Simone Biles Makes Big Admission After Winning Gold in the All Around at Paris Olympics

Given what happened to her during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, no one would have blamed Simone Biles for battling nerves ahead of the women’s artistic gymnastics team all-around final on Tuesday.

But Biles didn’t let that happen. She met with her therapist in the morning hours before the competition, putting her in a good headspace to block out all distractions. She then delivered a spirited performance on the vault, locking up a score of 14.9 and helping the U.S. win its first gold medal in the artistic team all-around final since 2016.

Biles admitted after the event that while apprehension crept into her mind for the briefest of moments as she made her way down the runway toward the vault, she was determined not to let history repeat itself.

“I was like, ‘Yes, please no flashbacks or anything,’” Biles told the Associated Press . “But I did feel a lot of relief. And as soon as I landed I was like, ’Oh yeah, we’re going to do this.’”

Biles’ teammate Jordan Chiles said it was a moment of catharsis for everyone when the 27-year-old Biles, now a five-time gold medalist, landed her vault.

“Hallelujah; no flashbacks, no nothing,” Chiles said. “Because I was like, ‘Oh, OK, I need her to just do her normal.’ So me jumping up and down was just relief.”

Biles played a key role in leading USA to gold. Her vault set the tone, and she and Suni Lee had standout performances on the balance beam, while Chiles pulled off a memorable performance in the floor exercise.

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