Simone Biles fumes over Olympics habit which needs to ‘stop’ after winning third gymnastics gold medal at Paris 2024
Simone Biles has criticised reporters covering the Paris Olympics for questioning athletes about what to do once they have a medal in hand.
Biles, who became the most decorated American gymnast of all time this summer, won another gold medal in the vault final on Saturday.
The 27-year-old won gold in the team finals and all-around events earlier this week, before taking third place last weekend with a score of 15.3 on her two jumps.
After her latest victory, Simone took to social media to express her frustration with the way reporters in Paris ask questions.
She wrote on X: ‘You guys really need to stop asking athletes what’s next after they win a medal at the Olympics.’
Simone Biles has criticized Olympic reporters for questioning athletes about what would happen next
Biles added in another post: “Let’s enjoy the moment we’ve worked our whole lives for.”
When a fan asked her what her next step was after winning another gold medal, she replied, “keeping an eye on the medal.”
Biles’ victory in the vault final on Saturday earned her the seventh gold medal of her illustrious Olympic career.
In front of a star-studded crowd that included actor John Travolta, track star Allyson Felix, artists Pharrell and Flavor Flav, her teammates and her parents, she averaged 15.3 on her signature Yurchenko double pike and Cheng jumps to claim her second gold medal in the event, eight years after winning it in Rio.
That means Biles, already the most decorated gymnast in history, now becomes only the second woman to win two vault titles, after Vera Casalavska of Czechoslovakia (1984 and 1968).
Biles took to social media to express her frustration over the interrogations in Paris
The 27-year-old won her third gold of this summer’s Games in the vault final on Saturday
The American has now won three gold medals in Paris, having already secured victory in the team final and the individual all-around competition. Her teammate Jade Carey took bronze, while Brazil’s Rebecca Andrade took silver.
Biles now has 10 career Olympic medals, tied for the third most by a female gymnast. She also increased her medal count at major international competitions to 40, the most by a gymnast.
She will also get two more chances to add to her medal tally in Paris when she competes in the balance beam and floor finals on Monday.