(CNN) Simone Biles, the US gymnast who withdrew from Tokyo 2020 Olympic events to prioritize her mental health, has thanked fans for their "love and support" amid an outpouring of praise and well wishes from people around the world.
The 24-year-old, who is one of the greatest gymnasts of all time, withdrew from Thursday's individual all-around competition yesterday after stepping away from a dramatic team competition earlier in the week. She cited mental heath concerns and the need to protect "her body and mind."
In a tweet published Wednesday, Biles addressed the support she has since received from fans and said it had shown her she was "more" than her sporting accomplishments.
"The outpouring love and support I've received has made me realize I'm more than my accomplishments and gymnastics which I never truly believed before," Biles said.
USA Gymnastics said in a statement earlier on Wednesday that it supported her decision "wholeheartedly" and applauded her "bravery."
"Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many," USA Gymnastics said.
Biles, who had been a favorite to win gold in the final, has won every individual all-around competition that she has entered since 2013 and won four gold medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
But on Tuesday, while attempting an advanced vault that involves a back handspring with two-and-a-half twists in the air before landing, Biles faltered and left the field of play close to tears.
Superstar gymnast Simone Biles
Simone Biles competes on the balance beam during the individual all-around at the Paris Olympics in August 2024. She won gold.
Biles talks with her grandfather, Ron, as she trains in Houston in August 2013. Biles grew up in Spring, Texas, just outside of Houston.
Biles competes on the balance beam during the US National Gymnastics Championships in August 2013. She won gold in the individual all-around.
Biles dodges a bee flying near her during the medal ceremony at the 2014 World Championships. She successfully defended her title in the individual all-around.
Biles, left, poses at home with her grandparents Ron and Nellie, who adopted her and her younger sister Adria, right.
Biles practices in Houston in January 2016.
Biles, right, and fellow gymnast Gabby Douglas stand during the opening ceremony of the 2016 US Olympic Trials. Both made the team. Douglas was the Olympic all-around champion in 2012.
Biles celebrates with her teammates after the US Olympic Trials in 2016.
Biles competes on the balance beam at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She won gold in the individual all-around and the team all-around. She also added two more golds and a bronze.
Biles competes on the uneven bars at the 2016 Olympics.
From left, US gymnasts Laurie Hernandez, Madison Kocian, Simone Biles, Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas celebrate after winning gold in the team all-around at the 2016 Olympics.
Biles celebrates with the gold medal she earned for her individual all-around title at the 2016 Olympics.
Biles has her legs held by host Jimmy Fallon as she plays a game called Hungry Hungry Humans on "The Tonight Show" in August 2016. Also playing were actor Donald Glover and some of Biles' teammates.
Biles poses with swimming legend Michael Phelps, Raisman and actress Olivia Munn during a recording of the show "Lip Sync Battle: All Stars Live" in September 2016.
First lady Michelle Obama rests her elbow on Biles' head as President Barack Obama speaks at the White House in September 2016. The Obamas were hosting an event for US Olympians.
Biles takes a photo with a young fan in Houston in September 2016.
Biles competes in "Dancing with the Stars" with Sasha Farber in 2017. They would finish in fourth place.
Biles speaks after receiving the ESPY Award for best female athlete in 2017.
Biles performs with the Houston Texans cheerleaders in December 2017.
Biles competes on the uneven bars during the 2018 World Championships. She won gold in the individual all-around.
Biles soars through the air while competing on the uneven bars at the World Championships in 2019. Again, she won gold in the individual all-around.
Biles competes in the floor exercise during the World Championships in 2019.
Biles celebrates after winning the balance beam final at the 2019 World Championships.
Biles lands awkwardly while competing in the team all-around at the Tokyo Olympics in July 2021. Biles stumbled on the vault landing and then
pulled out of the competition over mental-health concerns.
Biles is congratulated by coach Cecile Canqueteau-Landi after they realized Biles
would win an Olympic bronze medal in the balance beam final in July 2021. Biles had pulled out of several events earlier in Tokyo, citing mental health concerns. Specifically, she said she had "the twisties," a mental block in gymnastics in which competitors lose track of their positioning midair. Her bronze medal tied her with Shannon Miller for the most Olympic medals ever won by an American gymnast.
From left, Biles, McKayla Maroney, Maggie Nichols and Aly Raisman are sworn in to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2021. They
sharply criticized how FBI agents handled the sexual abuse allegations against Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics team doctor now serving a long prison sentence.
President Joe Biden awards Biles with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in July 2022. Biles, 25, became
the youngest person ever to receive the award. "When she stands on the podium,we see what she is: absolute courage to turn personal pain into a greater purpose, to stand and speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves," Biden said.
Biles appears on "The Late Late Show with James Corden" in September 2022. On the right is US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Biles competes in the uneven bars at the
Core Hydration Classic in August 2023. It was her first competitive event since 2021, and she won the all-around.
Biles celebrates after winning a record
eighth national all-around title at the US Gymnastics Championships in August 2023. The 26-year-old also became the oldest woman to ever win the championships.
Biles celebrates after winning the individual all-around at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in October 2023.
By winning gold, she became the most decorated female or male gymnast ever, surpassing Belarusian Vitaly Scherbo's record of 33 overall medals across both the Olympics and the world championships.
Biles celebrates as the 2024 Olympic team was named in June.
Biles competes on the balance beam during the team competition at the Paris Olympics in July 2024.
The Americans won gold for Biles' eighth Olympic medal.
Team USA celebrates as Biles finishes her floor exercise in the Olympic team competition.
Biles competes in the individual vault final in August 2024. She took home the gold, her
10th Olympic medal.
The weight of the world on her shoulders
Writing on Instagram earlier in the week she said she felt "the weight of the world on [her] shoulders at times."
"I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn't affect me but damn sometimes it's hard hahaha!" she wrote in the post.
Her honesty about the pressure of competition and mental health has been supported by fellow athletes, as well as sponsors including Visa, American Airlines and Uber Eats.
Three-time Olympic gold medalist and former teammate Aly Raisman is among those to voice their support for Biles.
She criticized USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic Committee for a lack of leadership in supporting athletes and said athletes were "people at the end of the day."
"USA Gymnastics has been an absolute disaster for years and unfortunately not enough has changed for us to believe in a safer future, but I think this just really shows the lack of leadership [of] USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic Committee," she told CNN's Jake Tapper Tuesday.
"Does Simone have the support that she needs?" continued Raisman. "Do other athletes have the support that they need?"
She added: "It's a tremendous amount of pressure... I'm completely devastated and I support her so much."
Paula Radcliffe, the former team GB runner who was labeled a "quitter" when she was forced to withdrawn from the 2004 Athens Olympic marathon a few miles before the finish line due to injury, spoke of her own experience in an interview with CNN Wednesday.
"Neither one of us quit. Our bodies just weren't able to do it," Radcliffe said.
"Very few people actually understand the relationship between your mind and your body ... particularly in something that's really physically, or mentally -- or both -- taxing, you really need to know when to push through it and when to listen to your body, and it's what has made her the great champion that she is," she added.
"I would argue that she's actually even stronger mentally for being able to make that call now," Radcliffe said of Biles.
Sports stars are becoming more open about the pressures they face.
In May, four-time major tennis champion Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open, citing mental health reasons.
The 23-year-old revealed she had suffered with anxiety and depression.
"The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that," she said in a statement at the time.
"Anyone that knows me knows I'm introverted, and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I'm often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety."
CNN's Ivana Kottasová, Josiah Ryan, Ben Church, Jill Martin and Chauncey Alcorn contributed to this report.