Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in history, has suggested that her Olympic career may be over. Speaking to Sports Illustrated after being named their 2024 Sportsperson of the Year, Biles reflected on her record-breaking Paris Olympics performance.
In the interview, she admitted the likelihood of representing Team USA at the 2028 Games is very slim. “Because I’ve accomplished so much, there’s almost nothing left to do, rather than to just be snobby and to try again and for what? I’m at a point in my career where I’m humble enough to know when to be done,” the 7-time Olympic gold medalist said.
Biles, 27, acknowledged the “sacrifices” and “consequences” involved in returning to gymnastics and questioned whether it would be worth delaying starting a family with her husband, Jonathan Owens.
“If you go back, you’ll be greedy,” she told the outlet. “Those are the consequences. But that’s also your decision to decide. What sacrifices would be made if I go back now? When you’re younger, it’s like, prom, college. Now it’s like, starting a family, being away from my husband. What’s really worth it?”
Biles, who has been the face of gymnastics and a trailblazer in women’s sports, admitted that despite her numerous achievements, she has yet to fully grasp the impact of her legacy. “I don’t think the reality has set in of what I’ve exactly done in the sport,” she said.
“I can see it, and I hear it from people, and I see a glimpse of it, but the full magnitude I don’t think I’ve realized just yet. I don’t think I’ll realize ’til maybe I retire and look back in a couple years like, Damn, she was good. Because I can see that, but I do it every day. So for me, it’s normal,” Biles added.
The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics will mark the first U.S.-hosted Summer Games since 1996.
If Biles were to compete, she would become the first American gymnast to qualify for four Olympics, achieving the feat at the age of 31.
