Piers Morgan Slammed By Celebrities After Shaming Simone Biles For Olympics Withdrawal
Piers Morgan is in the hot seat after shaming Simone Biles for her decision to drop out of the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
While the four-time gold medalist received a ton of support and praise for her decision to walk away, citing a "mental issue" she was having as the reason she pulled out of the women's gymnastics team final, the former Good Morning Britain host was less than impressed by her controversial move.
Apart from calling Biles, 24, "selfish," OK! reported that Morgan insisted people are using "mental issues" as an excuse when they don't perform as well as expected. "Are ‘mental health issues’ now the go-to excuse for any poor performance in elite sport? What a joke," he wrote via Twitter on Tuesday, July 27.
After Morgan claimed Biles wasn't a role model to young children because she stepped back following her uncharacteristic vault performance, which earned a 13.766 — the lowest score of Biles' Olympics career — and failed her teammates, Chelsea Handler, Elijah Wood, Ed Asner and several other celebrities bashed Morgan, 56, for his commentary.
"It's amazing that women get called 'emotional' when I have never seen more men throwing tantrums about Simone Biles," Handler — an outspoken critic of the British TV personality — pointed out on Wednesday, July 28.
Wood also didn't shy away from calling Morgan out, writing: "hey Piers, you couldn't even begin to conceive of what it could possibly feel like to be an athlete at that level with that amount of pressure. sit down. you're impulse to stir the pot is not only routine but terribly unbecoming and boring."
- Piers Morgan Slams 'Selfish' Simone Biles' Withdrawal From Olympics Over Mental Health Issues, Calls It 'A Joke'
- Simone Biles Says Support For Olympics Withdrawal Made Her Realize She Is 'More Than My Accomplishments And Gymnastics'
- Simone Biles Declares 'There's More To Life Than Just Gymnastics' Following Shocking Exit From Women's Team Final
Up actor Asner also posted: "Not surprised to see this from the likes of @piersmorgan. A person (I use that term lightly) that sits on his brains and criticizes people for a living. @Simone_Biles is a hero. She stood up for herself in a very difficult position."
Richard Marx comically went after Morgan, joking that the embattled former host is "so heroic and brave" that he blocked the singer on Twitter. Marx then asked Twitter users to relay a message to Morgan, writing: "please let @piersmorgan know that I said he’s a gutless degenerate of a misogynistic hypocrite and to go f*ck himself ‘cuz clearly no one else will. Thanks!"
In addition, Little Mix's Leigh-Anne Pinnock reposted a message her friend, Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, shared after Biles discussed her decision to step back. "The problem with Piers Morgan isn’t just him being an obtuse absurdity but that our society rewards him for using his Whiteness, power & influence to stalk and aggravate racism, bigotry & dehumanise mental health of Black women. He knows it," the message read.
American activist Charlotte Clymer also chimed in on the matter while making fun of Morgan, writing via Twitter: "If @piersmorgan successfully attempts one cartwheel on a live broadcast, I will pretend to consider his thoughts on Simone Biles."
Before Biles opened up about her mental health struggles, it was announced that she stepped back due to a "medical issue." However, Biles reportedly told her team doctor and coach that she was not in the right "headspace" to continue after her shaky performance, as she later admitted: it "just sucks when you are fighting with your own head."
