She’s the second American gymnast to carry the flag in an opening or closing ceremony after Alfred Jochim marched with the American flag during opening ceremonies at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, according to The Huffington Post. But a Marina Sudakova goal almost two minutes later gave Russian Federation a lead they would not relinquish, with Olga Akopian scoring their final two goals of the match to ensure a gold medal.
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Simone Biles is capping off an incredible 2016 Olympics by receiving one of the highest honors an Olympic athlete can achieve. Plus, on top of those four Golds, the most won by any American gymnast in a single Olympics, she won Bronze in Balance Beam, and those five medals ties the record of most medals won by an American gymnast in a single Games!
Simone Biles absolutely slayed throughout the entire 2016 Games, and she proudly represented her country once more by carrying the US flag during the big finale on August 21. A total of 292 women represented the United States in Rio, more than any other country has ever brought to an Olympic Games. In a statement, she called her selection as flag bearer in Sunday’s closing ceremony “an incredible honor”.
“Because she is 4’8”, Biles said she was nervous about carrying the flag.
More than anything, Biles’ bearing of the US flag is significant in that it stands as the progress and impact that women athletes had for Team USA.
With a strong finish Sunday that featured three gold medals, the USA also matched its record of 46 golds away from home established in London four years earlier.
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In the video above, Biles is seen accepting her gold medal and a bouquet of flowers, which unfortunately came with a bee, and, as The Huffington Post suggested, she reacted just as anyone in her position would.
