she needs a good break. We’re going to go back to work but I’m happy for her that she gets to go back to her family, her boyfriend, her dog. She’s just going to go home and enjoy.”

And the coach insisted it is “too early” for Simone to think about whether she’ll want to compete at the next Olympics in 2024.

She said: “Right now, it’s too early to say after the week she’s had. I don’t think she’s ready to commit to anything. And I wouldn’t blame her.

“She used to take one day at a time, you know, we’ve been saying that every day since we’ve been here, especially the past week. ‘One day at a time, let’s see how you feel, let’s see how you do, what do you want?’ It’s been mostly a partnership with her. She’s 24. She knows herself. I know her well, and that’s all we’ve been working on.”