Former Boxing Champ, Who Recently Channelized His Inner Simone Biles & Naomi Osaka to Battle Mental Health Struggles, Gets Lauded for His “Courage & Humility”

Published 08/08/2022, 8:15 AM EDT

Following his win over Jose Benavidez Jr. last week in a new weight class, the former unified WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine light welterweight champion Danny Garcia reflected on his battle against mental health.

Showtime Sports executive Stephen Espinoza reported it on Twitter.

He wrote, “DannySwift‘s powerful post-fight interview last Saturday. The courage & humility he displayed in sharing his mental health struggles – and his open expression of love & gratitude to his dad – was awe-inspring. Danny, you’ve touched more people than you’ll ever know.”

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@DannySwift's powerful post-fight interview last Saturday.
The courage & humility he displayed in sharing his mental health struggles – and his open expression of love & gratitude to his dad – was awe-inspring.
Danny, you've touched more people than you'll ever know. https://t.co/WM4j3OrEAz
— Stephen Espinoza (@StephenEspinoza) August 5, 2022

The two-weight class champ made a stunning return at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York when he took over Benavidez Jr. with a decision win. His accurate punching and outstanding skills proved why he is among the biggest draws of boxing. Furthermore, Garcia’s win has again opened the doors for the world title’s quest.

In the post-fight interview, the champ became emotional. While he was sobbing, the interviewer encouraged him by saying, “You’re showing really true emotion and I think that a lot of people at home we’ve seen this in other sports, I’ve seen it with Kevin Love, Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka. You’re not alone…”

This helped Garcia in gathering himself and sharing what he faced during the 19-month-long layoff.

“I didn’t take a break, you know, I was going through some mental things. I felt a little dark, (sobs..) I went through some anxiety and depression… just tried my best to stay strong, ” Garcia said.

When asked about his current mental state, he said, “I still battle some days. I do battle some days. I have some days but I try my best to stay positive. But I feel good now, as you can see I gave the fans a great show tonight. Thank you for coming out.”

Danny Garcia is not alone in a battle with mental health, Michael Phelps and Simone Biles are also on the list

Like Garcia, the legendary Olympian Michael Phelps also shared his mental health issues. While sharing his thoughts, he highlighted how mental health is different from physical health.

According to him, the biggest mistake people do is that they don’t emphasize it and with time it makes them hollow from the inside. The biggest lesson he learned through his battle against anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts was to prioritize each health-related problem, whether it is mental or physical.

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Additionally, the greatest gymnast of all time, Simone Biles also showed courage in sharing her mental health problems. In an emotional interview with Today, Biles admitted that her mental health problem forced her to withdraw from several events because it triggered ‘the twisties’. The twisties cause a gymnast to lose their sense of dimension and space while in the middle of a maneuver in air. The magnitude of anxiety and depression was so severe that she was scared of doing gymnastics.

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What do you think of mental health problems? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Abhishek Singh is a Boxing writer at EssentiallySports. Following the completion of his training as an amateur boxer, he is currently preparing to appear for trials at the state and national levels. With over 3 years of experience in playing the sport, Abhishek is also the holder of a Bachelor's in Arts degree from the University of Delhi.

Edited by:

Ajinkya Aswale

Former Boxing Champ, Who Recently Channelized His Inner Simone Biles & Naomi Osaka to Battle Mental Health Struggles, Gets Lauded for His “Courage & Humility”

Danny Garcia is not alone in a battle with mental health, Michael Phelps and Simone Biles are also on the list

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