"I have this amazing smile but I want it to be perfected even more" - Jordan Chiles on having her teeth straightened

Olympic medalist Jordan Chiles has never been shy to speak about body inclusivity and self-appreciation. In an interview, she spoke about the importance of self-love and expressed admiration for her smile, which she recently enhanced by straightening her teeth.

Although Chiles now advocates for self-acceptance, she has been the subject of body criticism. In 2021, she opened up about facing body shaming from her coach to the extent that she considered quitting the sport.

In her recent interview with Business Insider, the 22-year-old admitted to battling self-doubts as a child about her teeth. The gymnast's discontent with her smile persisted until she entered adulthood.

The Olympian, who used braces as a teenager, committed herself to a journey to embrace her smile. Being a gymnast, Chiles constantly finds herself in the public eye. With a desire to enhance the beauty of her smile, she decided to opt for teeth straightening recently.

"I love being in front of the camera all the time, especially knowing that with my sport, we take photos, we always are doing interviews and I just wanted my smile to be a little better so I could actually enjoy being out there,” she said.

"I wanted to do this for myself. I know, yes, I'm beautiful, yes, I have this amazing smile. But I want it to be perfected even more so I can show people, 'No, you didn't tell me to do this. I told myself to do this.'"

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Jordan Chiles led the American squad as a flag bearer during the 2023 Pan American Games

Jordan Chiles enters the arena ahead of the Women's Team Fina at the 2022 FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Liverpool, England

Jordan Chiles contributed to the American squad's victory at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the women's artistic team all-around event where they secured a silver medal.

She was named in the team that competed at the 2023 Pan American Games held in Santiago, Chile, from October 20 to November 5, 2023, alongside Kayla DiCello, Zoe Miller, Tiana Sumanasekera, and Kaliya Lincoln.

The 22-year-old was honored as the flag-bearer along with the skeet shooter, Vincent Hancock. The 2023 Pan American Games was the first edition to have allowed a country to choose two flag bearers — a male and a female. The gymnast led the squad, including 600 athletes, comprising 93 Olympians at the opening ceremony of the event.

Jordan Chiles displayed exceptional gymnastics skills in Chile's capital by clinching three medals, including a gold in the team event, a silver in the vault, and a bronze in the individual all-around event.