All The Details Surrounding Simone Biles And MyKayla Skinner's Feud

The following article mentions sexual abuse.

American gymnast Simone Biles absolutely sparkled at the Paris Olympics. After earning three gold medals and one silver at the 2024 Games, she became the most decorated Olympic gymnast in Team USA history. The superstar, who dealt with a minor calf injury during the qualifying rounds, withdrew from the Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health. Her comeback in 2024 was nothing short of a triumph.

As busy as she was with setting a new Olympic record, Biles still found a little time during the Olympics to deal with some behind-the-scenes drama. Throughout the competition, her feud with former US National Artistic Gymnastics team member MyKayla Skinner reached fever pitch. Once dubbed "the most hated gymnast in the NCAA," Skinner has gotten a lot of attention over the years thanks to her controversial statements, competitive personality, and quick temper. However, one of her biggest messes to date came about after she retired.

Ahead of the 2024 Olympics, Skinner offered her take on the current state of gymnastics. Her remarks didn't go over well with a number of people, including Biles. Here is how Biles and Skinner went from tight-knit teammates to social media foes.

Simone Biles and MyKayla Skinner became close competitors in 2014 when they participated at the World Championships in Nanning, China. The year prior, Biles took home multiple medals, including silver for her vault performance. When Skinner joined the team in 2014, she was expected to do well in vault, too. This would not be the last time she would be up against Biles in this event.

The two gave strong showings, but Biles ultimately pulled ahead thanks to her execution of the Amanar move. Known as a particularly tricky skill, the Amanar involves a back handspring vault that evolves into a layout and a two-and-a-half twist. The move contributed to an impressive 15.900, earning Biles the silver medal. Skinner racked up a score of 15.366, landing in third place. 

While Skinner's overall sportsmanship and conduct would later be called into question, at the time, she didn't seem too upset about trailing behind Biles in vault. Rather, she appeared to be more than content with the way things shook out at the 2014 World Championships. "I feel awesome," Skinner said at the time, per the Arizona Republic. "I'm really excited. I just wanted to come and place at least the top three and I did." Biles, who would go on to win the individual all-around, told USA Gymnastics that she was so excited for the team's success across the competition. "It actually blows my mind," she said.

After MyKayla Skinner and Simone Biles duked it out at the World Championships in 2014, they both tried out for the 2016 Olympic team. Biles was ultimately selected to represent the United States at the games in Rio de Janeiro alongside Gabby Douglas, Laurie Hernandez, Madison Kocian, and Aly Raisman. Skinner, who placed fourth in the all-around at the trials, was picked to be one of three alternates.

In a 2020 chat with International Gymnast Media, Skinner insisted she was honored to be a part of Team USA and support Biles and the rest of the squad. "Life is never fair, but I'm so happy that I could be there for my team and help lead them in anyway that I can," she said. However, she didn't exactly hide her disappointment with the way things shook out. "Being an alternate is probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do in gymnastics," she told NBC. "The whole time I was in Rio, I probably cried every single night ... The Olympics should be something so special, but I feel like it was definitely miserable at times." Skinner has also implied that the selection process in 2016 was unfair. 

The Final Five racked up nine medals, becoming the most decorated women's gymnastics squad in Team USA history. Biles earned her first of many medals, including the team's first-ever gold in vault.

MyKayla Skinner was not the only Olympic hopeful who fell just short of earning a spot on the women's national team in 2016. However, she was the only alternate whose online behavior after the trials sparked a whirlwind of controversy. As reported by Slate, Skinner took out much of her frustration on X, formerly known as Twitter. She retweeted a number of protests to her failure to make the team, including one team photo where someone photoshopped her over three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas. The post, which also included emojis of a blond girl and a monkey, was quickly called out for being racist and unsportsmanlike. Skinner issued an apology. "I'm so sorry if I offended anyone," she posted on X. "I was in the wrong by retweeting that tweet! I'm so grateful to be part of the team!"

Simone Biles did not comment on the hurtful and harmful post publicly, but she has spoken out against racism in the world of sports. As she told Hoda Kotb on "Today" in 2020, "I feel like every Black athlete or colored athlete can say that they've experienced it through their career." In 2023, she leapt to the defense of a young Black girl who had been singled out as the only child not to receive a participation medal in a gymnastics event in Ireland. As reported by the BBC at the time, Biles said, "There is no room for racism in any sport."

Despite MyKayla Skinner's history of questionable sportsmanship, there was a time when Simone Biles demonstrated a keen sense of public support for her athletic accomplishments. When Biles qualified for the team that would represent the United States at the Olympics in Tokyo, Skinner once again qualified as an alternate. As teammates, the duo were often photographed beside each other — sitting, chatting, and even cheering on their fellow Americans.

Eventually, when it was decided that Skinner would replace Biles in the vaulting finals, the former received all of the latter's support. Speaking to Hoda Kotb on "Today" following the competition, Skinner shared, "I was running for my second vault, and I'm like, 'Simone's cheering so loud. Oh my gosh.' I felt like I was going to be distracted almost." She also revealed that Biles had actually advocated for her with their coach Cecile Canqueteau-Landi. "Simone was talking to Cecile, saying, 'MyKayla can't go home. We might need to have her compete in case I can't figure it out in the next couple days.'"

In the end, Skinner brought home the silver medal, and Biles supported her in this achievement. "Go @mykaylaskinner2016," she cheered on her Instagram Story (via People). "I'm so freaking proud of you." Indeed, at that point, it truly seemed that Biles and Skinner had a strong relationship. However, it wouldn't be before long that tensions would rise between the two athletes. 

