TODAY — Pictured: Magic Johnson on Tuesday, April 4, 2023 — (Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)
Simone Biles forged her path to the 2024 Summer Olympics with a historic performance at the U.S. gymnastics championships.
Biles extended her own record by winning her ninth all-around title. The 27-year-old triumphed at every individual national event for the second time in her decorated career.
Another sports icon, Magic Johnson, celebrated Biles’ dominant performance.
“The GOAT of gymnastics, Simone Biles, is back!” Johnson wrote Monday night. “Congratulations on winning your record 9th US All Around Title! It’s exciting to have you back and it’ll be a thrill to watch you participate in the Olympics this summer!”
Biles finished 5.9 points ahead of runner-up Skye Blakely with a 119.750 score. She said Sunday’s event helped her get “comfortable” as she prepared for Paris.
“I couldn’t be more proud of how I’m doing this time in the year and just gaining that confidence over and over, getting myself back in front of a crowd and just doing what I do in practice,” Biles told the NBC Sports broadcast.
Biles is on her way to representing the U.S. for her third Olympic event. She won four gold medals and a bronze at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 before a case of the “twisties” led her to settle for silver in the team competition and third on the balance beam in Tokyo.
Getting into the right mental space has proven just as pivotal to Biles’ comeback as her physical training.
“I do feel like I’m having fun,” she told NBC at the U.S. championships, “so it’s good to have that and feel that again.”
Biles will look to clinch her Team USA spot at the Olympic trials in Minnesota later this month.
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