Simone Biles reveals near-death medical emergency: 'One of the scariest experiences of my life'
The seven-time Olympic gold medallist posted on Instagram that she was hospitalised earlier this week, calling it the most frightening experience of her life.
Simone Biles disclosed a serious medical emergency in an Instagram story on Saturday, saying she nearly died at the start of the week. The 29-year-old gymnast did not specify the nature of the emergency but posted a photo showing her wrist encircled by several hospital bracelets.
Normally I don't share things like this because I value privacy these days, but almost dying was not on my bingo card at the start of this week.
The hospitalisation
Biles described the episode as one of the scariest experiences of her life, if not the scariest. She noted that the situation was made more distressing because her husband, NFL player Jonathan Owens of the Indianapolis Colts, was away for off-season training. Biles said she spent the rest of the week resting in bed.
This was one of, if not the scariest experience of my life. Especially since Jonathan was away for training.
Recovery and support
The gymnast thanked her close circle of friends and family who reached out, visited, or sent flowers. Additional photos in her Instagram story showed vases of bouquets and a screenshot of a heart rate monitor. A final image showed a bed with two dogs, captioned "I'll be here." Biles said she would explain the details sooner or later.
I'll explain everything sooner or later, but a special thank you to my close circle who contacted me, checked in, visited and/or sent flowers. I love you all so much.
Career context
Biles holds seven Olympic gold medals and 23 world championship titles. Three of those Olympic golds came at the Paris 2024 Games, where she made an emotional return after a long hiatus due to mental health concerns. At the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, she withdrew from several events after experiencing the "twisties," a mental block causing gymnasts to lose spatial awareness. She still won bronze on the balance beam in Tokyo. After a two-year break, she returned in 2023 with two world titles. It remains unclear whether she will compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
