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"It's almost like playing the lottery"- When Simone Biles revealed the toughness of the U.S Olympic Trials
Star United States gymnast Simone Biles once opened up about the intense competition she faces at the highest level in the country to make the cut for the Olympics. Gymnastics is considered a challenging sport with an athlete requiring exceptional acrobatic skills and mental toughness.
Precision plays a key role in physical ability. Gymnasts can be vulnerable to injuries if they aren't in a proper mindset.
Simone Biles can potentially conquer the moniker of the 'Greatest of All Time' athlete. At 27, she has bagged 30 World Championship medals (23 gold, four silver and three bronze) and seven Olympic medals (four gold, one silver and two bronze).
However, the gymnast once claimed that the journey after reaching the highest level wasn't easy. Biles said while speaking to The Guardian in 2019:
"But once you get to a high level, there are still 100 other elite athletes. I wouldn’t say that I’m lucky but, if you look at it, there are hundreds of thousands of gymnasts in the US, and only four will make a team. So it’s almost like playing the lottery. You just never know.”
Despite the phenomenal success of her nearly decade-and-a-half gymnastics career, Biles still has the hunger to transcend. She will aim for a third Olympics appearance this year at the Paris Olympics, though she is yet to book a spot.
What's in store for Simone Biles?
After missing from the mat for 12 months, Simone Biles returned to gymnastics at the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp. She won five medals, including four gold in Team, All-around, Floor Exercises and Balance Beam. She took a silver home in the Vault Exercises event.
The seven-time Olympic medalist sent a resounding message that she wasn't yet done after enduring twisties at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which led her to pull out of multiple finals.
Biles is set to be in action at the U.S. Classic in Hartford, Connecticut, scheduled for May 17-18. She will compete with Gabby Douglas and Sunisa Lee as all three Olympic gold medalists will be seen in action (for the all-around event) for the first time since the 2016 US Championships.
Biles will later compete at the Xfinity US Gymnastics Championships (scheduled from May 30 to June 2) and then the US Olympics Trials (scheduled from June 27 to June 30). She earned an automatic berth in the Olympics trials thanks to her stellar show at the World Championships last year.
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