PARIS (AP) — Simone Biles held off Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade for all-around Olympics gymnastics gold. At 27, she’s the oldest Olympic women’s gymnastics champ since 1952. Simone on the GOAT necklace: Best of both worlds. Simone Biles had the GOAT necklace ready, just in case the women’s all-around competition went well Thursday night. And when she showed the pendant of a goat, a nod to the Greatest Of All Time acronym, Biles knew exactly what the reaction would be.
“My GOAT necklace is just kind of an ode, because the people love it and some people hate it,” she said. “So, it’s like the best of both worlds. I was like, ‘OK, if it goes well, we’ll wear the GOAT necklace.’ I know people will go crazy over it but at the end of the day it is crazy that I am in the conversation of ‘Greatest of all athletes’ because I just still think, ‘I’m Simone Biles from Spring, Texas who loves to flip.’” Biles: ‘I don’t want to compete with Rebeca no more’ Biles says she’s had enough of trying to hold off Rebeca Andrade. “I don’t want to compete with Rebeca no more. I’m tired. Like, she’s way too close. I’ve never had an athlete that close.”
Biles says she was stressed after her bars routine. After her mistake during her bars routine, Biles said she “was probably praying to every single God out there trying to refocus and recenter myself because that’s not the bars that I had been training.” She added: “I’m not the best bar swinger like Suni or Kaylia, but I can still swing some bars.” Biles also said she saw her mental threrapist at 7 a.m. this morning as she got ready for her final.
Sunisa Lee’s bronze is historic, too. Sunisa Lee is the first to follow a gold in the women’s gymnastics all-around in one Games with a medal in the same event at the following Olympics since Nadia Comaneci in 1976 and ’80.
Simone’s message to the US Olympic basketball team: ‘Good luck!’. Moments after winning her second Olympic women’s all-around gold medal, Simone Biles went over and yelled toward a group of her newest fans. “Good luck!” she yelled, as she waved from the floor of the arena to where Kevin Durant and others from the U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team was sitting. And that squad was blown away. “America!” U.S. guard Stephen Curry yelled, and fellow guard Devin Booker said seeing Biles up close was “one of the coolest things ever.”
Simone is all smiles. Just pure joy for Biles. No cries. A big, big smile when she received her gold medal. She looked serious, with a hand on her heart, when the American anthem reverberated in the venue. And big smiles again, including while posing for a podium selfie with Lee and Andrade.
The G.O.A.T. is dressed for the occasion. Biles is wearing a silver goat necklace, holding it up for cameras to see. KD and Co. are hyped up at for another American gold
American fans are on the verge of apoplexy. Bercy Arena exploded into cheers and applause when the results of the all-around flashed on the big screens, with Biles’s name at the top. As Biles rushed to the center of the mat with Sunisa Lee to celebrate with an American flag, phones are all out — including Kevin Durant and several of his Team USA teammates — nobody wants to miss a single moment of that historic scene.
Simone’s gold, by the numbers. Some numbers on Simone Biles’ Olympic dominance … Simone makes it 6 straight for the U.S. women The U.S. was the first nation to win five straight women’s all-around Olympic gold medals when Sunisa Lee prevailed at the Tokyo Games three years ago. Make it six.
Simone Biles is now the third woman to win two Olympic all-around titles. Lee won in Tokyo, Biles at Rio de Janeiro in 2016, Gabby Douglas at London in 2012, Nastia Liukin at Beijing in 2008 and Carly Patterson at Athens in 2004. The earliest another nation could pass the U.S. for this run of consecutive all-around dominance: 2052, and that’s if one country wins the next seven Olympic titles in that event.
Andrade’s score on floor: 14.033. Simone needs 13.867 for gold. Here we go. Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade finished the all-around competition with a score of 57.932. That means Simone Biles, the final competitor, needs a 13.867 on the floor for gold. In a couple minutes, we’ll know the final answer. Biles’ seven gold medals in Olympic and world championship all-around competitions have come by an average margin of victory of 1.446 points. Her lead over Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade going into the fourth and final rotation of all-around at the Paris Games on Thursday night: 0.166 points.
Biles’ beam score: 14.566, and floor will decide gold. A couple of tiny slip-ups didn’t seem to hurt Biles on the beam as she tries to close in on Andrade.
Biles’ score: 14.566. She entered the third rotation about a quarter-point behind Andrade. Upset watch at women’s gymnastics
Andrade is in the lead midway through the all-around final. Andrade’s uneven bars routine was a model of fluidity while Biles botched a transition that dropped her to third overall, 0.267 points behind Andrade. Algerian specialist Kaylia Nemour, as expected, posted the best score on bars, a massive 15.533 that pushed her past Biles for all-around. She trails Andrade by just 0.200 points, but she’s unlikely to keep pace on the remaining apparatuses.
