No one can doubt Simone Biles is one of the greatest athletes of all time now that she's won her sixth career Olympic gold during the Paris Games. But in case there are any holdouts in the crowd, the 27-year-old gymnast has a diamond necklace only the GOAT can layer with a gold medal.
Simone Biles won the All-Around Women's Gymnastics final for a second time on August 1, 2024, in front of a packed arena including teammates Suni Lee and Jordan Chiles, as well as celebrities like Kendall Jenner and Devin Booker. (Biles's first win came in 2016, at the Rio Games.) After dominating through each of her four routines—on the uneven bars, beam, floor, and vault—the 30-time World Champion slipped on a diamond pendant by Jamie Heller Fine Jewelry. Its charm? A tiny, sparkly goat.
The goat charm, coated in 546 diamonds, isn't just a complement to her Swarovski crystal-studded Team USA leotard. It's a cheeky reference to her record-breaking career. Before she arrived at the Paris Games, Simone Biles was already one of the most decorated gymnasts in history. As of the women's All-Around final, she's also the US gymnast with the most medals—ever.
Biles elaborated on her necklace's significance in a press conference following her latest win. "My GOAT necklace is just kind of an ode because the people love it and then some people hate it, so it’s like the best of both worlds," she said, according to reports by Cosmopolitan. "And I was like, ‘Okay, if it goes well, we’ll wear the GOAT necklace. I know people will go crazy over it.’ But at the end of the day, it is crazy that I am in the conversation of greatest of all athletes, because I just still think I’m Simone Biles from Spring, Texas, that just loves to flip."
Indeed, people went crazy. One fan called it "peak 2024" on X. Another said it was "the greatest thing ever."
This isn't the first time Simone Biles has worked GOAT (and goat) imagery into her competition outfits. In 2021, she began competing in a goat leotard with rhinestone embellishments. Biles told Marie Claire the customization was a way to hit back at her haters.
"I didn't feel like it was necessarily fair how they could keep saying whatever they wanted, but then if I said something, it wasn't fair. [The haters] were joking like, 'I swear, if she put a goat on her leo, blah, blah, blah,'" Biles said. "That would make them so angry. And then I was like, 'Oh, that's actually a good idea. Let's make the haters hate it, and the fans love it.' And so that's exactly what we did and why we did it."
Biles's latest GOAT reference was a custom commission from the Los Angeles-based jeweler Jamie Heller. The designer shared on Instagram three days before the All-Around competition that the piece "reflects her dedication, perseverance, and the spirit that has inspired generations." She also noted that Biles commissioned a second necklace, in the shape of the five Olympic rings.
Biles's victory was hard-earned. She's called the 2024 Olympics her "redemption tour," after withdrawing from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to protect her mental health. And while she's already made history in the first few days of the Games, she could go home with even more medals. Over the next week, Biles is set to compete in the individual beam, floor, and vault competitions. She'll almost definitely wear her goat necklace again for each one.
