Simone Biles had been scheduled to attend former coach Cecile Landi’s new program, Georgia Gymnastics’ event, on January 17. Well, the most decorated gymnast came to Athens to cheer for her ex-coach’s mentees. She was accompanied by her husband, Jonathan Owens. However, there were surprises. Simone was the one who made it public. 

After showing up at the event as a perfect audience, Simone shared a few snapshots from the day in her Instagram story. The first one came as a snapshot of her with Cecile Landi, her former coach. However, the next snapshot lifted the veil. It displayed a custom-made Georgia Gymnastics jersey. Simone uploaded a selfie, wearing it while posing in front of a mirror. She filled in the moment, penning a fitting caption, “go dawgs [emoji]” After the debut on January 4 this year, it was the first home game for the GymDogs in Stegeman Coliseum this season. So, the match received a lot of hype. 

Additionally, on December 16 last year, the gymnastics program took to X to announce Simone Biles as the special guest for the match. Simone added a certain flavor to the announcement by reposting the update. Therefore, the platform had been set and GymDogs were all up to make it more captivating. Something special could have done it. Boom! The jersey one came in. And who could be the better candidate than Simone Biles to unveil it in front of 10,523 fans in Stegeman Coliseum?

Meanwhile, Georgia GymDogs’ X-handle uploaded a few more snapshots on X, displaying the turn of events from the match day. The snapshots showed Simone and Jonathan posing with the new Georgia jersey in Georgia’s locker room. Also, the emotional mood was carried in the William Porter Payne and Porter Otis Payne Indoor Athletic Facility on the match day. How? 

For a brief moment, Simone was seen with her former coaches, Cecile and Laurent Landi. The trio stood in front of the camera in the iconic indoor facility with smiles on their faces. It was the reunion of the trio away from the gymnastics mat and gym sessions. The Landis have been mixing up with Biles since 2017. Perhaps it was the first time they met her in a college gymnastics contest. For Simone as well, it was one of those handfuls of moments when she showed up at a college gymnastics meet. For her, NCAA gymnastics has always been an emotional point. 

In her early years, the Texas native committed to the UCLA Bruins. But her later decision to turn pro axed her chance to perform for the program. The decision brought a massive blow to Biles. She had the intention of carrying on the college gymnastics for the Bruins. The conditions, however, turned into a villain for her and she had to let her chances go. In the end, it was a teary-eyed goodbye for her. Simone’s autobiography offers a unique perspective at that moment, mentioning Valorie Kondos Field. 

Valorie (the then Bruins gymnastics coach) had supported Simone Biles’s decision to turn pro, despite knowing the loss of her squad. She put a smile on her face and said, “I’m really happy for you. I want you to know that I support you no matter what. Besides, you’ll always be my Bruin.” The emotional words pierced Biles’s heart. Later, when she saw Valorie wishing her well on Twitter (now X), she couldn’t hold her tears back. “That’s when I cried,” she wrote in her autobiography. After a decade of those events, Simone met another gymnastics coach in the college arena. Did the emotions come back this time as well? 

Simone Biles fulfills her words 

The Friday night gymnastics match between Georgia GymDogs and Boise State might have many twists and turns. But it had something extraordinary. After the Paris Olympics, it was one of those moments when Simone Biles and Cecile Landi met each other on the occasion of gymnastics. From 2017 to August 2024, the duo stood up for each other in every battle of professional life. They smiled together and also wept together. But they never let go of anyone’s hand, be it Simone’s ‘twisties’ in Tokyo or her ‘Redemption Tour’ in Paris. Cecile Landi was the rock behind her. That’s why the seven-time Olympic champion never wanted to bid goodbye to the former French gymnast turned coach. 

In her farewell message for Cecile, Simone wrote, “end of an era [emoji] it’s not a goodbye, it’s a see you later!” The duo knew that next time they wouldn’t discuss how to improve Simone’s Yurchenko Double Pike. Instead, it will be on life. On Friday, that picture came in when she and Cecile posed together. Cecile had no better candidate in her mind than Biles to unveil the new jersey. She knew all those unfulfilled stories from Simone’s NCAA gymnastics career. So, didn’t life come a full circle on Friday when Simone donned the jersey made for the college gymnastics program?