"6 year old me would be proud" - Simone Biles reflects on her journey as she displays her 11 Olympic medals after a victorious campaign in Paris

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Aug 28, 2024 02:52 GMT

Simone Biles has done the unthinkable at the Paris Olympics. Despite being one of the oldest American female gymnasts to take part in the last 70 years, the 27-year-old Olympic champion didn't let it reflect in her performance, as she won three golds and a silver medal for the USA.

In a recent social media post on her X account [formerly Twitter], Biles reflected on her journey from a six-year-old child who tried gymnastics for the first time to a multiple Olympic and World Championship medalist. Sharing some photos of her 11 Olympic medals, Biles posted:

"6 year old me would be proud"

Simone Biles took up gymnastics when she was six years old, during a daycare field trip. This was the same year when Ron & Nellie Biles, her grandparents, formally adopted her and her sister Adria Biles.

At the age of eight, Simon Biles began training with Aimee Boorman. By 2011, at the age of 14, she commenced her elite gymnastics career, and the very next year, she switched her education to homeschooling, allowing her training to increase to 32 hours a week, i.e., at least four to five hours per day.

By 2013, Simone Biles was an emerging sensation in artistic gymnastics, and before the commencement of the Rio Olympics, Simone Biles had already won a whopping 10 gold medals at the Gymnastics World Championships between 2013 and 2015.

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Simone Biles' appearances at the Olympic Games

Simone Biles of the USA performing her routine during the Balance Beam finals at the Rio Olympics 2016 [Image Source: Getty]

Simone Biles entered the Rio Olympics 2016 as one of the top favorites. She didn't disappoint either, winning a historic five Olympic medals on debut, of which four of them were gold medals.

She became only the second American female gymnast to win both the individual and the team all-around event at the same edition of the Summer Olympics. Her teammate, Gabby Douglas, had achieved this distinction before at the London Olympics in 2012. Apart from the four gold medals, Biles won a bronze medal in the balance beam event.

Apart from the all-around events, Biles won gold medals in the vault and the floor exercise events as well. As a result, it was expected that Simone Biles would have a great time at the Tokyo Olympics. However, she was struggling with her mental health and experiencing the 'twisties': a phenomenon where the gymnast loses air awareness while performing their event midway.

Biles chose to withdraw from most of the competition, except the team all-around event, where she contributed to Team USA's silver medal, and the balance beam event, where she won her second consecutive Olympic bronze medal.

At the Paris Olympics 2024, Simone Biles bounced back in style. She contributed to another gold medal in the team event and also won a gold medal in the individual all-around. Contrary to expectations, Simone Biles once again defeated the defending champion, Rebeca Andrade from Brazil, in the pursuit.

The Brazilian gymnast returned the favor by defeating Biles in the floor exercise event for the gold medal. The only event from which Biles had to return empty-handed was the balance beam event, where she finished a disappointing fifth.