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Simone Biles says she is unsure whether she will compete at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
The 28-year-old says she has other priorities, and is mindful of the demands her sport puts on her body at an age when most elite gymnasts have long since retired. Biles will be 31 when the LA Olympics start: the oldest all-around female gymnastics champion is Maria Gorokhovskaya, who won gold at the age of 30 at the 1952 Games.
“I’m really trying to enjoy life, to spend time with my husband [NFL player Jonathan Owens)], go support him at his games, live my life as a woman,” she said in an interview with French sports daily L’Equipe published on Tuesday. “I’ve accomplished so much in my sport. For me to come back, it would really have to excite me.”
Biles, the most decorated gymnast of all time, says many fans underestimate the time taken in preparing for the Olympics. “A lot of people think it’s just a one-year commitment but it truly is the four years leading up to the Olympics,” she said. “It’s in LA it’s back in the States, which is so exciting. But if I’m going to compete again, I’m not so sure.”
Biles said she will attend the Games in LA, but is unsure in what capacity. “Whether on the [gymnastics] apparatus or in the stands, I still don’t know that,” she told L’Equipe. “But 2028 seems so far away, and my body is aging. I felt it in Paris.”
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Biles won three gold medals and a silver at the Paris Olympics, taking her career tally to seven Olympic golds and 11 medals overall. But she says her body suffered under the strain.
“I went back to the [Olympic] village, I took the elevator and my body literally collapsed. I was sick for 10 days,” she said, before recounting another experience. “The other day, we were sprinting in the garden with friends, I had aches and pains for three days. So, I honestly don’t know. We’ll see.”
She praised her rival, Rebeca Andrade of Brazil, for recovering from injury and for “pushing me beyond my limits,” but also said gymnastics no longer needs both of them.
“It only needs one of us, no? Especially since [Andrade] will not be alone,” Biles said. “A young generation will knock at the door and everything will start again.”
The interview took place before Monday’s Laureus Awards in Madrid, where Biles was named sportswoman of the year. Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, the double Olympic champion and world record holder, was named sportsman of the year.
Whatever she decides regarding her career, Biles says she will continue to speak about mental health. Biles withdrew from several events at the Tokyo Olympics, partly because she wanted to preserve her mental health.
“I am very proud of the work accomplished to reach this point,” she said, “and I will continue to be the voice of the voiceless.”