#US women grab silver in Olympic gymnastics without Simone Biles

Even without star and leader Simone Biles, the USA women’s gymnastics team earned the silver medal in Tokyo.

With Biles withdrawing Tuesday after one rotation due to what was characterized as “a medical issue,” the American squad gutted out a second-place finish in the team competition behind the gold medal-winning Russian Olympic Committee and ahead of the team from Great Britain, which took home the bronze.

“Simone has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue,” USA Gymnastics said in a statement. “She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions.”

Peacock reported during the broadcast that Biles was dealing with a “mental issue.”

The US team trailed the ROC by less than one point after the qualifying round, but those scores did not carry over for the finals.

The 24-year-old Biles departed after a substandard vault rotation but returned to the floor to cheer on her teammates. Jordan Chiles was pressed into duty to replace Biles on uneven bars and balance beam and combined with Sunisa Lee and Grace McCallum to help the Americans grab the silver medal after back-to-back gold medal wins in 2012 and 2016.