Simone Biles, a 27-year-old American gymnast, has added another championship to her list of accolades. Sports Illustrated announced the 11-time Olympian as their 2024 Sportsperson of the Year on January 2, 2024.
Biles remarked, “Honestly, it is such a huge honor. I know some of the greats that have won it in prior years, so to just keep gymnastics on the map is really exciting.” She added, “Good Morning America” of the Sports Illustrated accolade. “I know a lot of people love the sport of gymnastics during an Olympic year and have followed my career closely, but I was still very shocked.”
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Biles expressed how excited she is receiving this reward, “I feel like I’m always shocked winning any sort of award or being honored.”
Following an incredible year at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, where she won four additional medals in team, all-around, vault, and floor exercise, Biles was named Sportsperson of the Year.
The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee reports that Biles, 27, is now tied for the second-most decorated female gymnast in Olympic history following her performance in Paris.
Shortly after she withdrew from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics team final due to “the twisties,” a confusing condition in which a gymnast’s head and body feel dangerously out of sync, Biles earned three gold medals and a silver medal in Paris.
A recently published editorial stated that “Simone Biles is Sports Illustrated’s 2024 Sportsperson of the Year because she won gold, and then another gold, and then another; because she changed the face of her sport and the conversations around athletes in general; because she continues to speak out about issues that matter to her.”
It added, “And perhaps most of all because after she wondered aloud to [teammate Jordan] Chiles whether she was about to relive the darkest period of her career, she took a deep breath, she saluted the judges and she broke into a run.”
When Sports Illustrated hosts its annual awards gala in Las Vegas on January 7, Biles will be there to get the 2024 Sportsperson of the Year honor.
Actor Keegan-Michael Key will host the ceremony at Wynn Las Vegas this year.
