Simone Biles lands historic vault as she leaps back onto the world stage
It took just a few seconds for Simone Biles to vault over her two-year absence from international gymnastics competition and make history.
Fans erupted as the 19-time world champion leaped back onto the world stage, becoming the first woman to land a highly complicated vault internationally at the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastic Championships in Antwerp, Belgium, on Sunday.
The vault, the most difficult jump in the women's scoring code, was given a difficulty score of 6.4 points ahead of Sunday's championship, according to NBC Sports. The most challenging vault performed at last year’s world championships held a score of 5.6.
Biles, 26, posted an all-around score of 58.865, putting her in first place at the end of her qualifying session. Meanwhile, the United States as a team, including world all-around silver medalist Shilese Jones, 2022 world champions Skye Blakely and Leanne Wong, Joscelyn Roberson and alternate athlete Kayla DiCello, posted a qualifying score of 171.395.
Biles celebrated her success in an Instagram story, sharing video of her historic vault, which she stunned national audiences with over the summer, along with a blue heart emoji.
The feat marked Biles' first international competition since the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, with the athlete returning to the city where she won her first world title a decade ago at age 16. In the years since, she has gone on to claim eight national titles, 25 world medals and seven Olympic medals.
Biles' two-year hiatus came after the world champion sparked a national conversation around mental health when she spoke out about her difficulties grappling with the “twisties," a spatial disorientation condition common in gymnastics, after pulling out of multiple events at the Tokyo Olympics.
Biles made it clear she was ready for an international comeback in August when she claimed a record eighth all-around title at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, a decade after her first national title.
“It’s really amazing. Everybody in here believes in me,” she said at the time. “So I just need to start believing in myself a little bit more, but it feels amazing and I love the fans, I love the crowd. It was really special.”
As she continues to inspire fans, Biles said she is bringing a new approach to the mat.
“I think we have to be a little bit more cautious about the way we do things,” she said in a recent interview with NBC's “TODAY” show. “Everything that we’re doing leading up to [Paris 2024] is very intentional. We’ve kind of been playing it on the down-low this time, making sure mentally and physically are both intact.”
Biles, who married NFL player Jonathan Owens earlier this year, said she is focused on “being intentional, going to therapy, and making sure everything is aligned so that [she] can do [her] best in the gym, be a good wife, good daughter, good friend, all the good things."
USA Gymnastics has also marked a shift in its approach, changing its leadership structure last year in a move that saw directorship divided among three people: former elite gymnasts Chellsie Memmel and Alicia Sacramone Quinn and longtime coach Dan Baker.
The move appeared to be part of an effort to change the power dynamics within the organization and focus on athletes' well-being following the sentencing of U.S. national team doctor Larry Nassar to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing hundreds of gymnasts, including Biles.
Biles called for change while giving testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2021, saying she did not want "another young gymnast or an Olympic athlete or any individual" to experience what she and others had.
As she marks her already-triumphant return to the international stage, Biles and her team will go for gold in the women's team final Wednesday, where they are favored to win the title.
