Simone Biles Creates HERstory (Again) During the 2024 Paris Olympics – and Admits It’s Because of Therapy – Essence

There’s no denying her greatness, and Simone Biles is just the GOAT relating to her sport of gymnastics and track and field. On August 1, 2024, the nine-time Olympic medalist won gold after a difficult but good performance in Paris during the women’s all-around final.

She won, beating Brazilian Rebeca Andrade, who took silver, and U.S. teammate Suni Lee, who took bronze.

The gymnastics star made history once more by becoming the first woman since 1968 to win two all-around Olympic titles, having first won them in Rio in 2016. But her path to the 2024 Games has not been easy.

“Three years ago, I never thought I’d ever step foot on a gymnastics floor again, just because of everything that happened. But with the help of Cecile and Laurent (her coaches), I got back in the gym and worked really hard physically and mentally,” the 2024 women’s all-around Olympic gold medalist said after her historic event.

“Even this morning at 7 a.m. I met with my therapist and the time change happened. She’s amazing that she’s allowed me to do this the last few days in Paris. So she’s just making sure that I’m in good mental shape and I think that shows on the competition floor.”

This is Biles’ second gold medal at the Summer Olympics. She first won on July 30, 2024, in the U.S. women’s all-around final. Next week, Biles will compete in three additional equipment finals, which could bring her total number of Olympic medals in 2024 to 5.

After a somewhat shaky performance on the asymmetric bars during the individual finals, Biles was seen on the sidelines in a meditative state that was seen by those watching around the world as a return to zen, especially since she has been very open about her mental health — revealing that she sees her therapist almost day by day during the games and once per week overall.

“I’m not sure what the camera caught or what I was doing, but I was probably trying to focus and center myself. Because it’s not over until it’s over.”

The bars were the second event of the night, and the most decorated gymnast of all time was under pressure. Brazil’s Andrade also had something to prove, and based on Biles, she’s at all times the only woman in the sport who can truly match her. The two battled it out for 4 rotations, with the 25-yr-old Brazilian taking first place after rotation 3. It all got here all the way down to the freestyle, which proved to be the best event for each women.

With Beyoncé’s songs incorporated into each routines, the ladies gave it their all and left their hearts on the mat. In the end, Biles won gold together with her best floor performance of the Paris Games, scoring 15.066 points. When it was all said and done, the two ladies could possibly be seen embracing, genuinely blissful for one another despite the media’s attempts to pit them against one another.

“I don’t want to compete with Rebecca anymore, I’m tired,” Biles joked during a post-event interview. “She’s definitely too close, I’ve never been that close to any competitor, so that definitely put me on my feet. But it definitely brought out the best competitor in me and I’m proud to compete with her. I was.”

“Overall, I’m super proud of my performance today and the fight I’ve put in over the last three years, mentally and physically, just to get back to competing on the world stage. I couldn’t be more proud.”

With gymnastics competition coming to a detailed soon, fans are wondering what’s next for Biles. Will she officially retire from competition or proceed competing internationally? While nothing has been confirmed yet, she did say at the 2024 USA Gymnastics tryouts that she would deal with the 2024 Gold Over America Tour in Paris, and once that’s done, she’ll make a choice on what’s next.