01x03 - I Will Defy the Odds

[bunniefuu]

["Il n'y a plus d'après" playing]

[Juliette Gréco sings in French]

-I'm getting the cookie.
-[Nellie] Which one you gonna get?

A pair of glasses.

This is my second pair.

[music fades]

[cheering]

[commentator] One of the most
anticipated days of the Olympics is here.

Day one of women's gymnastics.

Qualification day.

Can't win medals today, though.
You're just trying to survive.

[suspenseful music playing]

I honestly felt super calm
and relaxed this morning

going into everything.

[commentator] Back here again
at the age of 27 in Paris.

She's called it "the redemption tour."

[Simone] As soon as we lined up to go out,

that's when the nerves
started settling in,

and I was like, "Oh no. Oh no."

Like, "You can do this.
You can handle these nerves."

"You've done these routines
a million times."

[commentator] Big day at Bercy Arena.
This one a tough ticket to score.

Tom Cruise, Ariana Grande,
Lady Gaga are all here.

Chance to see the return of Simone Biles.

-[commentator 2] Here they come.
-[commentator] On their way to the floor.

[cheering and applause]

[announcer] Sunisa Lee!

[commentator] It's such a long road,
and we know what happened in Tokyo.

So we go over to floor,
and I'm trying to do the least amount

because not many of us are up,
so we don't get that much time to warm up.

So I'm like, "I'm gonna start
with a triple-double."

[commentator] Simone Biles
getting set for her floor routine.

As soon as I took off,
I was like, "Ooh. Oh."

"That hurt really bad.
That didn't feel right."

I just felt, like, a weird sensation
in my calf muscle.

At first, in my head,
like, I'm in the air,

and I was like,
"No, wait, that was my Achilles."

My calf or something
just pulled, like, all the way.

-Yeah?
-Yeah.

[heartbeat pounding]

-[Simone] Yeah.
-[Cécile] Okay?

Yeah, let me…

[Simone] I just went over to Cécile,
like, "I think I pulled my calf muscle

or tore my calf muscle.
Something's going on."

And then what?

[woman] That's Simone with a trainer.

[Simone] The triple-double,
as soon as I took off, I felt it.

-[Cécile] You felt it?
-Yeah. It's right here.

Like, in my calf, right here.

Right where that ta… where…
right where I had that f*cking tear.

[Simone] It was scary in the moment

because we weren't sure
exactly what it was.

[commentator] It appears as though
she may have tweaked something.

[commentator 2] If we're
talking about an injury,

the problem is not necessarily difficulty.

It's about can her body
handle the tumbling at all?

Yeah.

But, like,
I could literally feel it though.

I don't wanna do something stupid.

Went to get evaluated,
and then they were like,

"Well, do you wanna continue?"

Déjà vu. It was… ugh! It was so annoying,

and I think
that's what irritated me the most.

As soon as I got off the floor,
I was like,

"People are gonna think
I'm quitting again."

[commentator] Simone left the floor
and then just returned.

As soon as I took off, I could feel it.

Like, I could feel the tear. Like it
went "sh." I thought I tore my Achilles.

And on the second one, it's okay?
Or it's going to have to…

That one is better,
but it hurts so bad to push off.

[suspenseful music playing]

[commentator] A few people watching.

The last to go for the US.

Simone Biles, big question mark right now.

Obviously because of what we've seen
with the lower leg.

[commentator 3] She's gonna test her ankle
under the brightest lights.

It's gonna count, and she's not gonna know
how that body's gonna react.

[suspenseful music swells]

♪ This is my destiny… ♪

[commentator] The Paris Olympics
are on the horizon.

[commentator 2] The Olympic Games
have taken over.

[commentator 3]
Look at Simone! She's back.

[Simone] An Olympic year
is just really stressful.

There's a lot of emotions

rather than just gymnastics,
and you never know what's gonna happen.

[commentator 4] Looks like
she's confident in who she is.

[Simone] I'm feeling significantly better
than Tokyo going into this.

Just going out there, doing the gymnastics
that I know how to do,

and seeing what happens.

