California. — Simone Biles still on top a decade later.
Gymnastics superstar Simone Biles secured her eighth U.S. Championship title on Sunday, a decade after her initial ascent as a prodigious teenager in the sport. Now 26 years old and recently married, Biles is widely regarded as one of the greatest gymnasts ever. She tallied a comprehensive score of 118.40 over two days, comfortably surpassing runner-up Shilese Jones by four points. Leanne Wong, a junior from Florida, clinched third place, thereby enhancing her prospects for a third consecutive world championship team selection.
Biles is practically guaranteed a return to the arena where she clinched her first world title back in 2013. Across two exhilarating evenings at the SAP Center, she made it clear that even after a two-year hiatus following the Tokyo Olympics, she stands as the preeminent figure in gymnastics, distinctly separate from her competitors.
This victory makes Biles the oldest woman to claim a national title since the inception of the USA Gymnastics event in 1963. With her eighth championship, she surpasses Alfred Jochim, who garnered seven titles between 1925 and 1933 during the era when the Amateur Athletics Union managed the championships, including events like rope climbing.
In response to her achievement, Biles remarked, “I don’t focus on the numbers; I concentrate on my performance. Overall, I executed well in all eight routines. It seems like 8 is a fortunate number this year.”
The sport has witnessed significant evolution over the past century. Biles, who has dedicated a decade to utilizing her exceptional talents to redefine norms, stands out as a prominent figure who has pushed the boundaries.
It’s unusual for peaks in performance to endure for such an extended period. Most elite gymnasts at 26, unless they’ve retired, are typically striving to maintain their current level. However, Biles does not subscribe to that approach. She has always found repetition uninteresting and now claims that her endeavors are motivated “for herself.” Her unique approach to her craft provides tangible evidence of her sincerity.
Unlike previous times, Biles has maintained a relatively secretive training regimen as she sets her sights on her third Olympics. She prefers to keep her goals private, believing it’s more effective that way. She mentioned, “I prefer to keep my goals personal so that I have a clear target. I’m trying a different approach this year compared to the past, and so far, it seems to be working. Hence, I’m keeping it under wraps.”
Her life appears to have attained greater equilibrium, as she embraces the perspective that “it’s just gymnastics,” a mindset that has propelled her ascent.
While age hasn’t yet slowed her down, Biles played it safe—by her own standards—on Sunday due to a minor ankle tweak during training the day before. As a result, she opted not to perform the Yurchenko double pike vault that she executed flawlessly on the first night of competition.
Nevertheless, her 14.850 score for her Cheng vault was the highest of the night on that apparatus, as was her 14.8 score on the beam. Her exceptional 15.400 score at the end of her routine earned her a standing ovation.
Her next destination is Antwerp in late September, where she will aim to expand upon her staggering collection of 25 medals, 18 of which are gold, in her unparalleled career.