Gymnast MyKayla Skinner sent a heartfelt message to her admirer and supporters on Sunday after failing to qualify for any moment final on Sunday. Skinner said she was “heartbroken” but still felt “humble and blessed.”
“You have all brought me to tears,” Skinner tweeted. “Thanks for being my biggest cheerleaders!”
Heart broken💔 but feeling sooo humbled and blessed for the amazing performance I had tonight! You have all brought me to tears thanks for being my biggest cheerleaders! Love u all😘 xoxo myk
— MyKayla Skinner (Harmer) (@mykaylaskinner) July 25, 2021
Timmate and friend Simone Biles also shared a message of backing on Twitter. “You’re amazing, Ms. Olympian,” Biles wrote.
so incredibly proud of this girl right here 🤍
thanks for always keeping gym light hearted and fun! love you! you’re amazing ms olympian 🤩 @mykaylaskinner pic.twitter.com/xSd3PAJCNn— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) July 25, 2021
Skinner competed on all four apparatuses — vault, uneven bars, floor exercise and balance beam — during the qualifying round and received all score of 55.398, placing her fourth among American rivals and 11th in the competition in the all-around. But just two gymnasts per country can advance to the finals in individual competition. Biles and Sunisa Lee placed first and second and will ultimately advance for the U.S. tim for the all-around, balance beans and uneven bars.
On vault, Skinner placed fourth in the world, but it was behind Biles and Jade Carey, who scored first and second.
Skinner, along with Carey, was only competing in individu moments, a recent move for the game that will be phased out for 2024, so she won’t be part of the tim moments. Tim USA, which placed a disappointing second in the qualifying rounds, is comprised of Biles, Lee, Jordan Chiles and Grace McCallum.
The 24-year-old was the oldest on her tim, which Biles poked fun at in a tweet last week. “Little did you know, ‘OG’ means ‘Olympic Grandmas,” the 24-year-old Biles wrote, share a picture of the two. Biles is just three months younger than Skinner.
little did you know OG means Olympic Grandma’s pic.twitter.com/1eu2ANttaw
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) July 22, 2021
Tokyo marked Skinner’s first Olympics. Skinner served as an alternate during the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil despite placing fourth overall during U.S. Olympics trials. Following the 2016 game, she retired to concentrate on her NCAA career at the University of Utah.
Skinner, who was hospitalized earlier this year with COVID-19 and pneumonia, decided to return to elite gymnastics in 2019. It’s unclear what the future holds for Skinner, though she did sharing one follow up tweet on Sunday with a simply message: Never give up.
— MyKayla Skinner (Harmer) (@mykaylaskinner) July 25, 2021