Simone Biles showed she is the ultimate class act during today’s artistic gymnastics team event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.The four-time Olympic champion endured a difficult day at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in the Japanese capital. She pulled out of the artistic gymnastics team final after recording her lowest Olympic vault score – 13.766. Biles later revealed she withdrew to "focus on my mental health."The American team of Jordan Chiles, Sunisa Lee and Grace McCallum performed admirably in Biles’s absence, but had to settle for silver with a score of 166.096. They were beaten by Russia’s Lilia Akhaimova, Viktoria Listunova, Angelina Melnikova and Vladislava Urazova, who clinched gold with 169.528.Team GB, represented by Alice Kinsella, Amelie Morgan plus twins Jennifer and Jessica Gadirova, earned a historic bronze with 164,096 points.After the results were announced, Biles was the first to congratulate the Russian gymnasts on their Olympic title. The rest of the US team soon followed.The heartwarming moment was shared on Twitter by BBC Sport and the clip soon went viral. Social media users praised Biles for being the ultimate sportswoman, with one commenting: "Forget gold medals and world titles, this example of her character and sportsmanship is what makes Simone Biles the GOAT."

Biles has since spoken more about her decision to withdraw from the team event.

"After the performance I did, I just didn't want to go on," she said. "I have to focus on my mental health. I just think mental health is more prevalent in sports right now.

"We have to protect our minds and our bodies and not just go out and do what the world wants us to do. I don't trust myself as much anymore. Maybe it's getting older. There were a couple of days when everybody tweets you and you feel the weight of the world.

"We're not just athletes. We're people at the end of the day and sometimes you just have to step back. I didn't want to go out and do something stupid and get hurt. ​I feel like a lot of athletes speaking up has really helped.”

Biles suggested she would be returning to competition for the individual artistic gymnastics events this week. The all-around is scheduled for Thursday, with the vault and uneven bars on Sunday. This will be followed by the floor on Monday and the balance beam next Tuesday.