Japanese gymnast Shoko Miyata will no longer compete in the 2024 Olympics.
The 19-year-old captain of Japan’s women’s artistic gymnastics team was sent back home from Paris on Thursday, after leaving the team’s training camp in Monaco for investigation—just days ahead of the global competition.
The Japanese Gymnastics Association confirmed the news today, explaining that Miyata broke the strict rules of the Games related to smoking and drinking alcohol. She also failed to show up to an open training session on Wednesday.
“We apologize from the bottom of our hearts for this,” JGA president Tadashi Fujita said of the incident, according to The Guardian.
“With her confirmation and after discussions on all sides, it has been decided that she will withdraw from the Olympics,” JGA secretary-general Kenji Nishimura added, per BBC News.
Miyata is the reigning national champion in her sport, and previously placed three times at the Asian Championships and three times at the World University Games. This April, with two silver national championship medals already under her belt, she finally took home her first gold.
Miyata’s coach, Mutsumi Harada, also spoke out about the incident, defending the athlete. “She was spending her days really burdened with so much pressure. I would implore people to understand that,” he said.
The teen herself has not publicly commented on the matter.
The Summer Olympics kick off this July 26 in the French capital. Here is everything you need to know about the Games, including how to stream the competitions.
