Simone Biles Is Officially the Most Decorated Female Gymnast of All Time
Another day, another Simone Biles history-making moment.
Over in Stuttgart, Germany, yesterday, Team USA won a gold medal in the team finals at the world championships for their fifth consecutive title. That victory gave the gymnast her 21st medal at the world championships (15 of them gold), beating the record formerly held by Svetlana Khorkina at 20, per CNN. That's right, Biles is now the most decorated female gymnast of all time.
Biles isn't even done competing yet, which means she still has a chance to make even more history with medals in the individual portions of the meet. The record for most medals by a male or female gymnast is held by Vitaly Scherbo at 23—Biles needs only three more to become the best gymnast of all time.
“Every year it feels better and better just because we’re adding to the legacy,” Biles said, according to the New York Times. “I feel like I never think of records. I just go out there and do what I came to do, which is compete for the country.” She's also digging the medals, which light up, at the competition calling them "the sickest medal we’ve ever had.”
During the team competition, Biles got the highest scores on the balance beam, the floor, and the vault as she continued to assert her dominance in the sport. This comes just after she completed two amazing elements—a triple-double on the floor and a double-double dismount on the beam—that will henceforth be named after her.
“It’s just so surreal to come out here and end up on top with the strength of the team that we have, even after having a couple falls out there,” Biles said to the Times, after a couple of her teammates slipped up during their routines.
Next up for Biles is the women's all-around final on Thursday and then the finals for the beam, floor, bars, and vault over the weekend. Last year she won six medals at the world championships in Doha, so another record appears to be on the horizon.
Go, Simone, go.
Originally Appeared on Glamour
