Biles thrills in Paris Olympics despite injury scare

• Published On: 28 July 2024 at 14:45

Simone Biles made a dramatic return to Olympic competition on Sunday, overcoming a left calf injury to get her multiple-medal campaign off to a strong start.

The American superstar, looking to add to the four gold medals she won in a stunning 2016 Rio Olympics campaign, appeared to tweak her left calf while warming up for her second apparatus, the floor exercise.

It didn't stop her from soaring over her famous Yurchenko double pike vault — now known as the Biles II — which received a 9.4 for execution and a total of 15.800 points, despite a huge step back landing.

She took another step back after landing her second vault, but she made light of the injury by crawling back her teammates on her hands and knees, smiling the whole way.



She finished her day by nailing the landing on her uneven bars performance, earning another standing ovation and beaming as she shared a dance with partner Jordan Chiles.

With two of the five qualifying sessions completed, Biles led the all-around standings with 59.566 points.

Suni Lee, the Tokyo Olympics all-around winner, finished second, providing a promising start for the US team as they seek to reclaim team gold after settling for silver in Japan.


With a final score of 172.296 points, the United States was assured of a spot in the team finals.

Italy came in second, China third, and Britain fourth. Brazil and France, both contenders for team medals, were set to compete later.

Last year, Brazil, headed by Tokyo vault gold medallist Rebeca Andrade, finished second to the United States in the global championships.

Andrade has hinted that she may attempt a never-before-seen Yurchenko triple twist vault in Paris to defend her championship and lead her team to the podium.

France, led by Melanie De Jesus Dos Santos and three-time Olympian Marine Boyer, has one of its strongest Olympic teams ever.

However, Biles remains the benchmark.

"She's just out of this world, isn't she?" British gymnast Ruby Evans said of Biles. "We've never had anyone like her before and I don't think we ever will, ever again."


Biles dominated the vault and floor exercise rankings and finished second in the balancing beam behind China's Zhou Yaqin. However, her eighth place in uneven bars means she might miss out on the eight-woman final of that event.

Biles won four gold medals in a brilliant 2016 Rio Olympics campaign, but she withdrew from many events in Tokyo due to a disorienting ailment known as "twisties" among gymnasts.

Despite this, she received a silver and bronze medal and was praised for openly discussing mental health issues.