OT: - THE CHOKE | Page 2 | The Boneyard

OT: THE CHOKE

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msf22b said:
I don't have a heart of stone at all...I plead innocent.

My point is (in the case of Osaka/Biles) that they've been quite taken up in all the extraneous aspects of competing...They didn't have to so participate as much in that...at least not yet; no one forced them. They had a choice.
The weight of the world you speak about is very much of their own making.

And once you make that Faustian decision, the consequences of disappointment are a least somewhat your responsibility.
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I have never heard of anyone choosing to have mental health issues. What extraneous aspects? Daily living alone can wear a person down. Why do you think so many can't wait for the weekend.
 
One of the oldest adages in show business is "the show must go on".

Perhaps Simone didn't realize she was in show business.

Kudos to those who conquer their fears and mount the Broadway stage or
other performance venues night after night.
 
chrissaran said:
Hardened to human frailties? How about losing your job because you became depressed over your sister's death from COVID. We were born on the same day; she was three years younger. Also, she was the only family member alive, other than me. I became depressed, stopped going to work, and eventually my principal said I abandoned my job. Funny how he sent me two numbers for the help line. I knew why I was depressed. I couldn't figure a way out of the depression. When I did show up for work, my principal told me I was terminated. Now that I've retired, I'm waiting on my retirement pay while everyone waits to get paid. I have to move at the end of August because I no longer can afford the rent of the apartment I'm living in. Without my retirement pay I'll have nowhere to live. Also, I borrowed $5,000 from a friend and her husband. I keep updating her as to my retirement pay, which isn't much of an update.
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Hope things get better for you.
 
Team sport? I don't see it as such. I watch a few team sports, including the one discussed in this board. Gymnastics is no true team sport despite the construction of having a team made up of individual performances added together. Those people are competing against their own capabilities, as modified by the pressures of their families, countries, coaches, financial situations, etc. This is especially true in the bizarre, hyperfocused world of elite gymnastics (college gymnasts have a lot more fun).

I don't consider a quitting gymnast or singles tennis player, etc. in the same way that I would consider someone who quit a true team sport when their team needed them. It's just a difference in kind, IMO. Much as I would've wanted to see Simone at her best, I respect her individual's choice and wish her the best.
 
I'm a lifelong Yankee fan and will continue to be, but I have no problem bashing them this year. As much as it stings, I admire the way the Red Sox and Rays play the game. I realize baseball isn't an easy game to play, but a lack of hustle among certain players, poor base-running, inconsistent relief pitching, and a tendency to take a called third strike down the middle of the plate are hard to watch night after night, so I don't. OK, sometimes I still do. Old habits are hard to break.
 
Lynx23 said:
I'm a lifelong Yankee fan and will continue to be, but I have no problem bashing them this year. As much as it stings, I admire the way the Red Sox and Rays play the game. I realize baseball isn't an easy game to play, but a lack of hustle among certain players, poor base-running, inconsistent relief pitching, and a tendency to take a called third strike down the middle of the plate are hard to watch night after night, so I don't. OK, sometimes I still do. Old habits are hard to break.
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Its because they got rid of Girardi and hired Boone to be a slave to their idiotic analytic department. There is no accountability on this team, or any passion. Redsox and Rays manage and scout circles around the Yankees its not even funny.

Its a losing culture on the Yankees, them not making the playoffs as much as it does suck ,its good to see the analytics department having it blown up into their faces. They still dont get it they got reliever with an era over 5 but its all good he measures up to what the analytics say.
 
I think people need to experience first hand or through someone close to them what depression is all about to understand it. I have family members that are brilliant people, likeable to all that knew them, and had everything that life had to offer them. The last people on earth you thought would be "depressed". Then seemingly out of the blue they just wanted to lay in bed all day. Went from pushing themselves to the max to not wanting to do anything. Went from being happy most of the time to being miserable just about always. Had constant suicidal thoughts. We all tried to help by saying and doing things we thought would make them happier and feel better but nothing seemed to work.
Fortunately for them, they were able to get the help they needed though counseling and medication and they're doing much better than they were. Unfortunately for others with depression, the warning signs aren't always caught soon enough or people are unable to get the help that they need and their stories don't end the same way. People with depression aren't always "weak" or "crazy" as generations ago were led to believe. It can happen to people to you would never expect it to and is nothing to knock.
 
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PonchoFan said:
This whole thing makes me appreciate Kerri Strug even more. Biles doesn't compare at all.
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Totally different scenarios. I don't know why you are comparing Strug to Biles. Strug was physically hurt and was able to mentally block it out. Biles was physically fine, but was unable to overcome the pressure - some made herself, others made by the entire world.

I actually think Biles showed courage by making that decision. As a competitor at that high of a level, you need to be able to give it your all and if you don't... consequences will be had. She was incredibly brave for knowing her limits, understanding what the world expected of her, and still put herself and her teammates first. Before anyone judges her, please try doing a routine on a 4-inch beam on your worst day, putting your body in harms way. Only then can you judge her.

