EGN NEWS DESK
After experiencing three ACL tears, Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade thought a number of occasions about giving up gymnastics. None apart from Simone Biles, essentially the most embellished gymnast of all time, inspired her to proceed.
That’s despite the fact that Biles, in her current Netflix documentary, Simone Biles Rising, admitted that Andrade is her fiercest competitor and “scares me essentially the most.”
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But it’s been a pleasant and respectful rivalry between the gymnasts for years. At the 2023 world championships, after the ground ultimate wherein Biles secured gold and Andrade silver, Biles positioned the crown she was given atop Andrade’s head.
“It is an honor to compete alongside her, to cheer for her,” Andrade, 25, mentioned after serving to the Brazilian ladies win their first Olympic medal within the staff occasion in Paris, behind Biles and the U.S. ladies’s gold. “Simone is a reference for your complete world, not only for gymnastics, however for a lot of athletes.”
Andrade, who will compete within the ladies’s gymnastics all-around in addition to steadiness beam, ground, and vault particular person occasions in Paris, is herself is an icon within the sport in Brazil. “She absolutely has made gymnastics extra fashionable for younger folks,” says Luica Martins, a Brazilian fan attending the Games. “She has a sparkle so I hope she does nice.”
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Andrade is the Olympic silver medalist within the all-around from Tokyo and was chosen by her countrymates to hold the flag on the closing ceremonies for these Games. She received the all-around title on the world championships in 2022, when Biles didn’t compete, bested Biles on the 2023 world championships in vault, and is the reigning Olympic vault champion. In Paris, she is predicted to unleash a brand new vault talent, a triple twisting Yurchenko wherein she pushes herself off the vault in a backflip and executes three twists earlier than touchdown. If she does so efficiently, she’s going to be part of Biles in having a transfer named after her. (Biles has 5 up to now and is trying so as to add to that tally.)
The Brazilian ladies’s first ever medal within the ladies’s staff occasion is due largely to Andrade, and the curiosity in gymnastics that she has sparked—a robust sufficient motion to subject a staff of gymnasts that’s now among the many finest on this planet. But the street to turning into Biles’ greatest challenger hasn’t been simple. She’s used her restoration from her accidents to proceed including issue to her routines, bringing her the true risk of outscoring Biles if the Greatest of All Time has an off evening. “It’s about doing my finest. And I hope [Biles] does too,” Andrade informed AFP.
