With 2025 coming to a close, there are many memorable moments to look back on: The Louvre was robbed in broad daylight, Travis Kelce got down on one knee for Taylor Swift and a CEO got caught cheating on the Coldplay kiss-cam. These moments dominated the media and were impossible to ignore.
Yet while the spotlight lingers on the unexpected, meaningful progress unfolds more quietly. After a year of headline-grabbing moments, it’s worthwhile to pause and reflect on the gradual strides made within recent years, especially within the mental health community. In the spirit of looking back, The Athletic Voice is spotlighting three professional athletes who have made significant contributions to mental health awareness in sports.
1. Simone Biles
Considered “the GOAT” of her sport, Simone Biles is the most decorated gymnast in global history. She’s also known for her advocacy surrounding the mental well-being of athletes, specifically after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
During that competition, Biles unexpectedly withdrew after she developed the twisties, which according to the Cleveland Clinic is a mental block that causes a disconnect between the brain and the body, making gymnasts lose a sense of where they are in the air. The condition can be caused by many mental strains such as stress, perfectionism and doubt.
After speaking out about her experience and taking a step back from gymnastics to focus on her mental health, Biles became a pillar for advocacy in the athletic world. Though she’s overcome the twisties, Biles is still shaping how athletes view their mental health today.
Accomplished gymnasts such as Jade Carey, Ellie Black and Jordan Chiles still speak about the impact Biles had on their mental health journeys. She gave them, as well as other athletes, the courage to look beyond their current competition and prioritize personal well-being over gold medals.
2. Kevin Love
In his personal narrative, NBA player Kevin Love discusses the panic attack he had during a basketball game and the mental health awakening that followed his episode.
Love never thought mental health was something he needed to be concerned about. He followed the societal expectation that men, especially athletes, weren’t allowed to show emotion and should push through their struggles independently. But that worldview came crashing down when he experienced a panic attack in the middle of one of his games.
Since then, Love has been outspoken about mental health. He started seeing a therapist and realized that talking about his issues was helpful not just for himself, but for other athletes who’d been suffering in silence.
Most significantly, Love founded the Kevin Love Fund. His organization uses research and education to flip the stigmas surrounding mental health and provides resources to those dealing with their own internal problems.
3. Naomi Girma
On March 1, 2022, Stanford soccer player Katie Meyer died by suicide. Her teammate and close friend, Naomi Girma, was devastated. It was hard to believe somebody like Meyer, whose energy and brightness made everyone around her happy, would take her own life; but like many athletes, her mental health struggles were silently eating away at her spirit.
Girma was determined to honor the legacy of her friend. Not only did she find success on the US Women’s National Soccer Team, but she has also become an advocate for mental health at the forefront of the cause.
After sharing the story of her relationship with Meyer in a personal article, Girma continued her off-field work to help others, wanting to make sure what happened to her friend wouldn’t happen again.
She’s teamed up with Common Goal to help raise mental health awareness and worked on the launch of Create the Space. Their goal is to tackle mental health issues in sports and give athletes the resources necessary for them to live fulfilling lives.
