PARIS — Simone Biles is getting kind of old for this. Just maybe not too old to keep going.
Minutes after the American gymnastics star won the seventh Olympic gold of her career on Saturday in a vault final that left little doubt that even at 27 she remains in a class by herself, she played coy when asked if the event marked the final time she would ever explode off the springboard in competition.
While Biles allowed she was officially retiring her eponymous Yurchenko double pike vault because “I kind of nailed that one” at the Paris Olympics, she didn’t rule out a return to the Games when they move to Los Angeles in 2028.
“Never say never,” Biles said. “Next Olympics are at home. So you just never know. I am getting really old.”
At times, it’s hard to tell.
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Her sequined red leotard a blur in the air, Biles averaged 15.300 on her two vaults to claim a second gold in the event eight years after she triumphed in Rio de Janeiro.
The Yurchenko double pike requires Biles to race down the runway before doing a roundoff/back handspring onto the table followed by two backward flips with her arms clasped behind her knees.
Biles soared off the table and landed with a big bounce — a nod to the energy she generates — with her right foot on the out-of-bounds line.
The judges dinged her a tenth of a point for that. It hardly mattered.
Her score of 15.700 meant she merely needed to avoid disaster on her second vault to win. Instead, she almost stuck her Cheng, which requires a roundoff onto the springboard, and a half twist onto the block followed by 1½ twists while doing a forward somersault. The 14.9 she received meant the fight for gold was over.
Rebeca Andrade of Brazil, who finished runner-up to Biles in the all-around final on Thursday, edged American Jade Carey for silver. Not that Carey was complaining. Three years after tripping during the vault final and finishing last, Carey achieved the “redemption” she was looking for when she pointed to an Olympic return.
MEN’S POMMEL HORSE: Two-time world champion Rhys McClenaghan claimed Ireland’s first medal in gymnastics with a massive score of 15.533 points on the men’s pommel horse. American gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik — aka “Pommel Horse Guy” — scored 15.300 points to earn bronze behind Nariman Kurbanov of Kazakhstan.
MEN’S FLOOR: Carlos Yulo won the second Olympic gold medal ever for the Philippines, edging defending champion Artem Dolgopyat of Israel in the men’s floor exercise finals. Jake Jarman of Britain claimed the bronze.