♪ This is my destiny… ♪

[commentator 5] This could be
her best-ever performance.

[commentator 6] If Simone
got four golds last time,

people are expecting
five or six this time.

[commentator] The greatest.
Still with that goal though.

[Simone] Once you get there,
that's what you're longing for.

We're about to land in Paris.

That takes away the pain of everything,

and you're like, "I finally made it."

As athletes,
you'll never get that feeling again.

♪ Whoa ♪

♪ This is my destiny ♪

♪ Oh-oh ♪

♪ Oh-oh-oh ♪

[woman on radio] Well, the countdown is on
to the Paris Olympics and Paralympics.

So where are the athletes
with their training,

how is Team USA looking this year,

and what can we expect?

Jonathan was like,
"Hold on! Come back! It's your birthday!"

And I was like, "Yes, but I have to go."

[man on radio] The clock is ticking down
to the Paris Games.

The merchandise already…

Today is March 14th,
and it is my birthday. [chuckles]

Most people are so happy
for their birthday,

and for some reason,
I'm, like, terrified to be 27,

and I don't know what it is,
but I felt that all year.

It feels old to me,
at least for a gymnast.

I'm so old.

Old as sh*t.

-Happy birthday!
-[Simone] Thank you.

Did you see my mom?
Like, who gets up this early? Like…

[Jordan] She said
she wants to say happy birthday.

-Just in case you cannot see me.
-[Simone] Yeah.

[Nellie and Simone laugh]

-Happy birthday!
-[Simone] Thanks.

-I cannot believe you got up this early.
-[laughs]

I know.
I cannot believe I'm up this early.

-But come check out your sign.
-[Simone] Yeah, it's cute.

Oh, the little gymnast.

That's funny.

To just say "happy birthday."

-[Simone] Yeah.
-It's your big day.

[Simone] Hmm.

There's a quick turnaround this year
for Olympic trials.

I do feel like this is the hardest
competition of the year for the US.

So right now, being 60 to 70% ready
I feel like is pretty good.

Oh, that's cute.

Making sure we have
a good head on our shoulders.

We're training properly.
We're recovering properly.

So we'll take photos after practicing,
but that's really cute.

With me getting older in the sport,
I do feel like it gives me more confidence

just because I've been
on an international stage for so long.

And everything that I've done
and been through and succeeded at,

it's just like,
I'm a little bit more confident.

But since I am older,
I am a little bit more afraid.

-Happy birthday.
-Thank you.

-[Ron Jr.] How's it feel to be 27?
-I don't know. Not well.

[both laugh]

I know that whenever I was younger,
I could bounce and fall,

and I'll get right back up,
but now I'm like…

They're like, "Are you okay?"
I was like, "I… I think so."

♪ Happy birthday to you ♪

In the beginning days,

the first all-around Olympic champion
was in her thirties.

[announcer] Maria Gorokhovskaya.

Then the age went down

until we got to Larisa Latynina,

who was in her twenties.

[announcer 2] Larisa Latynina of Russia.

Here is one of the world's
great women gymnasts in action.

Then, when Nadia won at 14,
it changed the sport completely.

[announcer 3 in French] I proclaim
the opening of the Olympic Games of 1976.

[commentator 3] Nadia Comaneci,
the 14-year-old many people are suggesting

will win the All-Around title here

at the Olympic Games in Montreal.

[interviewer] How often
are you asked about Montreal?

Every time I'm asked about those Olympics.
[chuckles]

[commentator] Indicates that she's ready.

[commentator 2] Chris, this could be
the highlight of the compulsory event.

Oh, look at that amplitude.

Ooh! She is really moving well.

Another handstand.
Look at that, right to the handstand!

[commentator] Faultless.
Absolutely faultless.

[cheering]

[commentator] Nadia Comaneci.

Now what are the judges
gonna say about that?

-[commentator 3] There!
-[commentator 2] A perfect ten!

The first time I have ever seen that.

[commentator] And that is
Olympic history for Nadia Comaneci.

[Nadia] Every year,
I'm more proud of the little girl

who, uh, made history
in a way that will never be passed,

because the first to do something.

It will be a, uh, record
that will never be broken.

