“She’s not a quitter,” Jordan Chiles said in 2021 when many in media and online were quick to discredit Simone Biles. The gymnastics legend faltered during the vault finals and withdrew from the competition. However, while many worked to tear down the champion, Biles didn’t shy away from exposing her vulnerable side. In fact, she spoke up for every Olympic athlete and the immense pressure they face during competition.

“Being in that position that she was in during that time frame and her being vulnerable, it just made it even better for, not just me, but everybody around us,” said Jordan Chiles. While the gymnastics legend had faltered in repeating her 2016 Rio Olympic success, Biles had opened up about athletes’ woes. It was thanks to the 27-year-old that the world learned of the ‘twisties.’

A popular term among those involved with gymnastics, ‘twisties’ is the quirky nickname of the phenomenon when gymnasts lose the synergy between their mind and body. Simone Biles was going through a similar condition in Tokyo in 2020 and revealed how the burden of expectations and ruthless pursuit of glory may have contributed to the issue.

While skeptics dismissed it as an excuse, droves of athletes seconded the 27-year-old’s concerns. “And having somebody like her, whether people see it or don’t see it… it’s definitely cool to finally see that people are understanding where she’s coming from, not just as an athlete but also as a human,” Chiles said in an exclusive interview with CNN.

Besides fellow gymnasts such as Jordan Chiles and Sunisa Lee, multiple former and active athletes followed Simone Biles‘ lead. Sporting legends such as 23-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps, who had been a longtime advocate of athletes’ mental health, praised the 27-year-old’s decision to speak up on the grandest stage. Now three years down the line, Biles has seen change.

“Now people come up to me and they’re like, ‘I’ve been in therapy for the first time in my life, and thank you so much.’ There’s power in that. And I just know I’m helping people out there,” the seven-time Olympic gold medalist told CNN. One of the people Biles empowered to open up to also happened to be her best friend, Jordan Chiles.

Since watching her World Champions Center buddy show her vulnerable side in Tokyo, Chiles has followed suit. The two-time Olympian has shared her own tumultuous and often scarring journey behind the gymnastic glory. Even three years after Tokyo 2024, the 23-year-old narrated a harrowing chapter of her gymnastics journey on The Squeeze podcast.

Simone Biles’ training partner explained how Olympic glory became the only focus of her life as a teenager. “From being 15 years old now, my mindset had always been Olympics, Olympics, Olympics. It was nonstop. People only saw me as an athlete,” Chiles told the Lautners. The Olympian’s life became all about achieving excellence, even at the cost of her mental health.

“I had a coach who verbally ab–d me and emotionally ab–d me… There were a lot of times when I did want to quit.” confessed a teary-eyed Jordan Chiles. In another interview with POPSUGAR, Chiles added that the former coach even restored to body shaming so Chiles would never think about gaining weight.

However, had it not been for Simone Biles’ bold decision to admit her failure at the Olympics, Chiles may have never opened up about the darker elements behind the fame and glamour of being an Olympic medalist. So the best friends and athletes are glad to see people seeking help thanks to their decision to open up.