We have seen many examples of personal grit at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Three notable examples are USA gymnasts Simone Biles, Suni Lee, and Brody Malone.

Simone Biles is considered the greatest gymnast of all time. During the 2020 Toyko Olympics, she experienced what is called "the twisties," a temporary loss of awareness of the body's movement and position in the air, which affects the ability to maintain control of the body while doing aerial maneuvers. When this occurs, the risk of serious bodily harm increases dramatically. Simone withdrew from most of the competition and, as a result, she chose to leave gymnastics and focus on her mental health. It would be easy for the observer to understand this if she had broken her leg, or developed a severe illness because we can see an X-ray with a plate or a screw, or a person in a wheelchair.

As a psychologist, I know that experiencing a psychological phenomenon like "the twisties" in many ways, is much more difficult to overcome. We can't see it, but it is very real! After two years, with the help and support of a good therapist, family, and husband, Simone Biles overcame her anxiety and fears and took up gymnastics again. Then, at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Simone Biles led her team to Olympic gold medals in the team all-around, individual all-around, and vault, and a silver medal on floor exercises. She became the most decorated gymnast in the history of the Olympic games. Simone Biles has grit.

Last year, while at Auburn University, Suni Lee developed two rare kidney diseases. Her illness put her on the sidelines for months. It was doubtful if she would ever participate in gymnastics again, let alone defend her Toyko gold medal in this year's Paris Olympics. Suni Lee began to lose hope. After the........

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