As the 2024 Paris Olympics approach, all eyes are on Simone Biles as she looks to compete in her third consecutive Olympic Games. After withdrawing from several events at the Tokyo Olympics after experiencing the “twisties,” a term gymnasts use to describe losing their spatial awareness and orientation in mid-air, Biles is set to make the ultimate Olympic comeback this summer.
Here’s what you need to know about the gymnastics superstar ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Why is Simone Biles called the GOAT?
Biles has been dubbed “the GOAT,” which stands for the greatest of all time, because she is just that. She has consistently dominated the sport for over a decade, which would have been an unimaginable feat just a few years ago as most gymnasts reach their peak in their late teens. Her ability to win is in a class of its own. With 37 Olympic and World Championship medals — 27 of which are gold — Biles has won the most of any gymnast in history. She has also not lost an all-around competition since 2013.
Biles redefines the possibilities of her sport not just in her record-breaking number of wins and medals, but also in the unmatched difficulty of the skills she competes. Biles has no less than five skills named after her — two on the vault and floor and one on the balance beam — because she was the first, and in most cases, the only athlete to complete them in competition.
Is Simone Biles the most decorated gymnast of all time?
With a combined 37 medals at the Olympic Games and World Championships, Biles is the most decorated gymnast — male or female — of any nation in history. Biles officially earned this recognition after surpassing Vitaly Scherbo (33 World and Olympic medals) and Larisa Latynina (32 World and Olympic medals) with her performance at the 2023 World Championships.
Biles is also unquestionably the most decorated gymnast on the national level, having won an unparalleled nine U.S. all-around titles.
Biles currently ranks ninth in total Olympic medals for women’s artistic gymnastics, but she will unquestionably aim to increase this tally in Paris.
