Paris 2024 Olympic Games
Simone Biles and former teammate MyKayla Skinner 'block' each other on social media after controversial spat
In a social media post celebrating her Olympic victory, Biles referenced accusations Skinner leveled against the Olympic team a few weeks ago.
Controversy overshadowed the Olympic victory of Simone Biles, who as of Wednesday became the world's most decorated gymnast, after a scuffle with her former teammate, MyKayla Skinner, who ended up blocking her on social networks.
When Biles posted a message on the social network Instagram to celebrate her achievement and that of her Olympic gymnastics team, she accompanied the images of the victory with a curious and cryptic message. "Lack of talent, lazy, olympic champions ❤️🥇," read the caption.
What Biles appears to be referring to is statements made by fellow former U.S. gymnastics team member MyKayla Skinner, who snagged a silver medal at Tokyo 2020. Skinner criticized the current gymnastics team on social media several weeks ago. In a video, which she later deleted, she claimed that the Olympic team of which Biles is a member was lazy and lacked the talent to be crowned at the Paris Games.
As a result of this caption, Skinner appears to have blocked Biles on social networks, preventing any interaction between the two. After this, Biles posted a message on X referencing Skinner's gesture, "Oop I've been blocked 👀🫢😂."
Elon Musk commented on the situation with a laughing emoji and several other sports personalities, such as Sunisa Lee and Jordan Giles, also chimed in. Lee posted a temporary message in reference to the controversy: "Put a finger down if Simone Biles just finished you."