Olympic gymnastics legend Simone Biles wants to retire 'on top' but Team USA star 'grateful' for her success - 'I want it to be my choice'
Published 07/08/2025 at 23:12 GMT+1
Seven-time Olympic gold medallist Simone Biles said she wants to retire "on top" amid uncertainty over her participation at the 2028 Olympic Games, taking place in the United States. The Team USA star - widely regarded as the greatest gymnast of all-time - was at her dazzling best in Paris last year, winning three gold medals to put herself firmly back at the summit of the sport.
Watch Biles clinch all-around gold with exquisite floor routine
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Simone Biles wants her retirement to be her "choice", but said if her career were to end now she would be going out on a high following a spectacular Paris Olympic Games.
Biles, 28, has yet to confirm whether she will compete at the next iteration of the Games, held in her home country, the United States.
The Team USA star is sitting out the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, taking place from Thursday through to Sunday, having previously won nine titles.
In an interview with Olympics.com, Biles stopped short of confirming any future plans to compete.
"I think as athletes, you always want to end up on top and it be your choice when you end. Paris was such a special moment," Biles said.
"Of course, you have some that want to go back and repeat that success because you get really hungry for it, and you know what that feels like, and you know what you’re capable of.
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‘The best one yet!’ – Biles continues glorious Games with third gold
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"I’ve done so much, and I have had so much success in the sport, it’s like I want it to be my choice when I’m done. I don’t want the doctors to be like, ‘Hey. You can’t. Move on'.
"I think for a lot of elite athletes, it’s never their choice when they get to be done.
"I’m grateful – if this was the end – that I got to choose my ending."
Biles was refreshingly candid about her mental health struggles after she pulled out of several events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 - having experienced what gymnasts call the "twisties".
But the 11-time Olympic medallist returned to the world stage in style last summer, racking up three gold medals - one of which came alongside her team - while also picking up silver.
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Having since been able to enjoy the sport from afar, sitting in the stands, Biles admitted to the feeling of relief in not taking centre stage.
"I’m so happy that I was in the stands and not competing because it takes a mental toll on you as well as a physical toll," Biles said.
"It’s only been a year. I feel like if you ask me next year, maybe, I’d be like, ‘Oh, I miss that.' But it’s crazy because I don’t get up every day and think like, ‘Oh, I wish I could flip.’ I flipped for 22 years of my life, so being right side up is kind of nice."
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'Absolutely unreal' - Biles attempts incredibly difficult uneven bars routine
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Biles first declared her name on the Olympic stage at the Rio Games in 2016, then aged 19, and she stunned the world with four gold medals in the team and individual all-around, vault and floor.
Her Olympic debut foreshadowed what would be an historic career. With 23 World Championships gold medals, Biles is the most decorated gymnast of all-time.
Relive every moment of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on discovery+
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