close
Wednesday July 03, 2024

Simone Biles qualifies for third Olympic Games after winning US trials

With this victory, Biles has become the fourth American woman to compete in three straight Olympics

By Web Desk
July 01, 2024
Simone Biles celebrates her floor routine during the U.S. Olympic Team Gymnastics Trials. — Reuters/File
Simone Biles celebrates her floor routine during the U.S. Olympic Team Gymnastics Trials. — Reuters/File

Reigning world champion Simone Biles is headed to the Olympic Games Paris 2024 after winning the United States Olympic Team Trials for gymnastics.

With this victory, Biles has become the fourth American woman to compete in three straight Olympics after Dominque Dawes, CNN reported.

She placed first in the all-around competition of the of the Olympic trials, beating Suni Lee, who came in second, and Jordan Chiles, who placed third.

The 27-year-old is one of the most celebrated gymnasts in history and is widely considered one of the greatest of all time. She has won seven Olympic medals, out of which four are gold, one silver, and two bronze. In addition, she has won 30 World Championship medals.

Biles started her Olympics trial performance with one of her signature moves, the Yurchenko double pike, scoring 15.500, after which she performed the uneven bars, finishing with a score of 14.200.

In her third rotation, Biles was a bit shaky and scored slightly less, with only 13.900.

In her last rotation of the night, Biles dazzled the audience, which led to a standing ovation. She scored 14.725 solidifying her win in the competition.

In 2021, Biles suffered from a phenomenon called "the twisties," in which a mental block causes gymnasts to lose track of their body positions, due to which she withdrew from the remaining events at the Tokyo Games.