There are some athletes which struggle to live up to the hype – but in Rio it was the hype which failed to keep up with Simone Biles.
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There was no beating Simone Biles in the women’s gymnastics all-around at the Rio Games. The pressure is gone.
The only non-American swimmer to win on this night was Japan’s Rie Kaneto, who pulled away from Russia’s Yulia Efimova in the women’s 200 breaststroke. And history too. Dynamic on vault. An NBC commentator this week compared one of the three-time world champion’s uneven bars routines to that of a man’s.
Raisman made the most of her moment, nailing a near-flawless floor routine. “I’ll just pray normally to myself, but it’s there just in case”.
“I feel like I’m better now than I was in 2012”, Raisman said Thursday after taking silver in the all-around.
Someone could say Im the best but then theres a whole different side saying Im not the best, she said. “I’m the first Simone Biles” after scoring her second Olympic gold medal at the Rio Games.
The way Biles is handling this Olympic gymnastic competition so far, anything seems possible.
She also became the first woman in 20 years to win back-to-back world and Olympic all around titles. “But everything happens for a reason”, Raisman said, lifting her silver medal to show a crowd of reporters.
“You never know the feeling until it hits you”, said an emotional Biles.
“Everything was going through my head but mainly it was like I had finally done it and when that hits you, you can’t really stop the emotions”.
So much for the pressure getting to Simone Biles.
She added: “We’re basically like sisters and will have this forever”.
Martha’s husband, Bela Karolyi, didn’t disagree. At a time when her peers enjoy prom and after-school activities, Biles was undergoing intensive gymnastics training to get to the top of her league.
Biles’ performance came on a day when golf returned to the Olympics for the first time since the 1904 games in St Louis – England’s Justin Rose marking the occasion with a hole-in-one. It’s not a coincidence. Biles’ talent is unmistakable, but it took time to harness. Other gymnasts have to hope she falls or is sloppy. France’s Florent Manaudou had the top qualifying time. Only a major mishap would have prevented her coronation, and she never falls. Though Mustafina led through two rotations, it was a mirage. Sure, the remaining exercises – balance beam and floor routine – were two of Raisman and Biles’ strongest.
Biles surged in front again with 15.433 on the beam as Mustafina dropped back.
Only the judges don’t hand out ideal scores anymore.
On a Wheaties box one day, they find themselves sitting at home watching a new generation of gymnasts on television the next. Biles is doing things now Comaneci couldn’t dream of doing. Jaw-dropping on floor. Brilliant all over. The 19-year-old American soared to the all-around title on Wednesday afternoon, putting the gap between herself and the rest of the world on full display under the Olympic spotlight.
Meanwhile, U.S. teammate Aly Raisman won a very emotional silver at the relatively advanced age of 22.
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Biles became the fourth straight American woman to capture the all-around and fifth overall.