Following the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, MyKayla Skinner retired from gymnastics. She began to focus on building a family with her husband, Jonas Hammer. She also decided to become a social media influencer. She launched YouTube channel where she talks about her family life and, of course, gymnastics. However, after she posted a video where she took aim at the 2024 U.S. women's gymnastic's team, she received more attention than she presumably bargained for. 

"Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn't like what it used to be," she said in the since-deleted video. "I mean, obviously a lot of girls don't work as hard." She later added, "The girls just don't have the work ethic." Simone Biles, understandably, was not a huge fan of this comment. Although Skinner did state that she was the only current gymnast who was doing good work, Biles did not take these words as a compliment. Instead, she appeared to interpret them as an attack on her teammates. 

Disappointed and frustrated, Biles drafted what appeared to be a strongly-worded clap back. She then took to Threads, writing, "Not everyone needs a mic and a platform." Most of her followers interpreted these words as a dig at Skinner's new career as an influencer and podcaster. "Agreed. The remarks from MyKayla Skinner were uncalled for," wrote one fan. "Mykayla wouldn't have that silver medal if it wasn't for Simone," added another.

In recent years, there have been major changes in women's gymnastics in the United States, including the formation of SafeSport. The nonprofit organization, which was created in 2017, strives to protect Olympic athletes from sexual abuse and misconduct. However, MyKayla Skinner suggested in her aforementioned YouTube video that SafeSport might hold gymnastics back. "Like, coaches can't get on athletes," she said. "And, they have to be really careful about 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."

From 2001 to 2018, members of USA Gymnastics trained at the Karolyi Ranch, the facility operated by infamous coaches Márta and Béla Károlyi. The organization parted ways with the Károlyis after it came out that team physician Dr. Larry Nassar sexually abused many of the female gymnasts in his charge at the ranch and elsewhere. Nassar was arrested in 2016.

Simone Biles was one of Nassar's victims, and in 2019, she told reporters that she didn't feel protected by USA Gymnastics for many years. "It's hard coming here for an organization, having had them fail us so many times," she said (via ABC News). While Biles didn't comment on Skinner's remarks about SafeSport directly, it's hard to imagine she wasn't put off by this take.

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

In response to the blowback surrounding her aforementioned YouTube video, MyKayla Skinner rushed to issue an apology. In July 2024, she posted a video to her Instagram Stories in which she claimed that it had all been a misunderstanding. "Just wanted to pop on here really quick because I know that we did the recap on YouTube, and I feel like a lot of you guys had misinterpreted or misunderstood exactly what I was meaning or had said. I mean, a lot of the stuff that I was talking about wasn't always necessarily about the current team cause I love and support all the girls that made it, and I'm so proud of them," Skinner stated, according to ET.

She went on to say that she wasn't referring to Simone Biles' teammates. Instead, she insisted that she was talking about athletes who were a little closer to home. "It was more about going back into my own gym, just the work ethic is different compared to when we were doing gymnastics in the [past] era ... I'm just saying that it was different," Skinner said. 

Of course, the fact that Skinner had originally referred to Biles as the one athlete that continued to work hard made it pretty clear that she wasn't referring to her home gym. Skinner trained at Desert Lights Gymnastics in Arizona, whereas Biles trained at the World Champions Centre in Texas.

At the 2024 Olympic Games, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey, Hezly Rivera, Suni Lee, and Simone Biles won gold in the all-around category. After MyKayla Skinner congratulated the team on Instagram Stories, Biles had her own little Instagram message to share with the world. Alongside an adorable photo of the five members of the national gymnastics team running around the gym and celebrating their win, she wrote, "Lack of talent, lazy Olympic champions."

Biles' clever response to Skinner's shady remarks did not go unnoticed. The post made headlines, and past and present members of Team USA's gymnastics team took to the comments to show their support. "It doesn't get more iconic than this ... Feels like I need to apologize just to redeem my first name," London 2012 alum McKayla Maroney quipped. Laurie Hernandez of the Final Five wrote, "LMAOOOO I LOVE YALL." Chiles added, "and that's on periodt!!"

On the flip side, some media users headed to Skinner's Instagram to leave negative messages; Slate dubbed her "the biggest villain of the Olympics." It didn't matter that she deleted the aforementioned YouTube video. Her comments had already been published and republished for the whole world to see.

After Simone Biles made it clear that she hadn't forgotten MyKayla Skinner's remarks about the current generation of gymnasts, the feud seemed to continue to escalate. Shortly after the U.S. women's gymnastics team struck gold in the all-around, Skinner apparently decided it was time to cut social media ties with Biles. "Oop, I've just been blocked," Biles tweeted on X, formerly known as Twitter, on July 31, 2024. She also included a few emojis, including the cry-laugh face. Needless to say, the 11-time Olympic medalist seemed to be amused by this development.

Biles' teammate Jordan Chiles also got in on the drama. The two-time Olympian shared a photo she took of Skinner's Instagram account after Biles tried to pull it up on her own phone. Alongside the snap of the clearly blocked account, Chiles wrote, "When she blocks Simone." Skinner has not publicly commented on the blocking. It feels safe to say that they probably won't be initiating any friendly chats anytime soon.

Ahead of the 2024 Olympics, Biles told Hoda Kotb on "Today" that she planned to stay off X while she was at the Games to avoid any chatter that might have a negative impact on her performance. Evidently, she found a reason to make an exception.