Simone Biles shows off rare patches and gets multi-match gold
Simone Biles is one of the great icons of the Olympic Games. Tom Cruise, Stephen Curry, Natalie Portman - numerous stars are following the gymnastics performances of the American in Paris. In the all-around final, she makes an unusual mistake. However, she can still celebrate in the end, also thanks to her signature move.
Simone Biles enthusiastically pounded the podium, threw kisses to the audience - and when her score finally lit up, she danced with the US flag through the Bercy Arena as if possessed: The gymnastics queen is back in the all-around Olympic - and three years after the drama of Tokyo, she has made history. As the first athlete ever, Biles repeated her triumph in the individual all-around after eight years and reclaimed the gymnastics throne. In the shadow of the next big Biles show, Helen Kevric showed a strong performance as eighth place.
Two days after the success with the American team, Biles celebrated her sixth Olympic gold. After her four Olympic victories in Rio 2016, she scored a fantastic 59.131 points in the evening, but had to fight much harder than expected. The Brazilian Rebeca Andrade (57.932) stayed close until the end and won silver, while the Tokyo Olympic champion Sunisa Lee from the USA (56.465) took bronze.
The Biles spectacle in Paris may not be over yet. The American national heroine, who withdrew from individual competitions in Tokyo in 2021 due to mental problems, could crown herself as the most successful athlete of these summer games in the coming days. In the individual finals of vault, floor exercise, and balance beam, the only 1.42-meter-tall athlete has the chance to win three more (gold) medals in the French capital.
Of all things, the uneven bars
The youngest German Olympian in Paris, 16-year-old Helen Kevric from Stuttgart, finished the competition with 54.598 points in eighth place, gaining confidence for her start in the uneven bars final on Sunday. Sarah Voss from Cologne finished last among the 24 starters (49.999) after a fall in the vault and one step out of bounds on the uneven bars and balance beam.
Even in the evening, the greatest attention was, of course, once again on Biles. With her blue glitter dress, she was not only optically the eye-catcher among the approximately 15,000 spectators, including the US basketball players Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. The competition developed into a real thriller from the beginning. Unlike the team final, Biles performed her extremely difficult new vault "Biles II". Despite two small hops on the landing, she scored strong 15.766 points.
However, she only held the lead briefly, as after the first rotation, it became clear why the uneven bars are considered Biles' weakest apparatus. For an intermediate skill, she received significant deductions from the judges, falling behind Andrade and even behind Kaylia Nemour, who started for Algeria. IOC President Thomas Bach applauded nonetheless.
Subsequently, Biles sat on her chair in a cross-legged position with a serious face, surrounded by cameras - and then showed nerves of steel. A strong performance on the balance beam brought her back into the lead, which she narrowly maintained on the floor exercise. The hall trembled.
Simone Biles, despite facing challenges on the uneven bars, demonstrated her resilience with a commanding performance on the balance beam, reclaiming the lead. In the end, she secured her position, ensuring that her 'Top of the line' performances continue to make history at the Olympic Games.
Given her exceptional skills and consistency, Simone Biles, the epitome of 'Top of the line' gymnastics, is set to steal the show once again in the upcoming individual finals, aiming to add more gold medals to her already impressive collection.
