After winning gold in the individual all-around and helping the US to a convincing victory in the team all-around, Simone Biles took home her third gold medal in five days on the vault at the Paris Olympics on Saturday.
Biles reached the final as one of the favorites, but faced a tough challenge from Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, who won gold in this event at the Tokyo Olympics and is the only gymnast ever to “stressed out“the American superstar.
Stressed or not, Biles put in a stunning performance at the Bercy Arena, earning a score of 15.700 by nailing her namesake on the Yurchenko double pike, or Biles II, the most difficult vault in women’s gymnastics.
Andrade had teased a new signature vault which could have put her level with Biles, but she chose to play it safe. Andrade finished with a score of 14.966 after landing a high-level 15.100 Cheng on her opening vault. American Jade Carey took bronze with a 14.446.
It was a week of redemption for Biles. Three years after she withdrew from the Tokyo Games because of “the twisties” that began when she performed the vault, Biles has restored herself to the top of the Olympic podium.
With three gold medals in five days, Biles has brought her total Olympic medal count to 10, including seven gold. Biles, 27, has more Olympic medals than any American gymnast in history.
And there could be more to come. Biles concludes her Olympic program with the balance beam final on Sunday and the floor final on Monday.
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