Teenage Japan gymnast Shoko Miyata has been withdrawn from Japan’s team for the Paris Olympics after being caught smoking and drinking, officials said Friday.
The 19-year-old, a global bronze medalist and the captain of Japan’s women’s gymnastics team at the Games, was sent home from their training camp in Monaco after admitting she had broken their code of conduct.
“With her confirmation and after discussions on all sides, it has been decided that she will withdraw from the Olympics,” Japan Gymnastics Association (JGA) secretary general Kenji Nishimura told reporters in Tokyo.
Nishimura stated that the association had been informed that Miyata was seen smoking in a private setting in Tokyo around the end of June or early July.
She also apparently consumed alcohol in a room at Japan’s national training camp.
In Japan, both smoking and drinking are forbidden for anyone under the age of twenty.
According to Nishimura, it was unclear if Miyata was drinking alone or at a party.
“Being a member of the Japan national gymnastics team is a position where you have high demands on you all the time,” said JGA chairman Tadashi Fujita.
Fujita stated that Miyata had already returned to Japan after quitting the team’s training and that the JGA would support her. Nishimura claimed she “looked exhausted” at the camp in Monaco.
“She understands the importance of the rules, and she looked sincere in facing up to her behaviour,” he said.
“It has been tough for her, but she has talked openly and honestly about it.”
Miyata took bronze in the balance beam at the 2022 World Championships in Liverpool. She earned the all-around title at the Japan National Championships earlier this year.
The Paris 2024 Summer Olympics will be held from July 26 to August 11, 2024.
