By Monique Jones
The Birmingham Times
Olympic gymnast Simone Biles has cemented her status as an elite athlete. Biles won her fourth gold medal in Tuesday’s floor exercise competition, ranking her among only three other women who have won four gold medals in a single Olympics. Among the select group of women in this category, Biles is the first American woman to accomplish this feat.
According to the New York Times, Biles secured the gold with a score of 15.966. One of the move in Biles’ routine that helped her beat the competition is a move Biles created herself. The tumbling pass, called the Biles, includes a double twist and half flip with a forward-facing landing.
It was expected that Biles would do exceptionally well in floor exercise; Biles is already a three-time world champion in the event. However, Biles’ competition for gold also happened to be her U.S. teammate, Aly Raisman; Raisman ended the competition winning silver.
Throughout the Rio Olympics, Biles has stormed the competition with her talent and poise, earning gold medals in women’s individual all-around, women’s team all-around, women’s vault, and now women’s floor exercise. Biles has also earned a bronze in women’s balance beam.
While Biles has swept this Olympics, it’s unclear if she’ll try for a repeat in 2020. According to The Washington Post, Biles isn’t expected to immediately make a decision about whether she’ll attend the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. But Biles’ record-tying Olympics performance is yet another first she can add to her resume. Before the Olympics, Biles became the first American woman to become a three-time world all-around title-holder, according to Team USA. She had also secured the title of four-time U.S. all-around champion, the first woman to hold the title since Joan Moore Gnat in 1974.
