Simone's Showcase; Biles bidding for history in Tokyo
The symbol — a play on the acronym for greatest of all-time — is both a nod to her hard-earned status as the most talented gymnast (and maybe athlete) on the planet and the outsized expectations she faces, both internally and externally.
It’s a delicate dance, one that will take center stage when the 24-year-old American steps in front of the world in Tokyo. No pressure. All she has to do is somehow one-up her staggering performance in Rio de Janeiro, when she won five medals (including four gold) and entered the rarified air of Olympic royalty reserved for the likes of Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and Nadia Comaneci.
Yes, it’s a lot. Then again, whatever bar is set for her by others pales in comparison to the bar Biles sets for herself. It’s why she found herself in tears at the U.S. Olympic Trials, when an off night in the finals left her frustrated and angry. “I feel like anything rather than my best will tick me off,” Biles said.
It’s that drive that led Biles to return to the gym after a year off following her remarkable success in Brazil. New coaches Laurent and Cecille Landi helped her put together a plan that didn’t ask her to simply regain the skills that made her the best in the world, but build upon them.
She’s unveiled a series of boundary pushing elements over the last four years, and her latest — the Yurchenko double-pike vault, which has only previously been done in international competition by men — will become the latest to bear her name in the sport’s Code of Points if she’s able to land it in Japan. Yes, Biles is well aware of her influence. She didn’t get into this trying to become a point of inspiration. Yet she’s hardly running from the responsibility.
