Simone Biles effortlessly secures her 9th national title.

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In Fort Worth, Texas, Simone Biles used to embrace the uncertainty, finding “beauty in the blindness” prior to the Olympics, relishing in her lack of awareness of what she didn’t know. This mindset was prevalent eight years ago when she was merely a teenager, still somewhat whimsical.

However, those days have long passed. The transformation isn’t just evident in Biles’ age, reflected in her driver’s license or marriage certificate, but also in her expanded perspective beyond herself. The intense focus that typically consumes elite athletes in their pursuit of greatness has dissipated.

Perhaps the most significant contrast between the national title Biles secured on Sunday night, her ninth in total with an impressive all-around score of 119.750, and her first over a decade ago, lies in this shift.

The crowning moment of Biles’ triumph wasn’t marked by a twist, a turn, or a jump, but by a simple walk.

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It came early on, when Biles watched 2020 Olympic champion and good friend Sunisa Lee spin awkwardly in the air during her vault and landed on her back, a mixture of surprise and fear spreading across her face.

“I was kind of thinking that this was over,” Lee said.

Then Biles appeared at her side, unprompted. She knew exactly where Lee was in that moment better than anyone.

Three years ago at the Tokyo Games, a similar wayward vault by Biles started a chain of events that led to her withdrawing from multiple competitions and dragging the discussion on the importance of mental health front and center.

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Observing Lee, who has grappled with kidney problems for much of the past two years, causing fluctuations in her weight and disrupting her training regimen, Biles stepped away from her World Champions Centre companions to offer Lee the same supportive presence Biles once leaned on during her own challenges in Japan.

Understanding the trauma of such moments, particularly on a significant stage like this, Biles expressed her empathy: “I know how traumatizing it is, especially on a big stage like this. And I didn’t want her to get in her head, so we just went and talked about it.”

The duo withdrew from the floor for a private conversation, during which Biles reassured Lee of her resilience, emphasizing that she “could do hard things.”

 
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Upon their return, Biles positioned herself by the uneven bars, enthusiastically supporting Lee as she executed a remarkable, albeit slightly modified, routine. Lee’s performance garnered a score of 14.500, propelling her to a promising fourth place.

Reflecting on Biles’ encouragement, Lee remarked, “I know I was having a hard time and she was just there to help lift me up.”

Biles, now in a phase of her unparalleled career where her enjoyment of the sport extends beyond her individual performance, humorously quipped about aging gracefully. However, what truly brought the widest smile to her face was discussing her five World Champions Centre teammates—most of them significantly younger—who will accompany her to the Olympic trials in Minneapolis later this month.

“That’s kind of what excites me because I think they have long careers ahead of them,” Biles expressed. “So if I can do anything to help them, right now and in the future, that’s what I’m going to do.”

This is her method of reciprocating. She is fully conscious of the attention that will be on her in Paris and aims to demonstrate to others how to handle the impending stress. She has become a consistent participant in therapy sessions, even during competition weeks, and is committed to concentrating on what she can manage.

For instance, her gymnastics.

In the presence of an audience that included her husband, Jonathan Owens of the Chicago Bears, Biles demonstrated a four-rotation masterclass that showcased all the hallmarks of a typical Biles performance. There was a blend of astonishing athleticism, precision, and a fair amount of confidence.

Biles ended with the highest two-day score across all four events, a feat she had only achieved once before at the nationals (2018).

Her only error on Sunday occurred on the vault. She fell short on her Yurchenko double pike — two backflips with her hands held behind her knees — during warmups and overcorrected during the actual performance, generating so much power that she ended up on her back. Despite this, she still received a 15.000 for her effort, a testament to a vault that no other woman has ever completed in competition and only a select group of men have attempted.

But it didn’t faze her. Biles composed herself, took a few deep breaths, and then executed a Cheng vault that earned her a 15.1, bringing her ninth national title within reach. No other gymnast in the history of the sport in the U.S. has more than seven.

While Biles continues to stand out as usual, there is intense competition for the remaining four spots on the five-woman U.S. team that will travel to Paris as the clear favorites to reclaim the top spot on the podium after finishing second to Russia in Tokyo three years ago.

At 19, Skye Blakely delivered a remarkable performance and is heading to Minneapolis full of momentum. Three years after her 2020 Olympic team aspirations were cut short by an injury, Blakely is now hitting her stride at the perfect moment.

Lee continues to exemplify grace on the bars and beam, her strongest events, and felt motivated after her first elite all-around competition since her victory in Tokyo, where Biles was among the spectators cheering her on.

Olympic athletes Jordan Chiles and Jade Carey are also contenders, despite both experiencing falls on the beam on Sunday. Kayla DiCello, who finished third, had a slip on the uneven bars.

Shilese Jones, who is regarded as the best all-around gymnast in the U.S. not named Biles, withdrew from the championships on Friday due to a shoulder injury. However, she reported feeling better on Sunday and intends to be ready for the trials. The same goes for 18-year-old Kaliya Lincoln, who chose not to compete on Sunday after experiencing a minor issue during Friday night’s opening session.

If they are fit, both are expected to be strong contenders for an invitation to Paris, particularly Jones.

As for Biles, her place is essentially guaranteed. As it has always been.