A fabled trading! Isn’t it? Since 2017, Cecile and her husband played an essential role in shaping Simone Biles and other gymnasts’ careers at the World Champions Center in Houston. The Paris Olympics had to be the last act in Cecile’s elite coaching stint with Simone, Jordan Chiles, and other WCC members who were in the US national gymnastics squad. Simone proudly called the Paris Olympics the “Redemption Tour.” She left the French capital winning three gold medals. Jordan, on the other hand, played a prominent role in helping Team USA win the gold medal in the women’s gymnastics team event. Being the head coach of the US women’s gymnastics team, wasn’t that something special for Cecile? 

Cecile ended the chapter, being the Olympic-winning coach in her birth land after all. How could she pull off things in such a remarkable way? With her husband Laurent, she ticked every box that might make someone like Simone feel so easy and perform at her peak at 27. Was there any special sauce in the recipe? Cecile is in Georgia Gymnastics now, as the co-head coach. But she is always up to share her process of handling her job. 

Simone Biles’s coach takes no credit for her success 

On December 23, Cecile Landi posted a clip of her interaction with Bridget Sloan on her Instagram story. It was about her coaching methods. In the conversation, Sloan spoke highly of those methods. Expectedly, Cecile and Laurent trained gymnasts who had forgettable training experiences under the Karolyis. Take Simone Biles. In the past, she became vocal about the issues faced in the Karolyis’ training methods. But the seven-time Olympic champion had the complete opposite stance on Cecile and Laurent’s coaching process. Was there any special reason? Cecile had a simple answer. She claimed, “I would say, is past experiences as an athlete as well. I just remember in the 90s how I was and figured there must be a better way to do this.” The discussion made her go down memory lane. 

Three decades ago, Cecile Landi started as a French gymnast. In the 1996 Olympics, she entered the Games. But success remained far away from her. A few years later, she had to shift to the US to continue her wish to make a career in gymnastics. Eventually, she did. Yet she kept on watching the sport as an athlete, not as a coach. That formula brought her closer to her mentees. In the meantime, Cecile started to realize the gymnasts’ zones. Ultimately, this prompted her and her husband not to be another Károlyi. 

In the interaction, Simone Biles’s former coach explained, “I’ll give credit to all the athletes that we’ve had for the past 20 years. We’ve grown with them. They’ve helped us understand that there’s a better way to do this. And we were able to follow their leads.” Voilà! The bonding has worked for them. The Hall of Fame coach further noted, “Honestly, it’s all the girls that we’ve been blessed to coach that have helped us grow and become who we are today.” So, Simone Biles and other mentees have credit for making the Landis what they are today. But everything comes at a price. Cecile Landi also has had to pay the price. 

The other side of choosing the favorite job 

From 2001 to 2024, from the French National Training Center to the US national women’s gymnastics team, Cecile Landi witnessed so many avenues in elite gymnastics. But before moving to the Paris Olympics, the 45-year-old had already informed the fans about her decision. She wanted to change the stream of her work. She wanted to move to her favorite stream of gymnastics—the college one. “I’ve always said I wanted to be an NCAA coach one day,” Cecile once said. And she had to bid goodbye to Simone Biles and others to accept her favorite course. Now, she has the responsibility to move her magic wand in Georgia’s women’s gymnastics program. 

In 2024, the program finished in an 18th position in the NCAA gymnastics. The expectation is now to improve the performance. Cecile Landi is always up and above to take up such a challenge. That’s not an issue for her. Rather, the change in the routines is problematic. Now, her field of rotation is limited. In an interaction, Cecile explained this: “Difference is also like when we’re in club… Let’s say, tomorrow we want to change practice or whatever. We could do that. Now all the rules, I can’t change practice.” The profound differences between the elite and the NCAA gymnastics don’t pose a threat to her. But the changed lifestyle and habits have made the veteran coach sad. Isn’t that a price for keeping others happy? What do you think?