Biles bows to Andrade after a poor decision
Gold Medal After Three ACL Tears: Brazilian Rebeca Andrade Delivers Sensational Performance in Floor Final, Upsetting Favorite Simone Biles. A Gesture of Sportsmanship and Tears at the Podium.
Silver and Second Instead of Double Gold: Gymnastics Queen Simone Biles won Olympic silver on the floor, missing her targeted Olympic record by a significant margin. The 27-year-old American fell from the balance beam and finished fifth. In the subsequent floor final, two standing errors resulted in silver.
Biles performed at the Bercy Arena floor to 14.133 points, narrowly missing her fourth Paris triumph. Gold went to 25-year-old Brazilian Rebeca Andrade (14.166), who had previously finished behind Biles in the individual all-around and vault, and had suffered three ACL tears in her career. Bronze went to American Jordan Chiles (13.766).
Biles' Olympics ended in double disappointment. Her two mistakes in the floor competition were penalized by the judges with a 0.6-point deduction. Her attempt at an eighth Olympic gold was thwarted by two landings where both feet left the floor.
Biles' Bow, Andrade's Tears
The world-class athlete still cheered and bowed with Chiles to the winner during the awards ceremony. Tears flowed from Andrade as the Brazilian national anthem played.
Biles' pursuit of an Olympic record had stumbled earlier in the day on the balance beam. After her fall on a somersault, the 1.42-meter athlete received her score with a stoic expression - it was clear that Biles, who had withdrawn from the team competition in Tokyo due to mental health issues, would not reach her ninth gold medal in Paris. Only Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina and American swimmer Katie Ledecky have won more Olympic gold medals.
Italy's Alice d'Amato won gold on the beam (14.366). Silver went to China's Zhou Yaqin (14.100), and bronze to Italy's Manila Esposito (14.000). No German athletes qualified for the top-eight final, with former world champion Pauline Tratz failing to advance from the preliminary round on the beam.
Despite her struggles and a significant point deduction, Simone Biles still managed to secure Olympic silver in the floor final, marking her second medal at the Olympic Games 2024 in Paris. Contrastingly, Brazilian Rebeca Andrade, who had overcome three ACL tears in her career, clinched the gold medal in a stunning performance, tearing up as the Brazilian national anthem played.
