retired gymnast Chloe Sims speaks out

Chloe is a brilliant but inconsistent gymnast who surprisingly retired in the months leading up to Beijing.

I was sad to hear the reasons why. From a newspaper article:

… Battling an eating disorder and mental fatigue, [Sims] chose personal happiness over the ultimate prize of a shot at winning gold. It was the most difficult decision of her life, but for Sims it was the only way she could overcome her inner demons. “I was mentally unhealthy. I had a lot of problems. I had an eating disorder and I was under a lot of pressure,” she said. “Every morning I woke up and didn’t want to go to training. It felt like I was wasting my time and other people’s doing something I didn’t want to do.” …

Since severing ties with the inner-circle of the Australian gymnastic squad, Sims said she has experienced feelings of social alienation.“It’s hard not to go to the gym every day and see all my beautiful friends. We were very close but it’s hard to maintain that bond outside the sport,” she said. “My parents and my brother and sister are very supportive and have been incredible through all this.”

read more on the Gymnastics Australia blog

Chloe is only one of a number of Olympic candidates who stopped training in Australia. All for different reasons. Still, the National Team program, excellent in the past, needs to reassess.

Gymnastics Australia bio

larger photo – Chloe Sims official website