The death of a New Zealand cyclist reignited the discussion about the pressure on athletes

08/11/2021 1:37 AM

• Clarín.com

• sports

Updated 08/11/2021 1:42 AM

The death of New Zealand cyclist

Olivia Podmore

, who represented her country at the 2016 Rio Olympics, rekindled the debate around pressure and the mental health of athletes, following the Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka cases.

The 24-year-old, who was not selected to represent her country in Tokyo 2020, died this Monday in the New Zealand town of Cambridge, after posting a message on Instagram, later deleted, about

the bitter side of professional sport

.

"The sensations when you lose, when you are not chosen or have qualified, when you are injured, when you do not meet the expectations of society, such as having a house, getting married, having children because you have tried to give everything for your sport,

those feelings they are also different,

"he wrote.

The death of the young woman, whose

cause is being investigated by the Police

, has caused a great impact in the oceanic country as close friends of the cyclist call for a debate on "the mental health of athletes."

"We have lost a sister, a friend and a fighter who lost the desire to fight within herself," former New Zealand Olympic rowing champion Eric Murray, a close friend of the New Zealander, told reporters on Tuesday.

"We are seeing in New Zealand and around the world the implications of

mental health in society and in sport,

" remarked Murray, recalling tennis player Naomi Osaka and gymnast Simone Biles, who withdrew from competitions due to "difficulties personal ".

For her part, the executive director of Sport New Zealand, Raelene Castle, assured on Tuesday that the organization

provided support to Podmore before his death

and promised to maintain aid on the mental health of athletes so that something does not happen again. similar to another athlete.

Naomi Osaka warned about the mental health of athletes.

Photo Mike Segar / Reuters

The cases of Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka

At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, two of the most popular athletes ended their participation in the competition early.

They are the gymnast

Simone Biles

and the tennis player

Naomi Osaka

.

The American withdrew from various tests to "take care" of her "mental health", while the Japanese, second in the WTA world rankings, lost surprisingly in the round of 16 to the Czech Marketa Vondrousova (42nd).

Simone Biles in Tokyo 2020. Photo Reuters

In her public reappearance two weeks before the Tokyo Games, the tennis player had said "it's okay not to be okay", when withdrawing from Roland Garros and deciding not to play at Wimbledon for not being able to face journalists' questions and put on the board performance sport the theme of mental health.

With information from EFE.

DB

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