She traded in her pride for her teammates medal and that's the ultimate sacrifice and teammate move. Here's to hoping she comes back stronger than ever and is able to take home some gold medals.
 
fireford said:
I think people need to experience first hand or through someone close to them what depression is all about to understand it. I have family members that are brilliant people, likeable to all that knew them, and had everything that life had to offer them. The last people on earth you thought would be "depressed". Then seemingly out of the blue they just wanted to lay in bed all day. Went from pushing themselves to the max to not wanting to do anything. Went from being happy most of the time to being miserable just about always. Had constant suicidal thoughts. We all tried to help by saying and doing things we thought would make them happier and feel better but nothing seemed to work.
Fortunately for them, they were able to get the help they needed though counseling and medication and they're doing much better than they were. Unfortunately for others with depression, the warning signs aren't always caught soon enough or people are unable to get the help that they need and their stories don't end the same way. People with depression aren't always "weak" or "crazy" as generations ago were led to believe. It can happen to people to you would never expect it to and is nothing to knock.
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Thank you for this post. I had one earlier that is pretty harsh against Simone. The problem I have is once someone throws out the mental health card, we are forced into accepting it. It's just too easy to go that route and not be held accountable at all. There is room to think that some of these athletes are using the term "mental health crisis" as a crutch to avoid some hard questions. Using it as an excuse when it really is something else does a disservice to everyone with true mental health issues. In just the past few months many athletes have come forward with mental health issues. Statistically speaking, some of them, and we will never know which ones, are not being truthful.
 
Scoe said:
Its because they got rid of Girardi and hired Boone to be a slave to their idiotic analytic department. There is no accountability on this team, or any passion. Redsox and Rays manage and scout circles around the Yankees its not even funny.

Its a losing culture on the Yankees, them not making the playoffs as much as it does suck ,its good to see the analytics department having it blown up into their faces. They still dont get it they got reliever with an era over 5 but its all good he measures up to what the analytics say.
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Boone wouldn't have lasted 10 days if George was still alive. I doubt he ever would have been hired. The sons shouldn't have been given the team. George should have found someone with a real baseball interest to sell to.
 
AgStatesman said:
Thank you for this post. I had one earlier that is pretty harsh against Simone. The problem I have is once someone throws out the mental health card, we are forced into accepting it. It's just too easy to go that route and not be held accountable at all. There is room to think that some of these athletes are using the term "mental health crisis" as a crutch to avoid some hard questions. Using it as an excuse when it really is something else does a disservice to everyone with true mental health issues. In just the past few months many athletes have come forward with mental health issues. Statistically speaking, some of them, and we will never know which ones, are not being truthful.
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Statistically speaking? Please show your work. Here is a link stating approximately 26% of Americans age 18+ suffer from a mental health disorder in a given year. Please tell me the sport and the >26% of those athletes that have come forward.

www.hopkinsmedicine.org

Mental Health Disorder Statistics

According to mental health disorder statistics, 1 in 4 U.S. adults suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder.
www.hopkinsmedicine.org www.hopkinsmedicine.org
 
AgStatesman said:
Thank you for this post. I had one earlier that is pretty harsh against Simone. The problem I have is once someone throws out the mental health card, we are forced into accepting it. It's just too easy to go that route and not be held accountable at all. There is room to think that some of these athletes are using the term "mental health crisis" as a crutch to avoid some hard questions. Using it as an excuse when it really is something else does a disservice to everyone with true mental health issues. In just the past few months many athletes have come forward with mental health issues. Statistically speaking, some of them, and we will never know which ones, are not being truthful.
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Good grief.

Who are you to hold any Olympic athlete "accountable"? What are the "hard questions" that Simone should be required to publicly answer because some disapproving crank in his comfy armchair didn't get the gold medal he expected?
 
This will get more endemic in college sports too, especially with the NLI stuff. When individual athletes start having tons of media responsibilities, that includes social media, smiling and doing every interview, photoshoot, etc. It all takes a toll. No coincidence that these kinds of unprecedented mental health withdrawals are happening at the same time there's an omnipresent social media culture. Kerri Strug probably didn't even have a cell phone to get texts from, let alone manage her social media account and read dozens of people wishing for her death. She probably had no more than a walkman to keep her (mental) company the morning of the Games.

I feel for Simone because she was basically the face of the entire games on 15 different media platforms, and that's a lot of pressure on any one person. And these days, our culture is all about squeezing people until they pop.
 
I was a competitive gymnast growing up and know how important it is to be mentally focused on every apparatus. I 100% support Simone for prioritizing her well-being and safety given her situation. There is small margin of error for these athletes and a miscalculation can lead to a permanent or fatal injury. How hard is that to understand??? With all that’s happening in this world let’s show her some %*#&$ empathy.
 
HuskyNan said:
Maybe they thought they could handle the expectations and found they couldn’t? Are they still “chokers” or just human beings?

We see this same stupid weight of expectations here on the Boneyard annually so I’m not sure why I’m so shocked at the heartlessless of people. Maybe Boneyarders are especially hardened to human frailties. What a depressing thought.
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Biles wallowed in the adulation she has received to the point that she actually put the image of a goat on her uniform! I couldn’t care less if she wanted to quit! That is her right. However, she quit in the middle of a possible once in a lifetime event for some of her teammates who were depending on her as an essential part of the team! Unbelievable! If she wanted to quit she should not have waited until it would affect her teammates! She could have withdrawn and let someone else have her spot. The truly shocking thing for me, aside from her letting her teammates down, is how many people are breathlessly praising her bravery for doing this! I call it something else!
 
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