Simone Biles pulls out from floor finals to focus on mental well-being
01 August 2021
Simone Biles will not be competing in the floor exercise event to prioritize her mental well-being, USA Gymnastics announced Sunday morning local time.
Why it matters: "Simone has withdrawn from the event final for floor and will make a decision on beam later this week," USA Gymnastics said in a statement. "Either way, we’re all behind you, Simone."
What they're saying: Biles earlier this week opened up on Twitter after it was announced that she would not be participating in the individual all-around finals.
- "[T]he outpouring love & support I’ve received has made me realize I’m more than my accomplishments and gymnastics which I never truly believed before," Biles said.
Go deeper: Simone Biles lauded for "bravery in prioritizing" mental wellness
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HED: Simone Biles will compete in individual balance beam, floor finals
(change pic to a happier one I think)
Simone Biles on TKTK announced she will be competing in the individual balance beam or floor exercise event finals.
Why it matters: If she wins medals in her last two competitions, she would be the gymnast with the most Olympic medals in the U.S., surpassing Shannon Miller's total of seven.
- Biles withdrew from most of the events in her Olympic program to prioritize her mental well-being.
What they're saying: TKTK
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.