Rebeca Andrade won’t be remembered for defeating Simone Biles during her peak performance. Winning silver again didn’t seem disappointing to her.
“I’ve worked so hard to achieve this,” Andrade said. “It’s just unbelievable. I had so much fun, every single moment has been sensational.”
Andrade came in second to the American star on Thursday at the Paris Olympics after a thrilling women’s all-around gymnastics final, which was decided by Biles’ outstanding floor routine in the final round.
Is being second to the most decorated gymnast of all time still a significant achievement?
“Simone is the best, and she brings out the best of me,” Andrade said.
The 25-year-old Brazilian moved ahead of Biles midway through the all-around finals at the lively Bercy Arena and had a chance to cause a major upset when Biles made a mistake on the uneven bars.
But Biles made a strong comeback with an excellent beam routine and an impressive floor exercise, securing her second gold in this competition, eight years after winning in Rio de Janeiro.
Andrade had no reason to be disappointed, matching the silver she won behind American Sunisa Lee in 2021. Lee took third place behind Andrade on Thursday.
Andrade was steady on all four apparatuses and ended her performance with a graceful and energetic floor routine. She lost by 1.199 points, one of the smallest winning margins for Biles in a major international event.
Biles was simply exceptional, and Andrade was slightly less so.
Biles mentioned she had never felt such stress in an all-around final, joking that she doesn’t want to compete against Andrade anymore.
“She’s way too close,” Biles said. “I’ve never had an athlete that close, so it definitely put me on my toes.”