Biles faces a challenge now holding off Andrade. Simone Biles has a fight on her hands for the Olympic all-around title. Biles trails Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade by 0.267 through two rotations. The duo next heads to the balance beam, where Biles was second during qualifying and Andrade third. Biles will be the first gymnast up during the rotation, with Andrade going last.
The two will finish the night on floor exercise, where the difficulty of Biles’ routine gives her a significant advantage. If Biles can stay on the beam, she would be well positioned to pass Andrade after floor. Biles loses the lead after bars miscue Biles has made her first big mistake of the Olympics. She botched a transition from the upper bar to the lower bar, a miscue that messed with her momentum and forced her to muscle her way back into her routine.
Biles was visibly annoyed as she made her way off the podium. Her score of 13.733 dropped her behind Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade through two rotations. The US basketball team shows up to see Simone Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and other members of the U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team are in Paris to watch Simone Biles in the women’s all-around competition. It wasn’t a surprise: When the team got together for training camp, it was basically unanimous that Biles was the athlete that they most wanted to see at the Paris Games.
The basketball team will be in the arena where gymnastics is being held starting next week, when the quarterfinals of their Olympic tournament take place on Tuesday. Lee hits the mat warming up on uneven bars Lee faceplanted during her warmup on uneven bars. It’s the second time she’s done that this week, but it hasn’t really hampered her. She was as good as ever there in qualifying when it counted. Don’t expect Biles to try her new skill on bars
Biles submitted a unique skill on uneven bars to the International Gymnastics Federation last week. It’s unlikely we’ll see it during the all-around final. Biles is only expected to do the move, which requires her to do a 540-degree turn while holding a handstand on the lower bar, if she makes the uneven bars final. She is currently the first alternate after qualifying ninth on the event. Biles uses signature skill to vault ahead
Biles brought out the Yurchenko double pike vault after passing on doing one during the team final to protect her tender left calf. Biles is the only woman to ever complete the vault in competition and it carries her name in the sport’s Code of Points. The move requires her to do a roundoff back handspring onto the vaulting table, followed by two back flips while clasping her legs. She took a sizable step back on her dismount but otherwise kept it under control.
Biles scores 15.766 on vault. Biles is off and running in her quest for another Olympic all-around title. Her score on the vault: 15.766. It’s a significant lead over Andrade’s 15.100 already, with three events left for both. Andrade saves new skill for another day, still shines on vault. There was speculation Andrade could attempt a Yurchenko triple twist during the final. The Brazilian gymnast submitted the vault to be named after her in the sport’s Code of Points. She has performed it at training but did not try it the all-around. She instead opted for a difficult Cheng that earned her 15.100 points. It was nearly flawless. She will have another chance to perform the Yurchenko triple twist in the vault final next week. If she succeeds, the vault would be the first skill named after Andrade.
Sunisa Lee’s score on vault: 13.933. The defending Olympic all-around champion is behind her Tokyo pace at the start. Sunisa Lee was the first athlete on the vault, and the 21-year-old American who won the title at the Tokyo Games three years ago took a bit of a hop on the landing. Her score was 13.933. Her score on the vault in the Tokyo all-around: 14.600.
Biles and Lee aren’t the only Americans out here. Biles and Lee aren’t the only American women in the all-around final. Luisa Blanco, a Texas native and recent Alabama graduate, made the final while competing for Colombia. Blanco’s parents are Colombian and she obtained dual citizenship over the last year. She began competing for Colombia last fall and her performance at the Pan American Games helped her earn a spot under the rings. It’s go-time for the all-around
The 24 athletes have been introduced at the women’s all-around competition, with Simone Biles coming out last and to the biggest ovation, of course. Biles and U.S. teammate Sunisa Lee — the reigning all-around Olympic champion — will open on vault for their first rotation. We’re ready to go at the women’s all-around finals
Simone Biles, Sunisa Lee and the rest of the all-around finalists are on the floor. How does Olympics gymnastics scoring work? There are two components to Olympics gymnastics scoring: The difficulty or D-score is what a gymnast does. The execution or E-score is how well they do it. Technically, there’s no limit on how high the D-score can go, but most elite routines top out between 5.4 and 6.0. Some exceptional ones can go higher — for example, Biles’ floor routine at the team finals had a 6.8 D-score.
The E-table is based on a 10-point system, though no perfect 10 for execution has ever been awarded anywhere since the new paradigm was introduced (Simone Biles has come close a couple of times on vault). Anything over 8 is good. The two scores are added together. A total of 13.0 or better is solid. Anything in the 14s is excellent and puts you in medal contention. A 15 or better (typically reserved for vault and typically reserved for Biles) and you’re pretty much assured of a gold medal.
During the all-around finals, each gymnast is judged on vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor, and their scores are added together. Highest total wins.
