Simone Biles, a nine-time USA national champion and a seven-time Olympic medallist, is back for her third Olympics
She is set to lead her team in the finals on July 30 this year, participating in all discplines despite nursing a calf discomfort
Incidentally, Biles’ previous Olympic Games experience could potentially haunt her, as she faced ‘twisties’, a mental block in gymnastics that intensified during the Tokyo Olympics
The condition, usually in high-pressure situations, involves losing control midair and feeling unable to land the move, creating a high-risk and dangerous situation
From being at her lowest in Japan’s capital to jumping her way back to the top of gymnastics, the American’s journey in these last three years has shown her mental verve more than anything
Here’s what happened with Simone Biles at the Tokyo Olympics
Coming into the Tokyo Olympics, the tale surrounding Biles was written before she took to the floor: a near-invincible gymnast aiming to continue her stronghold over events from the mat to the beam
However, there was a twist in the tale. She pulled out of the team final’s vault event
A face ridden with uncertainty, Biles could only complete about one and a half turns, compared to the expected two and a half
While Team USA did well to clinch the silver medal behind Russia, all eyes and ears were on the seven-time Olympic medallist for her unexpected withdrawal mid-final
A day after the team final, Biles announced that she would not participate in the individual all-around final and the vault and uneven bars medal events
Biles nursed that chink in her armour for a week and came back to the competition to win a medal in Tokyo. She clinched a record-equalling seventh Olympic medal after she won the bronze in the beam event
Arriving at the arena about 90 minutes before the final and succeeding in pulling off the double-pike dismount, showed that Biles had shaken off her ‘twisties’ and was back in business once again as if she’d never left