[commentator] No woman gymnast
in the history of the Olympics

has matched the achievement
of this 14-year-old Romanian champion.

[announcer] Nadia Comaneci, Roumanie.

[Simone] What Nadia did
with the sport popularity,

it's amazing,
and she will be forever known

and engraved in the books
for that perfect ten.

She projected everything forward
to where we are today.

[Nadia] All-Around, Bars, and Beam.

The youngest, the first, the…

Do you remember the second person
who went to the Moon?

Okay. [chuckles]

From that moment, the idea of
the pixie, small, young gymnast was born.

[commentator]
Fifteen-year-old Phoebe Mills.

Three US members are 15.

[commentator 2] Boginskaya.

Let's not forget
this very attractive 15-year-old Soviet.

[commentator 3]
Fifteen-year-old Natalia Laschenova.

[commentator 4] Next up,
Dominique Moceanu.

Fourteen years old

in the Olympic Games.

I was an elite gymnast
at nine and a half years old.

So 40 hours a week of training
began at that time.

The youngest national champion ever.
Did you know you could do this?

I was hoping and praying, you know.

I wanted it really bad, and I did.
And I'm very happy.

The coaches wanted the prepubescent teen

because before they hit puberty,

they have a certain look.

Don't rush. Remember, don't rush.

[Dominique] And also,
you can control them more.

[commentator] She captured
the heart of America last night.

[cheering]

Kids are so young, though, Bob.
Eight, nine years old.

What happens to the ones who don't win?

-So few can become medalists.
-[Bob] It's true the odds are very long.

But they do still realize
that they have to plan ahead

for education and career goals.

This is broadcasting's favorite topic.

Yeah, let's do it.

A really big topic of conversation

is the age shift
that we're seeing in the sport.

The lifespan for gymnastics
is really young.

I retired in the same year as my dad.
Okay, that's really telling.

[commentator] Let's meet Team USA.

Sixteen years old
from Old Bridge, New Jersey,

Laurie Hernandez.

We were being fed and told
that because our bodies are younger,

we can recover better,

and there's a bit more of, like,
a mental willingness to try new skills,

and there's a lot less fear.

Just all of these pros.

[Simone] As we get older, our bodies,

we used to think that they were kind of,

like, rusting.

It's all we knew.

It's like, you peak at 16,
and then after that, you get a woman body,

and then who knows what's gonna happen?

[O'Beirne] In other sports,
it is not normal

to be so injured
that that's the end of your career

after you've reached
the height of it one time.

Imagine if that was the norm
in the NFL, in hockey.

[commentator] Got seven in ten drives!

-More rings than any NFL franchise!
-[commentator 2] The Stanley Cup!

[commentator 3] …is now 40.
The greatest of all time.

An incomparable era of tennis.

You never have the stars
that you have in those sports.

And Simone is one of the people
who has shown,

if you train wisely,

if you don't have a coach who has
raised you to be completely damaged

by the time you get to the Olympic Games,

then you can sustain
and have a career that goes on.

It's like the older you get,
the more aches and pains you get.

Gymnast or not,
those aches and pains are gonna kick in.

It just means you have to train smarter.

Actually pay attention to mental health

and how the brain
is affecting physical performance.

[Simone] Everybody thought I was
gonna go downhill or be washed up.

It's definitely changing.

The sport has given us room
to kind of take breaks,

whether that's mentally or physically,

and come back to the sport.

[Laurie] For an athlete like Simone,

there's a reason why we're seeing
very few injuries from her.

Now it's just about paying attention
to up here.

[O'Beirne] If Simone wins
any medal in Paris,

it means the narrative can finally change,

and some of that damage

of "teenagers are the only ones
that can do it" can be undone.

It's also a sign
that she controls the narrative.

She decides what the story is.

She is the one who is in control
of her own life and her own career.

Badass women.

They do what they want.

-[Jonathan] You ready?
-[Simone] Okay. Cheers to Chicago.

[Jonathan] Chicago!

[squeals]

[giggles]

Whoo-hoo! Oh! Oh!

[Simone] Jonathan just got picked up
by the Chicago Bears.

