Simone Biles’ mom couldn’t hold back her smile during her dominant performance on Friday, June 28, during Day 2 of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials.
The seven-time Olympic medalist, 27, finished the first half of the women’s qualifiers in first place, overcoming some wobbles in the beam event with great performances on the floor, bars and vault.
Biles was cheered on from the stands by her mother, Nellie, and her husband, Chicago Bears player Jonathan Owens, at the Target Center in Minneapolis.
Nellie was seen beaming after Biles finished her routine for first place.
Owens posted a series of celebratory updates on his Instagram, including praising Biles’ “good lead” for the rest of the trials.
Nellien and Biles’ dad, Ronald, attended all of her competitions, except for the 2020 Tokyo Games when Olympic officials restricted spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking to author Brené Brown at the 2022 Simmons Leadership Conference, Biles said the experience was very difficult for her because she wasn’t with her parents.
“We are going to Tokyo and the audience is not allowed, we are quarantined in our rooms and can only go out for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Everyone expected us to perform in a certain way. There was no friendship, and my parents could not go there,” he said. is Biles. – My parents never missed a single competition in my life.
“It was really weird for me mentally that the world expects some of these athletes to go above and beyond when we’re all going through the same thing and trying to survive the pandemic,” she added.
Before Biles left for the 2020 Games, Nellie told PEOPLE that Biles is “blooming” because of the crowd and that her family is there to support her.
“She always knows where we’re sitting, it doesn’t matter which hall. If she’s at a competition, she’ll look and I’ll wave to her and we’ll hook up,” said Nellie at the time.
Simone Biles.
Laurence Griffiths/Getty
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Biles’ expected qualification for the 2024 Olympics comes three years after she decided to withdraw from several events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health.
Speaking on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast with Alex Cooper, the Olympic gymnast said she experienced a case of “twisties,” best described as a mental block in which gymnasts lose the ability to sense their body’s movements in mid-air, putting them at risk of injury during landing.
“Your body is going to try to do something and your mind is like, ‘No, you’re not going to do that, you’re going to open up, you’re going to do this’… You’ve been doing something for so long and now you’re out of control,” Biles said. alone with my body and mind to perform these tricks.”
The two-time Olympian took a two-year break before returning to the sport in 2023 at the US Classic, US National Championships and World Championships. Biles quickly became the most decorated male and female gymnast ever after winning a total of 37 medals at the Olympics and World Championships.
If she makes the U.S. team in 2024, she will join Muriel Grossfeld, Linda Metheny and Dominique Dawes as the only American gymnasts to compete in three Olympics.
To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, visit TeamUSA.com and come to people.com to check out live coverage before, during and after the Games. Watch the Paris Olympics and Paralympics starting July 26 on NBC and Peacock.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education