Simone Biles has ascended to the pinnacle of gymnastics, but scaling that peak once more has proven an arduous endeavor.
In her third Olympic appearance, Biles secured the individual all-around gold medal for a second time on Thursday, reclaiming the 2016 title that solidified her status among the sport’s elite.
American gymnasts have dominated the individual all-around at the last five Olympics: Athens, Beijing, London, Rio, and Tokyo. With her victory on Thursday, Biles added Paris to that illustrious list.
Widely regarded as the greatest of all time (GOAT), this victory was earned through sheer determination.
“Three years ago, I never thought I’d set foot on a gymnastics floor again, given everything that transpired,” Biles remarked after her triumph, alluding to her struggle with the “twisties” in Tokyo. “Tonight, it means everything to me.”
It’s rare for reigning Olympic all-around champions to return to the podium, but Suni Lee defied the odds, overcoming kidney disease and other challenges to clinch the bronze, edging out Italy’s Alice D’Amato by a tenth of a point. Brazilian gymnastics prodigy Rebeca Andrade secured her second consecutive all-around silver medal.
Biles’ victory margin over Andrade was just over a point, akin to the value of a fall, but she acknowledged the pressure of Andrade’s close competition.
“I don’t want to compete with Rebeca anymore,” Biles joked. “I’m exhausted. She’s too close. I’ve never had an athlete that close, so it definitely pushed me to bring out the best in myself.”
Lee observed, “I’ve never seen her so stressed.” Initially, Biles planned to perform a safer vault but decided to unleash her signature “Biles II” vault to outscore Andrade.
Though Biles has not formally announced her retirement, she stated, “I’m ready to pass the torch to her — she can take over from here.”
Biles stands as the first American to win the Olympic all-around gold medal more than once, joining the ranks of Larisa Latynina of the Soviet Union and Věra Čáslavská of Czechoslovakia as repeat champions. Both remain revered figures in a sport that has evolved significantly since their last competitions in the 1960s.
Before Simone Biles, no gymnast had ever secured two Olympic all-around championships non-consecutively. Thursday’s triumph marks her ninth Olympic medal and her sixth gold. The gold medal she captured during the team final on Tuesday elevated her to the status of the most decorated American gymnast in Olympic history, surpassing the achievements of “Magnificent Seven” icon Shannon Miller.
Even prior to her feats in Paris, Biles had already established herself as the most decorated gymnast in history across all nations, thanks to her impressive collection of world championship medals. In total, she boasts 39 combined world and Olympic medals, a testament to her unparalleled dominance in the sport.
The gold medal was precariously uncertain after Simone Biles experienced a significant form break on the uneven bars, a misstep that involved bending her legs during a transition from the high bar to the low, known as a Pak salto.
Clinging to the bar following that error was an achievement in itself. Biles incurred a substantial deduction, scoring a 13.733, which left her trailing behind Rebeca Andrade as they approached the balance beam.
“I was probably praying to every single deity I could think of, trying to refocus and re-center myself, because that performance wasn’t reflective of the bars routine I’d been training,” Biles commented after the competition.
Despite finding herself in the bronze medal position at the halfway point, Biles maintained a difficulty advantage moving into the beam and floor exercises. She holds the title of reigning world champion in both events and is also set to compete in the Olympic event finals.
On the 4-inch-wide balance beam, an apparatus that has crushed many Olympic aspirations, Biles delivered a flawless routine. Andrade showed signs of anxiety during this segment, causing her to fall behind Biles as they entered the final rotation. Nonetheless, Andrade concluded with a solid performance on the floor exercise.
Simone Biles’ performance was further elevated by her execution of the “Biles II” vault— a Yurchenko double pike— during the first rotation. The 15.766 she achieved with this vault was the highest score awarded on any apparatus that day.
Biles secured her gold medal with the world’s most challenging floor routine, set to Taylor Swift’s “… Ready For It?” She received a score of 15.066 for her exceptional execution.
In Tokyo three years prior, Suni Lee narrowly defeated Rebeca Andrade to claim the sport’s most coveted individual accolade, thus extending the 20-year American dominance. Biles had withdrawn from the all-around final in Tokyo due to her battle with the twisties.
The competition for medals in women’s gymnastics continues this weekend. Biles and Andrade will face each other again in the vault final on Saturday, with Jade Carey also vying for a spot on the podium. On Sunday, Lee will compete for a medal in the uneven bars, with Biles serving as the first alternate.
Both gymnasts are also set to participate in the balance beam finals on Monday. Jordan Chiles will join Biles in the floor exercise finals later that day, concluding the Olympic gymnastics events in Paris.