We're excited about it
because we do love the city of Chicago.

-Cheers to Chicago.
-Chicago.

I think it's important
that we make time for each other

while we're doing our sports because
it's time that we'll never get back.

It's exciting any time
I get to go and support him.

Jonathan's throwing out the first pitch.

I'm coming! I'm coming!

[Jonathan] Oh!

-I'm Michael. Pleasure. Welcome.
-Jonathan.

Welcome to Chicago.
Welcome to our ballpark.

-Hi. Simone. Nice to meet you.
-Simone, how are you?

[Simone] You excited? You nervous?

[Jonathan] Is it bad if it's lobbed?

Is a lob, like, frowned upon?

As a professional first-pitch thrower,
my advice to you…

[laughs]

I think I've thrown out the first pitch
gotta be five times or so. Maybe more.

[announcer] Please welcome
to the mound Simone Biles.

[Simone] The only thing I never wanna do

is end up on, like,
the bad-first-throw YouTube.

So I try to cheat my way
by doing some gymnastics.

Everybody's like, "She's a gymnast."

"No. I'm trying to get
the closest I can before I have to throw."

I'm not throwing. He's throwing.

[woman] You gonna go out there with him?

-[grunts]
-[Simone laughs]

Hey, I don't know how to do it!

How are you supposed to do it?

I was really excited about it
because I wanted him to be nervous.

I wanted him to be on the fails.

I hope he hits it right in the dirt.

-[laughs]
-But now I'm gonna… ah.

Right in the dirt.

[announcer] Please welcome one of
the newest members of your Chicago Bears,

Jonathan Owens!

[cheering]

Whoo!

Whoo!

That was the most perfect throw
that he could've thrown.

So athletic.

Which is good.
It was, like, hot. It was sexy, you know?

But he's way too talented because
everything he does, he has to do it well.

Yes, sir!

[laughs]

Whatever.

[Jonathan] I love being able
to support each other.

So annoying.

We wanna be the most human
that we can be with each other

because it's hard being in the public eye.

-Go Bears, baby! Go Bears, baby!
-Welcome to the Bears, man!

She's been dealing with this since 2013,
you know what I mean?

She helps me, like, know how to deal
with it and know what to respond to.

[Simone] I'm gonna start signing these
'cause I got you.

-You got me?
-[Simone] Yep.

You gonna get me right, baby.

[Simone] In the beginning,
appearing to outsiders' views

is they were the biggest fan of Jonathan,
and then he did an interview,

and it was actually taken out of context.

How in the hell did you pull Simone Biles?

[Jonathan laughs]

How did you do that, bro?

Man, it's really how she pulled me, man.

-That's the question.
-Oh Lord, Jesus, now you with Freddie--

Did you tell her
you didn't know who she was?

Actually, my question to her was,
like, "Who's your competition?"

-I didn't know nothing about gymnastics.
-Nobody.

[Simone] And then they became
Jonathan's biggest haters.

He knew who she was.
She was on a Wheaties box.

Everybody knows who Simone Biles is.

I don't know who he is.

Mr. Simone Biles apparently didn't know
who the GOAT was.

[woman] Simone Biles' husband
is a walking red flag.

I'm sorry, what is your name?

You're literally Mr. Biles to me.

[woman 2] Mr. Biles got more attention
tonight than he gets at his own games.

[woman 3] He will never be the prize,
but she definitely is.

[woman 4] I still don't like him.

"Who is that guy
kissing the world's greatest 'gyminist'?"

Because he spelled it wrong.

[chuckles]

Who's gonna go to somebody's profile
and say who you can or can't love?

Like, that's just ridiculous.

People are just… [scoffs]

[Simone] They equate our love

to the amount of trophies
and medals and accolades that I have,

and that's not how you measure love.

Like, that doesn't equate to how much
my husband loves me or likes me.

Just how you wouldn't want someone,

like, bad-talking your relationship
behind your back. Like…

It's just disrespectful.

Like, nobody… You wouldn't do it
to anyone else, you know, so…

We're all human at the end of the day.

Like, regardless of what your job is,

you wake up and brush your teeth
the same way.

