Simone Biles, 1997

An artistic gymnast with Olympic records, the first African-American gymnast to win the World All-Around title, and the most decorated World Championship American gymnast.

Simone Biles was born in Columbus, Ohio. Her early childhood was in foster care since her father wasn’t around and her mother suffered from addiction. When she was three years old, her grandfather began taking care of her and her siblings and eventually adopted them.
 
At age 6, while on a day-care field trip, Biles discovered gymnastics. Soon after, she enrolled in a training program at Bannon’s Gymnastix, where she met her coach Aimee Boorman. At 14, Biles launched her career as a professional gymnast, and in her first competition, she placed first on vault and balance beam, fourth on floor exercise, and third all-around. Only one year later, she competed in the U.S. Classic and placed first on vault and all-around, and second on floor exercise.
 
When Biles was 16 years old, in her debut in the International Federation of Gymnastics Competition, she placed first on floor and all-around, as well as second on vault. By then it was clear that Biles is a promising athlete with virtuosic achievements in her future.
 
In the 2016 Summer Olympics, Biles won four Olympic gold medals – 3 individual and 1 with her U.S team. By that, she set a new American record for most gold medals in women’s gymnastics at a single Olympics and became one of the only two American female gymnasts to win both team gold medal and the all-around gold medal at the same Olympic games. After a hiatus, at the age of 21, Biles return competing and once again was added to the U.S national team.
 

More Interesting Anecdotes:

• Her favorite event is the floor exercise.
• She co-wrote her autobiography, “Courage to Soar: A body in Motion, A Life in Balance”.
• She competed on the TV show “Dancing with the Stars” and finished fourth.
• In 2018, alongside her teammates, Biles confirmed that she’d been sexually assaulted by a former USA Gymnastics physician.