Seeing her on a mat, a beam or in the air, doubts are allowed. What Simone Biles accomplished during these Olympic Games does not seem within human reach. But yes, the American gymnastics star is a “human being”, confirmed her French coach Cécile Landi, Monday evening on the set of What Games!
“It’s not so easy for her. She needs to work, she does her thirty hours a week. There’s nothing that’s given to her (…) She’s very talented, of course, but she needs to work,” demystified the technician, who has been supporting Biles since 2017. And therefore knows her perfectly.
The qualities of the seven-time Olympic champion? “Extraordinary physical abilities,” replies the Frenchwoman, eighth with the French team at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. And what about her mental strength, which had been lacking in Tokyo when the gymnast had to stop competing? “She found it again and is stronger than before,” assures the coach, talking about the Ohio native’s reconstruction. “We didn’t see her for weeks. And after her wedding, she came back to 100%.”
Since then, enormous pressure has been on the star’s shoulders, with four medals in Paris. “When you’re Simone Biles, if you don’t win gold, you’ve failed…”