Paris 2024: Simone Biles Shines with Three Golds and a Silver

US gymnastics superstar Simone Biles capped off her redemptive Paris Olympics campaign with a silver medal in the floor exercise on Monday. Despite a fall on the balance beam, she finished runner-up to Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade.

Biles entered the final day with the chance to secure a record five gold medals in one Games. She had already led the United States to team gold, regained her all-around title from the 2016 Rio Olympics, and won gold in the vault.

Although she didn’t clinch another gold on Monday, Biles expressed pride in her four medals, bringing her career total to eleven. “Today has been absolutely wild,” Biles said, adding that she was “very happy, proud, and excited that it’s over.”

She reflected on her achievements, noting that she had surpassed her wildest dreams in both this Olympics and the sport overall, boasting 41 world and Olympic medals, including 30 golds. “A couple of years ago, I didn’t think I’d be back at the Olympics, so competing and winning four medals makes me proud,” she said.

Biles’s final floor routine featured two out-of-bounds errors but was still breathtaking. Andrade secured first place with a score of 14.166, while Biles earned 14.133 for silver. Teammate Jordan Chiles took bronze with 13.766, after her score was upgraded, displacing Romania’s Ana Barbosu, who scored 13.700.

Despite the errors, Biles received a standing ovation from her fans, acknowledging them with both arms raised. Her fall from the beam earlier was her first major mistake since her triumphant return to the Olympics, following the “twisties” that cut short her Tokyo Games campaign. She finished fifth on the beam, where Alice D’Amato of Italy won gold with a score of 14.366. China’s Zhou Yuqin took silver, and D’Amato’s teammate Manila Esposito claimed bronze.

The beam final was fraught with challenges, as several competitors made significant mistakes. Zhou Yuqin had to grab the beam to avoid falling, Sunisa Lee took a hard fall, and Julia Suarez and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea both fell.

D’Amato’s minor wobbles did not prevent her from securing first place just before Biles’s performance. Biles’s slip at the end of an aerial series drew a gasp from the crowd, and she described the atmosphere without music as “really weird and awkward.” Despite the setback, Biles remains undecided about her participation in the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

In other events, Japan’s Shinnosuke Oka won his third gold of the Games in the horizontal bar, adding to his team and all-around titles. Oka edged out 17-year-old Colombian Angel Barajas, both scoring 14.533, but Oka won gold due to a higher execution score. China’s Zhang Boheng and Taiwan’s Tang Chia-Hung shared bronze with a score of 13.966.

Oka also won bronze in the parallel bars final, dominated by China’s Zou Jingyuan, who scored 16.200 points to retain his title from Tokyo. Ukraine’s Illia Kovtun took silver with 15.500 points, and Oka finished with 15.300.