NFL Star Aaron Rodgers Backs Simone Biles for Her Decisions at the Tokyo Olympics 2020

Published 08/07/2021, 12:39 PM EDT

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers praised gymnast Simone Biles for putting her mental health first at the Tokyo Olympics. Biles who came into the Games as a highly favored gymnast to win gold in all her gymnastics events withdrew from several events in Tokyo because of her mental health.

I sat down with Aaron Rodgers to try to do what we do every training camp: talk about TV. He loves Mare of Easttown now and still loves Ricky Gervais. He’s excited about GOT spin-offs. Then we talked about Simone Biles and Aaron had powerful words. Read: https://t.co/hUdazM4vTr
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) August 6, 2021

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What Aaron Rodgers had to say in the interview

“I give Simone so much credit for her ability to speak the truth, her truth, and to answer tough questions, and to have the courage to say ‘I’m scared’ and ‘I don’t feel like I should be out there’,” Rodgers said.

“She’s the greatest gymnast of all time. And mental health [awareness] is an issue that is continuing to break down the stigmas that don’t allow us to talk about it. Or only allow us to talk about it in a super negative, depressive, suicidal way. People of all ages and all professions are dealing with mental issues, especially during COVID. You’ve seen the suicide hotline [calls] going way up. We’ve seen so many different statistics around mental health.”

“It’s something we should be talking about and ways to help people get through it, whether it’s techniques or therapy or just conversations letting people know they’re not alone. And that’s what Simone did. I’m very, very proud of her. I’ve gotten to know her a little bit at times over the years. And I think what she did and then the way she handled herself, cheering for her teammates, was really special to watch in a tough situation for her. And I give her just a tremendous amount of respect.”

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The Impact of her Decision

Without Biles, Team USA couldn’t defend its Olympic title, but it took silver. Suni Lee won gold in the individual all-around for the fifth time in a row for the Americans. Biles made massive sacrifices in Tokyo to prioritize her mental health, including refusing the chance to become the third woman in Olympic history to win the individual all-around gold medal in consecutive Games. Rodgers applauds the fact that her choices paved the way for more serious conversations about mental health.

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NFL Star Aaron Rodgers Backs Simone Biles for Her Decisions at the Tokyo Olympics 2020

What Aaron Rodgers had to say in the interview

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The Impact of her Decision