Shine bright like a diamond—or an Olympic medal.
Three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas gave some very special advice to fellow Olympian Simone Biles after Biles opened up about the unprecedented pressure she felt during the Tokyo Olympics. "I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times," Biles shared on Instagram on July 26 after a rocky start. "I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn't affect me but damn sometimes it's hard hahaha! The Olympics is no joke!"
Douglas revealed on E! News' Daily Pop that gymnastics is a "very mental sport" with four "completely different" events to master. "It's a lot," Douglas empathized during the July 26 episode. "There are so many factors and avenues for pressure, especially with the pandemic, so I can totally relate to that."
As for what Douglas would advise Biles if she was on the Tokyo team?
"I would say, 'Guys, this is a tremendous opportunity to be given this talent to go out and shine, and shine to the brightest. So, this our shot, and let's go for it,'" Douglas mused. "We are trained as athletes to not really focus on anything that's going outside, or things that are going on right beside us. We are only allowed to focus on ourselves, so for me, I really just focus on breathing because that's kind of the thing that's accessible, breathing and focusing on one thing at a time."
But today, Douglas doesn't really focus on her hard-earned gold medals, especially where she stores them.
"So I recently moved from California to Texas, and I'm like, 'Wait, where are they?'" she joked. "I have to ask my mom." Douglas doesn't even hold her medals often since the gold can rub off and the ribbon will easily fray, she explained. "You can't handle them too much," the Petco Field Day host concluded.
Watch the sweet interview above!
The Petco Field Day Event is streaming on Facebook Live on Wednesday, July 28.