“I definitely will not be going till I’m 44 years old” – When Simone Biles pondered the idea of a longer career than gymnast Oksana Chusovitina [THROWBACK]

Generally, gymnasts are not considered to have long shelf lives. But every norm has an exception and for gymnastics it's one of the all-time greats, Oksana Chusovitina.

She competed as an elite gymnast for more than a quarter century. Part of a small group of gymnasts who returned after motherhood, she holds the record for the highest number of World Championship medals for a single event—a whopping nine on vault.

Chusovitina has won two medals at the Olympics and in her long, extraordinary career has competed at eight Olympic Games since Barcelona 1992.

To give readers a little context, Simone Biles was born in 1997, five years after Chusovitina won her first Olympic medal—a gold in the team event. In 2016, both Biles and Chusovitina stood in the same line of vault finalists at the Rio Games. Both of them were in Tokyo and are now preparing for the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics.

Oksana Chusovitina is a legend and has set an example for the generations of gymnasts to come. In 2019, Simone Biles was asked in a press conference if she ever saw herself competing for as long as Oksana Chusovitina did.

Biles started shaking her head even before the interviewer could complete her question as everybody began laughing at her reaction. She was further asked what she thought of Chusovitina's career.

"Right now I feel like her career, she's very brave. She has a lot of courage. I definitely will not be going till I'm 44 years old," said Simone.

Simone Biles confirmed how many events Chusovitina was doing that year.

"Does she do three events now?"

She was beyond surprised when somebody informed her that Chusovitina was doing the all-around. After which she replied:

"Oh okay, yeah, I won't be trying that. She's very brave."

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Will Simone Biles play in 2024 Paris Olympics?

Simone Biles at Tokyo Olympics (Image via Getty Images/Laurence Griffiths)

Simone Biles is widely regarded as one of the greatest gymnasts of all time. And rightfully so, with seven Olympic medals—four gold, one silver, and two bronze, won in Rio and Tokyo.

Unfortunately, in Tokyo, Biles had to pull out of most event finals owing to mental health reasons. She competed in the beam finals and won a bronze medal. She also won the silver medal in the team event.

While her absence from the podiums was grieved by fans, they hope that Simone Biles makes a thundering comeback at the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics. However, she has not yet given a concrete answer as to whether she is competing in Paris.

Regardless, she has always maintained she will be present in the French capital for the sporting extravaganza. She is just not sure in which role.

"I’m still taking time for myself just to work on myself, mentally and physically. For Paris, as of now, I would say, I’ll be there regardless. I just don’t know if it will be as an athlete or as an audience member, but if I do decide to train, obviously, I’d have to go 100 percent, so I probably wouldn’t hold back. I’d still try to give it my all."

Simone Biles has recently given hints that she might return to the competitive arena in 2024. And if she does, it will be truly historic as the last US gymnast to make it to three Olympic Games was Dominique Dawes in 2000.

Gymnastics fans all over the world will certainly be more than elated to have Simone Biles back.