Simone Biles Says People ‘Really Gotta Stop’ Asking ‘What’s Next?’ After Athletes Win Gold Medals

Simone Biles wants to return successful nan moments of her Olympic victories without worrying astir nan future. After winning a golden badge successful vault connected Saturday, August, 3, Simone took to X to unopen down group asking her astir her plans for what’s next.

“you guys really gotta extremity asking athletes what’s adjacent aft they triumph a badge astatine nan Olympics,” Simone, 27, wrote. “let america soak up nan infinitesimal we’ve worked our full lives for.”

The master jock has already won 3 golden medals astatine nan 2024 Games, taking location nan apical grant successful nan squad competition, individual all-around, and vault. She will compete connected equilibrium beam and level workout connected Monday, August 5.

Despite Simone’s frustrations regarding questions astir her future, she did reply a question astir whether she’ll return for nan 2028 Olympics successful Los Angeles during a property convention aft her vault victory. Simone confirmed that she wouldn’t compete nan difficult Yurchenko double pike again, but didn’t norm retired a return to nan Olympics.

“Never opportunity never,” she told reporters. “The adjacent Olympics is astatine home. So, you conscionable ne'er know. But I americium getting really old.” Simone is nan oldest gymnast connected nan U.S. women’s team.

With her 3 golden medals astatine nan 2024 Games, nan Ohio autochthonal is now a seven-time golden badge winner. She antecedently took location nan grant successful nan squad competition, all-around, vault, and level astatine nan 2016 games successful Rio de Janeiro. That year, she besides won bronze connected equilibrium beam. At nan 2020 Games, Simone earned a metallic badge arsenic portion of Team USA, but past withdrew from respective competitions owed to suffering a intelligence artifact called nan “twisties.” She returned for equilibrium beam and won bronze erstwhile again.

“I ne'er thought I was going to beryllium competing again aft Tokyo,” Simone admitted successful her Netflix docuseries Simone Biles: Rising. “I had to conflict demons, time successful and time retired successful training. I really person to beryllium to myself that I tin do this. I get to constitute my ain ending.”

Along pinch Simone, nan United States gymnastics squad besides includes Jade Carey, Hezly Rivera, Suni Lee and Jordan Chiles. Aside from Hezly, 16, each of nan women were besides connected nan squad successful Tokyo successful 2021 (the 2020 Games were postponed for 1 twelvemonth owed to nan COVID-19 pandemic).

“I consciousness for illustration I learned nan astir about myself during Tokyo,” Simone antecedently said. “How courageous, really brave I am. Because I ever for illustration to clone bravery. But I really deliberation that solidified maine being brave, speaking up for myself and conscionable putting myself first.”

The gymnast has been highly unfastened astir her mental wellness struggles. ““For anyone saying I quit, I didn’t quit,” she wrote aft withdrawing successful 2021. “My mind & assemblage are simply not successful sync. I don’t deliberation you recognize really vulnerable this is connected hard/competition surfaces. Nor do I person to explicate why I put my wellness first. Physical wellness is intelligence health. Literally tin not show up from down. It’s nan craziest emotion ever. Not having an inch of power complete your body. What’s moreover scarier is since I person nary thought wherever I americium successful nan air, I besides person NO thought really I americium going to land. Or what I americium going to onshore on. Head/hands/feet back…I didn’t person a bad capacity and quit. I’ve had plentifulness of bad performances passim my profession and vanished competitions. I simply sewage truthful mislaid my information was astatine consequence arsenic good arsenic a squad medal.”