"It was scary in the moment"- Simone Biles opens up on dealing with calf issues before the finals at the Paris Olympics

By Ketaki Pansare

Modified Nov 14, 2024 05:45 GMT

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Simone Biles suffered a minor calf injury just one day before the all-around final in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Although competing was challenging, team coaches stood by her and encouraged her to believe she could succeed.

Simone Biles began her 2024 season after skipping the initial events of the year such as the Winter Cup. She marched onto the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials after a spectacular display in the 2024 Core Hydration Classic which led her to bag the gold medal. Furthermore, after dominating the line-up at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials she finally made her way through to her third consecutive quadrennial game appearance.

In the recently released Netflix series, Simone Biles Rising, Biles revealed an incident from the 2024 Olympics arena. One day before the team final, during practice sessions, she injured her calf. She thought it would damage her ability to compete ahead in the games. Biles said:

"It was scary in the moment because we weren't sure exactly what it was."

On the arena, Biles could be heard saying:

"It hurts so bad. Yeah, like as soon as I took off, I could feel it. I could feel the tear".

Laurent Landi, her coach, also shared that she suffered a calf strain/tear a few weeks ago. Biles further added:

"I thought, moving forward, there's no way this is gonna get better, especially since we have Team final, All-Around Final, and then we have two or three event final days. So it is a toll on your body, not just physically but mentally."

Biles' coaches hoped that the injury wouldn't affect her performance and that she would give her best.

"I'm actually happy, proud, and even more excited": Simone Biles on her performance at the Paris Olympic

Simone Biles and her coach Cecile Landi at Gymnastics - during the Paris 2024 Olympics. - Photo: Getty

The 27-year-old, despite facing challenges during the 2024 Olympics, talked about her achievements in the event. She made errors in her two finals, which lost the opportunity to win additional gold medals, but she still bagged three gold medals in the US team in vault and all-around events.

In the final round, Biles lost her balance on the beam, dropping her position to fifth. In addition, during the floor exercise event, she touched down outside the designated area.

Regardless of all these difficulties, Biles felt relieved that the stress from the competition had come to an end. She added:

"I'm not upset about my performance, I'm actually happy, proud, and even more excited that it's over, the stress of it," Biles told a packed news conference.

"I've accomplished way more than my wildest dreams, not just at this Olympics but in the sport, so I can't be mad at my performances.

"I'm pretty proud of myself and it's always so exciting to compete."

Simone Biles believed she had earned more than she ever dreamed of.