LONDON (UK), 28 Aug. (PA MEDIA/DPA/EP) –
The American gymnast Simone Biles, Olympic champion in Rio 2016, was proclaimed this morning national champion for the eighth time in her career, in the competition held in San José (California), just a month after returning to the competition after overcoming some mental health problems.
The 26-year-old from Columbus became the gymnast with the most American national titles — she surpassed Alfred Jochim and his seven twisted ones between 1925 and 1933 — after achieving a total score of 118.40 points, four more than the second classified, Shilese Jones, becoming the oldest winner in the history of the test.
Biles returned to competition in Chicago earlier this month after suffering “vertigo” – a phenomenon that affects an athlete’s spatial awareness – which forced him to withdraw from five of his six finals at the Tokyo Olympics. , which were played in 2021 and not in 2020 due to the pandemic, to focus on their mental health.
The multiple medalist plans to compete again in September at the World Championships in Antwerp (Netherlands), an appointment in which she will seek to expand her 25 World Cup medals, of which 18 are gold. However, she has not yet confirmed her presence at the next Olympic event in Paris 2024.