Rivals and friends, Biles and Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade are rivals — and friends. “It’s an honor to be able to compete alongside her,” Andrade said after leading Brazil to the bronze medal in the team’s competition won by the U.S. team in Paris. “She’s a reference and a role model for the whole world of gymnastics. And also for other athletes.”
Andrade and Biles made their Olympic debut together in Rio eight years ago. “To be able to watch how she competes and see how happy she is to compete, the hard work she does, it’s fantastic to witness,” the 25-year-old Andrade said. “I don’t know what will happen when she’s not around any more. I don’t even know if I’m still around (by that time), either.” Andrade won the gold medal in the vault at the Tokyo Olympics and was runner-up in the all-around to Sunisa Lee.
Simone Biles has had five skills named after her in the gymnastics’ Code of Points after completing them in competition. There’s a chance Biles could add a sixth element at the Olympics, where she has submitted a new skill on uneven bars. She did not attempt the skill during qualifying or the team finals but could try it during the all-around competition. If this was ‘Jeopardy!,’ then Kyla Ross would be a great answer. If this was “Jeopardy!,” here’s your answer: Kyla Ross. It was March 30, 2013, at something called the Chemnitz Friendly in Germany, when Ross won the all-around gold and Biles finished second.
Biles has competed in 33 different all-around competitions since — Olympics, Olympic trials, world championships, U.S. championships and so on — and won the gold at every one of them. That obviously doesn’t include the Tokyo Games, where she withdrew and did not compete in the all-around. Biles will try to run her streak to 34 straight all-around golds at the Paris Games later Thursday night.
Why isn’t Jordan Chiles in the all-around finals? Jordan Chiles posted the fourth best all-around score during qualifying Sunday, but she won’t compete for individual all-around gold. The reason? Each country can only have two athletes in the all-around finals. Simone Biles was first and Sunisa Lee was third in qualifying, taking both of the spots open to U.S. gymnasts. Chiles does have one more chance at a medal this weekend after qualifying for the finals on floor. She also had a good enough score to qualify on vault, but she didn’t make that final because she finished behind countrymates Biles and Jade Carey.
Biles, Andrade and Lee will start on vault. Simone Biles, Rebeca Andrade and Sunisa Lee — the top three finishers in all-around qualifying — will compete in the same rotation tonight, starting on vault. They’ll move to uneven bars, balance beam and then floor. If the scores are tight heading into floor, Biles has the advantage of getting to see how the others fare before starting her final event. Biles’ floor routine will be the last event of the night. It’s been 11 years since someone actually beat Biles in all-around
Biles has an 11-year unbeaten streak in the all-around in meets she has started and finished into the finals. It’s a run that has included an Olympic gold in Rio de Janeiro and six world titles and nine U.S. Championships. If she finishes atop the podium at 27 years, four months and 18 days, she will be the oldest all-around champion since then 30-year-old Maria Gorokhovskaya of the Soviet Union during the first women’s all-around competition in 1952. Some more perspective on how long Biles has been on top: Olympic teammate Hezly Rivera had just turned 5 the year Biles won her first national and world titles.
Biles or Lee could make Olympic history not done since 1968. The women’s final marks the first time since the Olympics began offering an individual gold medal in the all-around in 1952 that there have been multiple Olympic champions in the same final.
Biles triumphed in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, with Lee earning the gold in Tokyo three years ago. If either of them win, they will be the first woman to claim multiple Olympic all-around golds since Vera Caslavska of Czechoslovakia went back-to-back in 1964 and 1968. Larisa Latynina of the Soviet Union also won consecutive golds in 1952 and 1956. Spurred by Simone Biles, adult gymnastics is on the rise Interest in adult gymnastics across the United States is rising in lockstep with the careers of Olympians like Simone Biles.
There are now hundreds of meets a year that offer opportunities for adults to compete. Many of the adults are former gymnasts who stepped away from the sport because they felt opportunities had dried up. Those opportunities are returning, allowing the athletes to reconnect with the sport on their terms. Will this be Simone Biles’ last Olympics? The 27-year-old has kept quiet about her future plans, saying her focus after leaving Paris will be on the post-Olympic tour she headlines. Biles is also married and has talked openly about the fear of missing out on life milestones because of her time in the gym. Still, Cecile Landi — who has coached Biles with her husband Laurent since late 2017 — perhaps offered a little bit of insight after the American women won team gold Tuesday. “She wanted to rewrite her story, the end,” Landi said. Landi then added a small asterisk. “Well, that’s what she says now.”
Simone vs Suni is an unprecedented Olympic showdown. Here is an interesting stat about the might of the U.S women’s team: Simone Biles, the 2016 Olympic champion, will be competing against teammate Sunisa Lee in the all-around final. Lee is the Tokyo gold medalist. It’s the first time in history that two Olympic all-around champions will compete in an all-around final at the Games.
