Manuel hails from Sugar Land, Texas and is just finished her freshman year at Stanford University in California; she has yet to decide on a major, but is reportedly considering a major in communications or science, technology and society according to the Team USA website.
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“The title “black swimmer” makes it seem like I am not supposed to be able to win a gold medal, I am not supposed to be able to break the Olympic record”, she said, “and that is not true”. “I’m the first Simone Biles”, she said Thursday night.
“Coming into my first Olympics, I didn’t think I was going to be getting a gold medal individually”.
Simone Manuel became the first African American female swimmer to win an individual Olympic gold medal in swimming for the USA when she tied for first place in the 100m freestyle.
“At the start of the race I was, ‘Aw come on Penny, come on.’ But I knew she was saving her energy, and it was the right thing to do”. This year she was in fourth place after the second rotation, only to launch a comeback and claim the silver. “It’s so exciting”, Biles said at her medal ceremony.
Mustafina pulled out 15.666 on uneven bars on which she is the reigning Olympic champion to lead at the half-way point by 0.034 as Biles hit 14.966 on her weakest apparatus.
A day after Biles won Olympic all-around gold, Aimee Boorman said Biles will be busy for a while with post-Olympic events. She helped the United States women’s team to second in the 4x100m freestyle race.
Simone Biles’ historic performance in the all-around Thursday not only gave her the gold medal, but sealed her status as one of the best gymnasts of all time.
And while she was toppling Olympic records, the 20-year-old set yet another mark. I hope that I’m an inspiration to others to get out there and try swimming. But she enjoyed it so much, she immersed herself fully by age 9. It was for people that came before me and inspired me to stay in the sport. “I didn’t have an answer for it immediately, and I said, ‘That’s a good question”.
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I tried to take the weight of the black community off my shoulders; it’s something I carry with me being in this position.
