Simone Biles Claps Back After Former Teammate MyKayla Skinner Criticizes USA Gymnastics Team

Former Team USA gymnast MyKayla Skinner had some not-so-nice things to say about this year's gymnastics squad. And her comments didn't sit well with everyone — including four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles.

In a since-deleted YouTube video, Skinner slammed the current state of U.S. gymnastics and suggested that many women on the team weren't worthy of their spot. Skinner won a silver medal in the vault at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She got the opportunity to compete in the event only after Biles withdrew due to mental health issues.

"Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn't like what it used to be," Skinner said. "Just notice like, I mean, obviously a lot of girls don't work as hard."

MyKayla Skinner and Simone Biles were teammates at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

(Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Biles — alone with Suni Lee, Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles and Hezly Rivera — are currently preparing to compete in the Paris Olympic Games later this month. Several injuries sidelined top competitors before and during the Olympic trials, resulting in a team filled with mostly familiar faces from the last Olympics.

"Not saying anything to the girls that got injured, but if I could come back, I think I would be able to do it" Skinner said. "And I think I probably could've made that Olympic team."

Skinner also threw shade at the U.S. Center for SafeSport, suggesting the nonprofit organization is hampering the development of athletes by preventing coaches from being tough on the gymnasts. SafeSport was created in order to help end abuse in athletics — a particularly sensitive topic in U.S. gymnastics, which has been roiled by abuse scandals over the years.

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"The girls just don't have the work ethic," MyKayla added. "And it's hard too because of SafeSport. Like, coaches can't get on athletes, and they have to be really careful what they say. 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, I feel like, a little aggressive and a little intense."

Not surprisingly, these comments weren't received well.

Simone Biles Fires Back, MyKayla Skinner Apologizes

Shortly after Skinner's comments went viral, Biles responded with a short but direct statement on social media. And while she didn't tag her former teammate, it's pretty obvious who she was referencing.

"Not everyone needs a mic and a platform," Biles wrote on Threads.

Chiles' mother Gina also chimed in on X, saying: "Whoa. She really said that out loud and posted it. That's something...."
 

Former gymnasts spoke up as well, including Vanessa Atler, who called Skinner "petty and mean."

"Not as hard working as they used to be?? Are we kidding?" Atler wrote on Instagram. "We have 4 athletes that were on the last Olympic team. Do you know how difficult it is to make a comeback! These athletes are legends and deservingly so! And one young athlete who has done the work to earn that spot."

After all the backlash, Skinner attempted to clarify her comments.

"I feel like a lot of you guys had misinterpreted or misunderstood exactly what I was meaning or had said," MyKayla said on her Instagram story Wednesday. "A lot of the stuff that I was talking about 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."

"It was more about going back into my own gym," the 27-year-old continued, adding that the "work ethic is different" compared to when "we were doing gymnastics" with former national team coordinator Márta Károlyi. "And I'm not sticking up for Márta or saying what she did was good, I'm just saying it was different."

MyKayla Skinner poses with the silver medal following the Women's Vault Final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Skinner said it wasn't her intention to hurt anyone or to insult her former teammates — which is weird considering she explicitly and directly insulted them.

"Sorry for anything that got out of context or seemed hurtful," the athlete added. "Throughout the video, I was so pumped for the girls, and it was so fun watching trials and doing a live with everybody.

"I love those girls, and I'm seriously so happy for them. I would never do anything to make them feel otherwise. So, sorry if that came out wrong, that was not my intentions at all."

Ah, the old "out of context" defense. Works every time.