Simone Biles and her USA teammate Jordan Chiles have bowed down to Olympic gold medallist Rebeca Andrade on the podium to celebrate a historic win for the Brazilian, and now we know why.
Earlier today, Andrade secured the gold over Biles and Chiles in the Artistic Gymnastics Women’s Floor Exercise event. But not only was this a huge win for Brazil, but it was also the first time an all-Black podium has been seen in Olympic gymnastics history.
When Andrade was awarded her medal on the podium, Biles and Chiles bowed down to her. In a post-event press conference, Biles revealed this was actually Chiles’ idea as a way to honour the winner.
“First, it was an all-Black podium, so that was super exciting for us. But then Jordan was like, ‘Should we bow to her?’ And I was like, ‘Absolutely…[It was] the right thing to do,” Biles said.
She added that Andrade is “such an excitement to watch.”
“She’s so amazing, she’s queen,” Biles said.
Chiles echoed the same sentiment, adding that Andrade deserved her moment, as she had given to Biles in the past.
“In that moment, I was like, ‘You know what? First off — yes, it was an all-Black podium’,” she said.
“Second off, ‘Why don’t we just give her her flowers?’ Not only has she given Simone her flowers, but a lot of us in the United States our flowers as well. So, giving it back, is what makes it so beautiful. … I felt like it was needed.”
In a statement after her win, Andrade said she is more than the colour of her skin.
“We can show the Black power. I love myself, my skin color,” she said.
“But I’m also not focused on that. Rebeca goes beyond her color. And the same goes for Jordan, for Simone.
“The idea is it serves as an incentive. Sometimes it may be more difficult for you because of you skin color. But you can do it, and we proved it’s possible.”
The wholesome moment came after controversy in the gymnastics. Chiles originally scored 13.666, but her difficulty score was bumped up by .1 after her coaches filed an inquiry — which was just enough to secure her the bronze.
“I didn’t even realize my coaches put in an inquiry, and I was like, ‘Okay, yeah. Like, let’s see… it can vary,'” explained Chiles. “So when it came through, I was very proud of myself. It was my first event final and my first event medal. This is crazy.”
Sadly, this victory for Chiles came at the expense of Romania’s Anu Barbosu, who was pushed down to fourth and off the podium.
Gold medals may be exciting, but stories of sportsmanship like this are what make the Olympics so great.
The post Simone Biles Revealed The Wholesome Story Behind That Bow To Gold Medalist Rebeca Andrande appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
