A single photograph from the Paris 2024 Olympics has become the centerpiece of Simone Biles' latest message about mental health in elite sports.

Biles continues to use her platform to normalize conversations around mental health in elite sports. In a recent collaboration with Laureus Sport, the most decorated gymnast in history reflected on a moment from the Paris 2024 Olympics and delivered a clear message about the courage required to prioritize well-being.

In an Instagram reel shared by Laureus, Biles revisits a photograph from the all-around competition in which she is seen sitting and holding her calf. She explained the context with characteristic honesty. 

"Yeah, I was doing a mental reset here. Mental health is so, so important. And I think that it's been a taboo topic because we're fearful to seek help. And I now see it as courage," Biles said in the Instagram video. "So I sat down to just get my mind back in a good spot. Leave whatever happened on the bars back and keep moving forward."

Biles' comments build on the global conversation she helped ignite at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, when she withdrew from multiple events after experiencing the "twisties." That decision, once viewed by some as controversial, is now widely recognized as a turning point that encouraged athletes across sports to speak openly about mental health. 

In Paris, she returned stronger, adding three gold medals and a silver while continuing to model the balance between performance and self-care.

As a Laureus Ambassador, Biles is using the partnership to reinforce that seeking help is not weakness. The reel reaches younger athletes and fans at a time when mental health resources in sports are expanding but still unevenly accessible. By describing a specific mid-competition reset and reframing it as courage, she offers a concrete example rather than abstract advice.

Simone Biles' other ventures into mental health awareness

Beyond the Laureus collaboration, Biles has sustained a multi-year effort to destigmatize mental health support. She has spoken openly about remaining in therapy, including techniques such as EMDR, and has credited that work with enabling her Paris comeback, as per El Mundo.

She has also served as a mental health and wellness ambassador for Mandarin Oriental, sharing practical reset routines that combine movement, rest, and self-care. Biles has headlined immersive mental-health experiences at fitness festivals and taken part in panels that pair physical and emotional well-being, consistently urging younger athletes to view seeking help as courage rather than failure.

Her advocacy extends to supporting peers across sports and emphasizing that no medal outweighs long-term mental health. Taken together, these efforts show an athlete who has turned her most vulnerable moments into a lasting platform for change.

Do you think high-profile athletes like Biles speaking openly about mental health is changing how young competitors approach their own well-being? 

Written by

Zaid Quraishi