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Feud Alert! A Full Timeline of Gymnasts Simone Biles and MyKayla Skinner’s Drama
Simone Biles is on the outs with former teammate MyKayla Skinner after the retired gymnast made controversial comments about the team chosen to represent the United States in gymnastics at the 2024 Olympics.
2021 – Simone Biles and MyKayla Skinner Are Teammates at the 2020 Olympics
Simone and MyKayla were both selected to represent the United States at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, which took place during summer 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the Games began, MyKayla announced that she would be retiring from the sport after Tokyo.
MyKayla did not qualify to compete in any of the final rounds of competition and received support from Simone on social media. “So proud of this one,” the Ohio native wrote. “No one understands the hard work and dedication it takes to come back from collegiate gymnastics and make an olympic team. You did the damn thing! Thanks for reminding us that grandmas can do it too. Thanks for keeping gym light hearted and fun! I love you Ms Olympian.”
However, when Simone later withdrew from several events due to suffering a mental block called the “twisties,” MyKayla stepped in to take her place on the vault. She ended up winning a silver medal.
July 3, 2024 – MyKayla Skinner Shades U.S. Gymnastics Team Ahead of 2024 Olympics
After the Olympic trials in June 2024, MyKayla faced backlash for comments she made about the team selected. In addition to Simone, MyKayla’s former Olympic teammates Suni Lee, Jade Carey and Jordan Chiles all made the 2024 team, along with rookie Hezly Rivera.
“Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn’t what it used to be,” she said in a YouTube video, which has since been deleted. “I mean, obviously, a lot of girls don’t work as hard. The girls just don’t have the work ethic. A lot of girls don’t work as hard. It’s hard, too, because of SafeSport. Coaches can’t get on athletes which in some ways is really good but at the same time, to get to where you need to be in gymnastics you do have to be … a little aggressive, a little intense.”
July 3, 2024 – Simone Biles Responds to MyKayla Skinner’s Comments
Shortly after the video of MyKayla went viral, Simone seemingly shared her response via Instagram Threads. “Not everyone needs a mic and a platform,” she wrote.
July 4, 2024 – MyKayla Skinner Apologizes for Controversial Comments
MyKayla apologized for the statement she made in the video via her Instagram Story.
“I feel like a lot of you guys had misinterpreted or misunderstood exactly what I was meaning or had said,” she explained, adding that “a lot of the stuff” she said “wasn’t always necessarily about the current team, because I love and support all the girls that made it and I’m so proud of them.”
She continued, “It was more about going back into my own gym, just the work ethic is different compared to when we were doing gymnastics in the Márta [Károlyi] era. And I’m not sticking up for Márta or saying what she did was good, I’m just saying it was different. So anyway, sorry for anything that got out of context or seemed hurtful. That is never my intention. And seriously, throughout the video, I was so pumped for the girls, and it was so fun watching trials and doing a live with everybody.”
Additionally, MyKayla released the following statement: “I want to formally apologize to Team USA and to our gymnastic community for my comments during my recent YouTube episodes of the gymnastics Olympic trials. It was not my intention to offend or disrespect any of the athletes or to take away from their hard work. Your hard work and dedication has paid off and I congratulate each and every one of you. Upon reflection I was comparing the ‘Marta Era’ to the current era. I am coming to terms that I have not fully dealt with the emotional and verbal abuse I endured under Marta that perhaps led to my hurtful comments. I take full responsibility for what I said and I deeply apologize. It is most important to me that the sport I love continue down the path of healing and ensures a positive environment for all. I wish you all the very best in Paris. I will be cheering you all on! Go Team USA!”
July 30, 2024 – Simone Biles Shades MyKayla Skinner at 2024 Olympics
After the U.S. women’s gymnastics team won a gold medal in the team competition at the 2024 Olympics, Simone posted a photo of their celebrations on Instagram with the caption, “lack of talent, lazy, olympic champions.”
The message appeared to be shade toward MyKayla, referencing the comments that the former athlete made in her YouTube video.
July 31, 2024 – MyKayla Skinner Blocks Simone Biles
One day later, Simone wrote on X, “Oop I’ve been blocked,” along with three emojis. She did not specify who blocked her, but fans immediately speculated that it was MyKayla.
Later that afternoon, Jordan Chiles confirmed Simone was referencing MyKayla in her post. She shared a photo to her Instagram Story that showed Simone trying to view MyKayla’s Instagram profile, only to be met with a “no posts available” message.
“When she blocks Simone,” Jordan captioned the post.
August 6, 2023 — Mykayla Skinner Pleads to Simone Biles to Put a Stop to Online Threats
In a passionate video clip, MyKayla directly reached out to Simone, asking her to request that her followers stop the cyberbullying she has endured since she made her controversial comments.
“Things have really gotten out of hand lately and it’s one thing to disagree with me regarding something I said or a point I was trying to make,” she said in a lengthy message posted via Instagram on August 6, 2024. “But it’s something else entirely when that turns into cyberbullying or even worse.”
The Arizona native stated that her comments have resulted in “threats of physical harm” against her, her husband, and her infant daughter.
“Please ask your followers to stop. You have been an incredible champion for mental health awareness and a lot of people need your help now. We’ve been attacked in ways that I’m certain you never intended,” the mom of one concluded. “Your performance, the team’s performance and the Olympics in general should be a time that we support one another.”
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