Taylor Swift and Simone Biles have heartfelt exchange over Olympic videos

Tokyo, Japan – Taylor Swift has taken over the Olympic airwaves with hype videos for the US Women's National Team, Team USA gymnastics, and the incomparable Simone Biles.

Taylor Swift (l.) narrated multiple hype videos for the Olympics, but the most touching was dedicated to Simone Biles' return to the beam.
Taylor Swift (l.) narrated multiple hype videos for the Olympics, but the most touching was dedicated to Simone Biles' return to the beam.  © Collage: Screenshot / Instagram / taylorswift & IMAGO / PanoramiC

There's no better opportunity to cash in on than the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and it's safe to say Taylor Swift is going full-throttle.

She's narrated numerous videos produced by NBC which celebrated and aired during the ladies' Olympic events, featuring songs from her albums Folklore and Evermore.

But it was Swift's latest video that caught the attention of Biles.

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Prior to the gymnast's re-entering the competition on the balance beam, NBC Olympics featured a video dedicated to her return during their prime-time broadcast and on Twitter, which was yet again narrated by the Grammy-winning artist.

Rather than simply retweeting or resharing NBC Olympics' post, the highly-decorated athlete chose to engage with the star, responding to the initial tweet saying, "I'm crying. How special. I love you @taylorswift13."

The likelihood of Swift responding was anybody's guess, but when a world champion who's been fighting the stigma around mental health addresses you, there's no other option than to reply – and that's exactly what the 31-year-old did.

On Tuesday night, Swift responded to Biles' tweet, writing, "I cried watching you. I feel so lucky to have gotten to watch you all these years, but this week was a lesson in emotional intelligence and resilience."

Athletes are "perfectly human"

Simone Biles (l.) and Taylor Swift shared an exchange on Twitter following the release of a hype video for Biles that was narrated by the pop star.
Simone Biles (l.) and Taylor Swift shared an exchange on Twitter following the release of a hype video for Biles that was narrated by the pop star.  © Collage: Screenshot / Instagram / simonebiles & taylorswift

In the video created for Biles' return to the beam, Swift speaks over the sound of the single This Is Me Trying from her 2020 album Folklore, posing the question, "What do we want from our heroes? What do we expect from them?"

As someone who's been in the music industry for over 15 years, Swift is well-versed in the weight of the world being placed on her shoulders. It's a weight that's often too much to carry, no matter how well people might think she's handled it.

The same is true for Biles, who ignited worldwide conversation when she made the tough decision to withdraw from all but one competition in Tokyo, the beam, citing struggles with her mental health and suffering from a major case of the "twisties" – what gymnasts call mental blocks that cause them to lose a sense of where they are in the air.

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The video continued with Swift breaking down the challenges faced by those who are in the global spotlight on any stage, while addressing the possibility to change the world as we know it.

"Throughout the last week, her voice has been as significant as her talents. Her honesty, as beautiful as the perfection that had long been her signature. But don't you see – it still is. She's perfectly human, and that's what makes it so easy to call her a hero," Swift narrated.

Competing in what might be her last Olympic appearance, Biles went on to take the bronze medal in the beam, most likely the most meaningful medal she's ever won.

As the Olympics comes to an end, a greater conversation around the mental health of athletes is just beginning, and being chimed in on by T Swift – as the world has Biles to thank for it.

Cover photo: Collage: Screenshot / Instagram / taylorswift & IMAGO / PanoramiC

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