She landed a double-twisting, double-somersault dismount off the beam, becoming the first gymnast to ever attempt and master the maneuver. The incredible moment took place at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships in Kansas City, Missouri, where she is currently vying for her sixth national title.
“I’m really happy with the beam dismount and how it’s come along, because if you had asked me after (US Classic) if I was going to compete it, I would’ve said no,” Biles told Team USA.“I feel like in those short two weeks we did a lot of work on a couple of the events, so I’m pretty excited with how it turned out.”
If she is successful in completing the double-double dismount at an upcoming international competition, the move will be named after her, according to Team USA. It will be the third time a skill has been named after the 22-year-old.
Simone Biles makes history as the first gymnast to land a double-double dismount — and it’s incredible 🤩 pic.twitter.com/HqwmonlxTT
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) August 11, 2019
Earlier on the same day, Biles attempted a triple-double (two flips and three mid-air twists) during her floor routine, making her the first woman to attempt the move in a competition. Biles missed the landing, falling forward a little.
“It’s just so annoying because I’ve never [fallen forward on the triple-double] in the gym, so I had a lot more adrenaline than I wanted. I’ll come back Sunday and hopefully it’ll go better,” she said.
Biles finished the first of the two night meet in first place, with a total score of 58.650, an impressive 1.75 ahead of second-place Sunisa Lee (56.900). Two-time world medalist Jade Carey is in third with 56.100 points.
Congrats to Simone Biles!
She is the FIRST person in HISTORY to perform a double-double dismount on a beam 🙌🏾👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/ukoAE2K7SO
— MEFeater Magazine (@mefeater) August 10, 2019
“She’s really the Michael Phelps of gymnastics for us.” @OfficialMissVal is all of us raving about Simone Biles 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/mBsvCY7tg9
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) August 10, 2019
Biles, still only 22 years old, is perhaps the most decorated female gymnast of all time. She is a five-time Olympic medallist and 14-time world champion. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics cannot come fast enough.
UPDATE: Simone Biles has made history again. This time, she’s executed the triple-double during a floor routine, the same move she attempted earlier in the meet. Biles has now taken home her sixth all-round title after winning the championship in Kansas City.
HI SIMONE BILES JUST MADE HISTORY AGAIN BY BEING THE FIRST WOMAN TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPETE A TRIPLE DOUBLE ON FLOOR 😍😍😍😍😍 pic.twitter.com/kLvaRwmdBW
— jamie (@jordynsleftbrow) August 12, 2019