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American gymnast Simone Biles will be the cynosure of all eyes when she takes the stage at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics next month. Of course, she needs to go through the qualification route like her counterparts. But given her quality and recent form, it looks highly improbable that she won't make it to the quadrennial extravaganza.
Simone Biles began her senior career in 2013 and won two gold medals at the Antwerp World Championships held that year. But the turning point of her career came in Rio 2016. Having made the cut in all four individual categories and the team event, Biles ended her first Olympics with four golds and one bronze medal.
Taking a one-year hiatus in 2017, Biles returned to glory by winning four gold medals at the World Championships in 2018 and five in 2019. She has already started the year on a winning note by grabbing top honors at the U.S. Classic and the National Championships.
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Here are Simone Biles' top five gymnastic moves.
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#5 Yurchenko double pike
Simone Biles became the first woman to perform the Yurchenko double pike in the competition after she landed the move at the 2021 U.S. Classic Tournament. The move enjoys a starting difficulty rating of 6.6 and is performed in the vault.
In the Yurchenko double pike, the gymnast does a round-off onto the springboard and follows it with a back handspring onto the horse. In the flight phase, the gymnast performs two pike rotations in succession before landing on feet.
#4 Floor exercise routine 1
The first of four eponymous skills, Biles debuted her double layout salto with a half-twist move on the floor exercise at the 2013 World Championships. It enjoys a G difficulty rating and has been successfully performed in competition by only four gymnasts.
A double layout salvo involves the gymnast performing two backward rotations with legs stuck firmly and arms stretched wide. What makes Biles I unique is that an additional half-turn is performed before landing.
#3 Floor exercise routine 2
Simone Biles performed Biles II, or the triple-twisting double-tucked salto backwards, on the floor exercise for the first time at the 2019 U.S. National Championships. It enjoys a difficulty rating of J and was performed by only three gymnasts before Biles.
As the description of the move suggests, the gymnast does a double backflip and follows it with three twists in mid-air before landing. This is difficult to perform because the gymnast does more twists in the air than backflips before it to generate power and amplitude.
#2 Vault
Like the Yurchenko double pike, Simone Biles is the only female gymnast to perform this eponymous move on the vault. It enjoys a 6.4 difficulty rating and Biles first performed it at the 2018 World Championships.
Biles in the vault involves the gymnast beginning the move with a back handspring and a half-turn entry on the horse. It is then followed by a front stretch somersault that involves two twists in the air.
#1 Balance beam
The last of her eponymous moves on the list, Biles debuted her double-twisting double-tucked salto backwards dismount off the balance beam maneuver at the 2019 US National Championships. It enjoys an H difficulty rating, the highest awarded so far in the balance beam section.
In this move, the gymnast does two backward flips in a salto position on the beam and lands on the mat by completing two twists in the air. This is difficult to perform on the balance beam because unlike the floor or the vault, the gymnast is provided with a very narrow runway and no spring to generate power and amplitude.
