American gymnastics superstar after returning to competitive gymnastics, including winning historic U.S. and world individual all-around titles in 2023 Simone Biles has been awarded the Laureus World Comeback of the Year award, the organization announced on Monday (April 22) at a ceremony in Madrid.
This is Biles' fourth Laureus World Sports Award after previously winning Sportswoman of the Year three times (2017, 2019 and 2020).
At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Biles made global headlines when she withdrew from several finals to prioritize her mental health after experiencing a “twisty'' in gymnastics, where her body and mind went out of sync. Became. Her return to competition won her a bronze medal on balance beam, but she also sparked a global conversation about mental health.
Four-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson praised Biles' example.
“It's not new that this is a very difficult position to be in, being an athlete competing in front of millions of people with expectations on your shoulders. But it was very refreshing for fans to accept that this is very difficult and that sometimes athletes need to take a break,'' Johnson said. “I thought Simone Biles during the 2021 Olympics was a great moment, not only for the sport, but also for people outside.” [of sport]. People outside of sports are also starting to realize this is important. Mental health is important, so I think it's great that we're having this conversation and it's another example of how sport can play a role in social areas that are really important to people. . ”
After his second Olympic appearance, Biles was unsure of his future and stepped away from competition.
“There were a lot of times this year when I went to the gym and thought, 'I'm as scared of a full-in as I am,' so I didn't know if I would ever be able to compete again.” , I'm not even going to do it,'' Biles told Olympic.com in an exclusive interview last year.
“And I thought, 'You know what? I'm going to come back another day, another day.'”
