There’s absolutely no doubt about it: Simone Biles is one of the greatest American athletes. Since tumbling onto the scene at the 2016 Olympics, Biles has continued to prove her incredible athleticism in gymnastics, all the while making history with every flip, spin, and mid-air split.
As the most decorated gymnast of all time, Biles is the proud owner of 8 Olympic medals and 30 World Championship medals.
Most of us were first introduced to the superstar gymnast at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, where she took home four gold medals for Team, All-Around, Vault and Floor Exercise, along with a bronze medal for her Balance Beam routine. During the 2018 World Championships, Biles performed a Vault movement that was so difficult and unique, it was named after her. Along with her brilliance and artistry on the mat, Biles is also a respectable sportsperson. Using her platform, Biles continues to stand for so much more than just the sport she participates in, consistently highlighting social issues and advocating for survivors of abuse — especially within the U.S. Gymnastics organization.
Biles career faced a hurdle in 2021 when she suddenly dropped out of the Olympics in Tokyo after failing to push through a mental block she was battling with behind the scenes. The world watched in shock when Biles suffered a bout of what gymnasts call the “twisties” mid-performance before pulling out of the Team Final. Though many feared her career was over, the athlete took a very-deserved break for her mental health and announced her return to the sport in 2023.
Biles has gone from strength to strength ever since and fought for her place in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, successfully redeeming herself and Team USA with a gold medal win on July 30.
Biles’s many accomplishments are truly awe-inspiring to so many, and not just because we can barely do a summersault. Her advocacy, coupled with her athleticism makes her true champion, one we cannot help but celebrate and uplift. Take a look at some of the moments where she defied gravity below.
A version of this article was originally posted on July 2021.
2024 Paris Olympics Women’s Team Final
Biles made history once again when she came back with a vengence after a difficult 2020 Olympics in which she dropped out of the Women’s Team Gymnastics competition before the final.
Here, Biles is pictured midair during her uneven bars routine on Day 4 of the Olympics. Later that days, Team USA Women’s Gymnastics successfully won the gold medal.
2024 Paris Olympics Training
On July 25th, 2024 in Paris, France, Simone Biles was flying through the air during her training on the balance beam.
2024 Paris Olympics Training
Biles seemed to be in good spirits during a July 25 training session in Paris, France days before her Olympic return at the 2024 games.
According to CBS News, during the training, she successfully landed a complex move that was renamed the Biles II in 2023. Formerly known as the Yurchenko double pike, the move is considered the most difficult vault in women’s gymnastics.
2024 Olympic Trials
After a devastating 2020 Olympics and a well-deserved break, Biles easily qualified for the 2024 Games during the Olympic Gymnastics Team trials in Minnesota.
2024 Olympic Trials
“I knew I wasn’t done after the performances in Tokyo,” Biles said at June’s Olympic trials, according to USA Today. “Getting back in the gym and trusting the process with [coaches Cecile and Laurent Landi], I knew I’d be back.”
2023 Gymnastics Classic
Biles made her official return to gymnastic after her mental health break and was immediately flying! She landed the highest score in the competition, an impressive 5 points ahead of the second-place finisher, according to The New York Times.
Tokyo Olympics
In these photos from day two of the 2020 Olympics, which took place in 2021, Biles appeared to be in flying form while competing on the balance beam. However, things were about to change for the super star athlete.
Tokyo Olympics
About a quarter of the way through the Olympics, Biles withdrew from the Olympic team final after she lost her bearings mid-air during her vault performance. Biles later revealed that she had been privately struggling with a mental block known in gymnastics as the “twisties.”
She later withdrew from her all-around final and three of her apparatus finals but did manage to return for her last event, balance beam, where she won a bronze medal.
2021 Olympic Trials
No one could have known what was to come when Biles dropped this stunning move on the balance beam during the women’s U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials on June 27, 2021, in St. Louis.
2021 Olympic Trials
Also at the trials, Biles appeared to be at the top of her game while doing warm ups on the vault prior to the first day of the competition.
2021 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
Biles once again proved she is no match for gravity while warming up at the 2021 U.S. Championships before going on to win three gold medals and one bronze.
2019 Superstars of Gymnastics Event
Then with five Olympics medals under her belt, Biles put on a show for fans at the Superstars of Gymnastics back in 2019.
2019 Superstars of Gymnastics Event
Her memorable floor routine featured many of her signature complex moves.
2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
Simone Biles competes on the floor exercise at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships on Aug. 19, 2018, in Boston.
2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
In this action shot, Biles is seen warming up on the parallel bar before the high-profile competition in Boston.
2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
Later, as the competition got underway it was a successful run for Biles who won five gold medals.
2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
I mean, is there any question as to why she’s the most decorated gymnast in history?
2016 Rio Olympic Games
At Biles’ first ever Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro back in 2016, she became a household name when she won four gold medals in the floor exercise, vault, all-around and team segments, making her the first woman to do so since 1974.
2016 Olympic Gymnastics Trials
It was the calm before the storm for Biles who competed gracefully on the uneven bars at Olympic trials in 2016, before achieving international fame.
2016 U.S. Gymnastics Championships
Before making her Olympics debut, Biles also made her name know during her appearance at the 2016 national Gymnastic Championship where she took home four gold medals.
2016 World Gymnastics Championships
Here, Biles performed her gold medal-winning floor routine back in 2016 in St. Louis.
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