What has changed since Simone Biles’ first gold medal to today.
Three years ago, the U.S. gymnastics team became the focus of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. This was triggered by Simone Biles’ withdrawal from the team gymnastics final. The athlete chose to prioritize her mental health, stating, “We are also human.” Her decision opened up a larger conversation about athletes and the need to give greater importance to their mental health alongside their popular sport.
A decision that has not betrayed her and led her on Tuesday, July 30, to confidently win, along with her teammates Jordan Chiles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera – the new arrival to the team – the fourth gold Olympic medal in U.S. history. The women’s gymnastics team became the center of attention again at the Paris Olympic Games.
What did Simone Biles do a few hours before the gold?
“At the start of the day, I began with therapy that morning. It was very exciting” describes Simone Biles. “I told my therapist that I felt calm and ready.” Her appearance at the packed Bercy Arena left no room to believe otherwise.
“After I finished the vault, I felt relieved,” she admitted, referring to the last time she found herself in the same position and did not complete what she had to do. “As soon as I landed from the vault, I said ‘we are definitely going to do this’.”
The first gold Olympic medal with the U.S. team
For the 27-year-old athlete, this was her 8th Olympic medal. The second team gold medal at the Olympics, as she claimed, feels completely different from the first. “I believe that in 2016, we were born to win gold, everyone somehow said we were going to win gold,” remembers Simone Biles. “Now that I am quite older and we have more experience, we are here and having fun and enjoying what we do.”
“I felt a little differently [tonight],” the gold medalist later stated. “It was very exciting, we had fun, enjoyed each other’s time there, and just did our gymnastics.”