Simone Biles has done it again. The four-time Olympic gold medalist earned her seventh national women’s all-around title in gymnastics over the weekend, the most titles of any American female gymnast.
The U. S. Gymnastics Championships took place on Sunday, June 6, 2021, in Fort Worth, Texas. Biles took home the top prize with a score of 119.650 points, ahead of runner-up Sunisa Lee with 114.950 points and fellow teammate and third-place winner Jordan Chiles with 114.450 points. She won three of the four events in the competition, with an incredible advantage of 4.7 points.
FACT: @Simone_Biles spends more time in the air than on the ground. #USGymChamps pic.twitter.com/AwLvSCsB5Z
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) June 6, 2021
Biles is known to be a trailblazer in gymnastics, and she lives up to her name when she nailed her signature “Biles II” move — two flips and three twists backward — during her floor routine. The move was named after Biles in 2019 — after she became the first woman to successfully nail it in competition.
She’s managed to stay inbound (mostly) during her floor routine after stepping out three times on Friday. Simone blames her minor slip-ups on the rush she feels when the lights are on and the crowd is in the palm of her hands.
She later explained her decision to go so hard and give it her all after winning the competition, saying, “I feel like I did try to enjoy it because it could be one of the last championships that I’ll attend.”
With this win, Biles will be on the road to Tokyo for the Olympics. She will start Olympic trials later this month in St. Louis.
Biles has been a lock for Tokyo from the moment she returned to training in late 2017. Teammates Sunisa Lee and Jordan Chiles may also be nearing that territory. The top two all-around finishers at trials will earn an automatic spot on the Olympic team, though U.S. national team coordinator Tom Forster believes Biles, Chiles and Lee have separated themselves from the pack.
