Simone Biles stated once rather emphatically that –“I feel like I learned the most about myself during Tokyo,” reflecting on her tumultuous brush with the twisties journey. It’s hard to let the ghost of your past die down for good, but Simone Biles seems to be learning from the past, which is a chisel shaping her up for Paris. In 2021, Biles withdrew from the Tokyo Summer Olympics, unable to manage even a twist. Letting bygones be bygones is never easy but life is all about moving on and how. Watch and learn as Biles does the unthinkable. She’s had a pretty solid year thus far, achievements wise. In 2024, Simone Biles earned the highest score ever by a female gymnast in an Olympic cycle at the Xfinity Championships, trudging mindful steps towards the city of Paris.

With some ace tricks up her sleeve now, she is not one to let history repeat itself. With the mental health month bringing more rabble rousing and active discussions about self-preservation, Biles recently divulged in an interview as to how she’s looking at the big picture. Don’t let her size fool you as there’s more to the diminutive queen than meets the eye.

Simone Biles might just be an unstoppable force

In a recent interview with Stuff, Simone Biles detailed her journey to rebuilding her mental health following the 2020 Tokyo Games. She shared insights into the steps she took to strengthen her resilience and well-being. The 9-time US National Championships winner highlighted the mental and physical fortitude required to look past her past and get her head back in the game. She required to regain trust in her abilities after the Twisties scare in 2021. Most importantly, she needed to trust herself and she quipped by saying that -“I think that was the hardest part after Tokyo – I didn’t trust myself to do gymnastics.”

For a long time, Biles tried to ignore her declining mental health, but now she’s realized that’s not a viable solution as the mega games are sure to extract a toll on her. She also laid siege to the fact that she hopes life comes full circle for her now by stating –“I think everything I’ve been through, I want to push the limits,” and also bemoaned that-“I want to see how far I can go. I want to see what I’m still capable of so once I step away from this sport, I can truly be happy with my career and say I gave it my all.”

She is ready to tackle the inevitable pressures that her sport and her life throw at her as she would like to “move on with my life while gym is still happening. But again, I don’t have a choice. It’s not pausing anymore. It’s happening whether I keep up or not. So for me I would rather keep up and stay in the now and stay in the present.” Her open approach to physiological struggles has begun to alter the stigma around the topic, inviting other voices to join in with her. Simone Biles emphasized how in Tokyo she had not gotten “certain variables taken care of,” meaning therapy. While doing inner work seems to be her forte, she has also received laurels from Michael Phelps for her mental health stances.

So she has also turned to professionals to get help that is scientific and truly helpful, “I’ve been doing therapy every week, lot of sessions, lot of hours. So I’ve put in the work. So that I know that’s not gonna happen. That’s not gonna affect me moving forward.” It’s also around the clock, as Simone’s therapist is available to her anytime she needs, even out of her sessions. Even during the 2023 World Championships, her first after a 2-year hiatus, Simone attended therapy sessions in her hotel room. Even though the other athletes headed to Chuckle Land (specialized mental health sessions) to get a hold of their mental health. Biles went the other route.

Her coach and WCC women’s program head Cecile Landi, said, this time Simone’s approach is much gentler and more self-focused. This is perhaps what’s making Biles top every single qualifier before the Olympics trials. Landi said, “It’s not even the skills. It’s the attitude and her behavior. I really feel like she’s happy to be here. I know she says she’s ready to be done, but I think she’s really enjoying it and appreciating every meet she gets to do.” As the Minneapolis dates draw closer, what’s in the offing for Biles?

Gymnastics GOAT’s triumphant return to the Olympics

Simone remains untouched by the pressure of the elite stage that has affected everyone else. She told Leah Faye Cooper of Fair, “If I don’t make it to Paris, it won’t absolutely crush me.” However, her knockout performances this season spell otherwise. She’s just getting better and better. “I use the phrase ‘ageing like fine wine,’ ” Simone said. “… It’s just getting better and better. We’ll see. Hopefully we get to ride this out for the rest of the year.” This year at the Xfinity games, she had a combined score of 119.750, leaving runner-up Skye Blakely’s score of 113.850 in the dust with a six-point lead. Moreover she won gold across all four apparatuses and hence the all-around as well. 

In fact, her one mistake came during the Xfinity Championships wherein she rolled backward out of a Yurchenko double pike vault. Which led to a one-point deduction. That’s all. This year, Biles is most eager to not have any regrets going forward, In 2024, the Olympics is about Simone Biles competing against herself and coming out on top. With the tussle between her and demons sorted, will the tides turn in her favor once and for all?