Despite this being the 19-year-old’s first Olympics, Biles already won gold in the women’s all-around on Thursday.
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Of the 1,000 gold medals, more than half have come from track and field (323) and swimming (246), USOC added.
Productive Whitlock helped Team GB soar to second place in the medal table, with Justin Rose picking up a historic gold medal in the golf after a nail-biting round.
Sprinter Tori Bowie almost took the US over the top in the 100 meters but she was finished second behind Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson, leaving it up to the swimmers to complete the feat.
Leah, who’s a fellow gymnast, missed out on celebrating Max’s achievements in person (she chose not to travel to Rio due to fears over the Zika virus) but revealed to the Daily Mail that she sent him a simple text straight afterwards, saying: “I sent him a message that just said “Oh my God you’re Olympic champion”!”
Not only did she win a gold medal and set a new record, she also made history by being the first African-American Olympian to top in an individual swimming event.
“We’ve had an unbelievable Games and so many people getting their hand to the wall one after another we’ve fed off that and this is a great way to end”. With the addition of her most recent win, Biles beats out previous USA female gymnasts for winning the most gold medals in one Olympics.
The United States finished in 6 minutes 1.49 seconds, 2.49 seconds ahead of Britain.
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“It’s really special that I could do it with the relay is unbelievable, just sharing it with three other women is icing on top of the cake”, said Manuel. “It’s a little nerve-wracking but at the same time I know that regardless of the outcome U.S. will be behind me and we’ll be behind each other”.
