Simone Biles is making her Olympic comeback. Here's what's ahead for the Team USA gymnastics great.
Simone Biles is having a stunning performance during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The gymnastics superstar took home the gold in the individual the all-around and is expected to dominate the individual vault and floor events, after helping Team USA nab the team women's gymnastics gold Tuesday.
The 27-year-old dominated qualifying rounds over the weekend despite a calf injury that saw her limping in the arena, but turned in a stellar performance during team finals in which the U.S. women dominated.
Biles is making her third Olympic appearance after the "twisties," a phenomenon where gymnasts lose their place in the air, forced her to drop out of multiple events during the Tokyo Olympics. Biles earned one bronze medal that year, and has seven total Olympic medals.
Since then, Biles has set multiple records, taking home her sixth world all-around title in 2023. She's the most decorated gymnast in history, having earned 37 medals across the world championships and the Olympics and nine all-around national titles. Biles also has five moves named after her.
While Biles has already made her mark on the gymnastics world, it's possible she could break even more records during the Paris Olympics. Here's what to know.
What records could Simone Biles break in Paris?
In Paris, the team gold helped Biles tie the record for the most Olympic gold medals earned by an American gymnast, besting Anton Heida, who has five gold medals. Biles, who had four golds going into the Games, added a gold medal in the individual all-around Thursday to beat that.
However, Biles needed just one medal to surpass Shannon Miller to become the most decorated American Olympic gymnast, which she did Tuesday. Miller and Biles each had seven Olympic medals of any color going into the Games.
The 27-year-old also set a record as the oldest female American gymnast to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics. That record was held by Aly Raisman, who won two gold medals in 2016 when she was 22 years old.
Biles could also set a record outside the gymnastics world. If she takes home a whopping five gold medals in Paris, she can break the record for most gold medals taken home by any female American athlete. Swimmer and eight-time gold medal winner Jenny Thompson currently holds the record.
What can viewers expect from Simone Biles during the Paris Olympics?
Biles commanded the Olympic trials last month. Taylor Swift cheered on Biles' floor routine, which was set to the pop star's "...Ready For It?" Biles' score for the routine was 117.225, cruising her to the only automatic spot on Team USA.
In a podium training session at the Bercy Arena in Paris, Biles was seen landing a complex vault known as the "Biles II." The move, formerly known as the Yurchenko double pike, is extremely difficult and requires a round-off entry onto the springboard, a back handspring onto the vaulting table and two flips with straight legs. She performed the Biles II during the vault rotation of the individual all-around competition.
She qualified for the vault in the individual event competition, where she will also try for golds on balance beam and floor exercise. She just missed competing in the individual uneven bars final, traditionally her weakest apparatus, coming in ninth in qualifying rounds.
What's next for Simone Biles?
When the Paris Olympics are over, Biles will venture out on a post-Olympic tour with other top gymnasts.
The star, who recently wed football safety Jonathan Owens, has not said where she will take her world-renowned athleticism beyond that.
