Simone Biles has officially made her comeback to gymnastics Sunday night after winning the U.S. Olympic Team Trials. This comes after Biles withdrew from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics mid-competition and took nearly a two-year break afterward.
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Simone Biles Accomplishments Prior to Tokyo 2020
At 27 years old, Simone Biles is the most decorated gymnast in history, with an impressive 37 Olympic and World Championship Medals, she is widely regarded as one of the greatest gymnasts of all time. Unlike many gymnasts, Biles never competed in the NCAA, opting out of her verbal commitment to UCLA during the 2016 Olympic circuit to turn professional. In the 2016 Rio Games, she won four Olympic gold medals, dominating the individual all-around, vault, floor, and the US Team Event. Biles also holds the record for the most World Championship Medals in Gymnastics, winning 30 throughout her career.
In 2017, Biles took a break from Gymnastics to explore opportunities outside of gymnastics. This included co-writing her autobiography, “Courage to Soar: A Body in Motion, A Life in Balance” which became a #1 New York Times bestseller. Additionally, she showcased her versatility by competing on season 24 of “Dancing with the Stars,” where she was a favorite to win but ultimately finished in fourth place after being eliminated before the finals.
Biles made her return to gymnastics in March of 2018 and looked forward to competing in the 2018 World Championships. However, the night before the Qualifying rounds she had a health scare that sent her to the emergency room but she persevered and qualified in first place the next day proving her talent and resilience.
Tokyo 2020 Complications and Gymnastics Break
In February 2020, Simon Biles was named to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Team, shortly after, the Olympics were pushed back to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Going into the Olympics Biles was favored to win at least 4 out of 6 Gold Medals. After competing in the first round of the women’s team event Biles decided to withdraw from the event along with a few others due to a combination of mental health concerns and experiencing the “twisties,” a condition that causes a gymnast to lose spacial awareness when tumbling.
Despite her struggles, Biles returned to compete in the balance beam final, winning a bronze medal. Biles was one of the first athletes to take a break from such a major competition for mental health reasons, starting a global conversation about the pressures that elite athletes face and how athletes’ mental health isn’t always prioritized.
Biles ended up taking a two-year-long break from the sport but remained busy repairing her mental and physical health. In 2022 US President Joe Biden awarded Biles with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Simone also met NFL player Jonathan Owens in 2020. The couple got married in April of 2023 and continue to cheer each other on their respective competitions.
Return to Gymnastics and Paris 2024
Simone Biles made her triumphant return to gymnastics in August 2023 at the US Chicago Classic, where she topped the podium and competed as if she’d never been away. That same year she won her eighth US Gymnastic Championship title, becoming the oldest woman to do so at age 26. At the World Championships, Biles earned four gold medals and one bronze, regaining her dominance in the sport. Her comeback earned her the 2024 Laureus World Sports Award for Comeback of the Year, joining the ranks of past winners like Christian Eriksen (2023), Tiger Woods (2019), and Roger Federer (2018).
In May 2024, Biles once again made history by winning gold in every event at the US Gymnastics Championships, becoming the first gymnast to secure nine all-around titles at the event, which qualified her for the Olympic Trials. On Sunday night, Biles competed in the Olympic Trials, placing first on floor with a medley of songs including Taylor Swift’s “…Are You Ready,” possibly hinting at her Olympic comeback. Following her performance Biles was officially named to the US Olympic team and will compete in July, making her journey from hiatus to reclaiming her spot at the forefront of gymnastics.
Watched this so many times and still unready. She’s ready for it tho👏👏👏🥇🇺🇸❤️
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) June 29, 2024
How Many Medals Do YOU think Simone Biles will win in Paris?
