"To embrace who I am" - Simone Biles reveals her motivation behind starting gymnastics and how her journey evolved

Simone Biles is one of the most decorated artistic gymnasts and secured three gold medals and one silver medal in the Paris Olympics 2024. The iconic gymnast has shared her thoughts on what motivates her to continue the sport.

She has won multiple accolades throughout her career, including eleven Olympic medals and 30 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships medals. She has also won two gold medals in the Pacific Rim Championships. Biles recently appeared in an interview with Fox 26 Houston’s Will Kunkel and shared her thoughts on the intention and inspiration behind pursuing gymnastics.

“My 'Why' was to just really have fun and brace it and see how far I could go and hopefully one day get a college scholarship. And that evolved over the years as I started progressing through the sports pretty quickly. Like, 'oh maybe one day, I can go the Olympics' and then I was training with some girls I had gone to World and been to an Olympic team. So, that's kind of why it changed but other than that, it was to embrace who I am, to be strong, to be beautiful and bold,” Biles told Kunkel.

Biles is also a national ambassador for Friends of the Children, a nonprofit organization that aims to support foster care children. She further shared that her “Why” is to support the community as they have been a source of strength for her “through thick and thin”. She was honored with the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year three times.

Simone Biles shares her take on taking a break and mental health challenges

Simone Biles at The Olympic Games-Paris 2024 - Source: Getty

Simone Biles has become one of the most decorated athletes in US sports history with her extensive and record-breaking accomplishments in gymnastics. During the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she remained absent from many events due to her mental health concerns and still managed to clinch two medals. She shared her thoughts on her break period and mental health.

“When I took a break after 2016, I had the time of my life. I was doing anything and everything. But after 2020, it was kind of depressing until I started therapy and got help. Even though I was empowering so many people and speaking out about mental health, every time I talked about my experience in Tokyo—because it obviously didn’t go the way that I had planned—it stung a little bit. But all in all, it was the best decision,” she told Vanity Fair’s, Leah Faye Cooper.

Biles shared that the period after 2020 was challenging for her and with therapy, she was able to maintain equilibrium in her life. She also expressed that the Tokyo Olympics did not go according to plan. In 2022, Biles was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.