You know, there's no difference.

It's just your job
and that it's televised.

[Simone] Social media gives them
this false sense of reality

that they really know who you are
and how you function.

Most of the time, they don't understand
the mental toll it takes,

especially going into an Olympic year.

I know we signed up
to be judged in the gym,

but when you guys are gonna
talk about him or my family,

yeah, I'm gonna come at you guys.

Me, it's different a part.
Most of the time, I bite my tongue.

Now I'm like, "Yeah, I have a voice.
I've always had a voice."

Just because
you didn't think I would see it

doesn't mean I'm not obligated to respond.

It's crazy.

But I deleted Twitter,
so I'm all good now.

[reporter] The 2024 Olympic torch
has been lit.

[reporter 2] Now, the city says it expects
more than 15 million people to be here

during the time of the Games.

[reporter 3] Iconic parts of Paris
have had an Olympic makeover.

[reporter 4] They are expecting
almost four billion viewers globally.

One more medal in gymnastics is what
Simone Biles is going to be going for.

[reporter 5] Simone Biles is the GOAT,
the most decorated gymnast in history.

[reporter 6] Does it kind of feel
like déjà vu for you, Simone?

[birds chirping]

This is Simone's quilt

that I had someone make for her.

We have T-shirts

at pretty much all the events
that we attend for Simone's competition.

Um, I don't know what they…
just how it starts,

but this is the middle of the quilt,

which is Bannon's Gymnastix.

That's where she started.

[indistinct chatter]

[Simone] The first time
I was exposed to gymnastics, really,

was a daycare field trip.

Everything happens for a reason,

and that day, we were supposed to go
to the oil ranch,

and it had been, like, rained out,
so we ended up at the gym down the street.

So I feel like, if it didn't rain,

then I probably wouldn't be
a gymnast to this day.

It took years being in the sport
to realize I was good.

I was very wild,

very funky.

Couldn't straighten my legs,
point my toes, all of that good stuff.

They knew I had power, but they were like,
"It doesn't matter if she has power

if she doesn't learn to harness it
and to correct her form."

[cheering]

It was a little bit
of backyard gymnastics.

I grew into it.

I've probably been to at least
a hundred or more of her competitions

from the time she started
when she was six until now.

I remember the first one she had.

The judge making the comments,

"Well, we have to give her the medal
with her muscles."

"We just have to give her a medal."

[Simone] I would say, like, 2013.

Whenever I was going to camps
and making national teams,

then I was like,
"Whoo, maybe I could go to the Olympics."

[cheering]

Simone's journey has been for years.

You tend to forget
just how much she has done

and how much she has accomplished.

So if you have something like this
that's… that tells a story,

I think it's good to have something

to show just what her journey
has been so far.

-[woman] Yeah!
-[woman 2] Come on, Simone!

[cheering]

[Simone] I was just doing gymnastics
for the love of it

and no, like, consequences or anything.

And now it's like there's a lot
on my plate if something goes wrong.

[applause]

[Nellie] It was good. She was always
excited about wearing her competition leo

and me combing her hair.

Because she relies on us as a family

to be there for her, to listen to her.

[Ron] Just go out there and have fun
and be yourself.

Be safe. That's all.

And whether you win or lose,
we still gonna love you.

That's it. We still feel the same way.

[cheering]

[reporter] Simone,
as well as 15 other hopefuls,

now on their way to the Olympic trials.

The pressure is high for Team USA.

We get to a point
where our routines are so consistent

that we are working like machines.

'Cause we're Team USA.
I mean, that's all we're known for.

A while back,
I had landed in the pit weird,

and I, like, hyperextended my knee,
and it just has not stopped hurting.

Ow.

Sometimes my knee shifts over,
and it's just not on the correct, like,

tracking path, so it gets really irritated

It used to be,
whenever I would land on the floor,

I thought I was gonna pass out
'cause it would hurt so bad.

So then that's why we decided to do
the injection, to see if that worked.

And it worked for a little bit.

And then it didn't.

[O'Beirne] Simone has not suffered
the kind of injuries

that other gymnasts have, typically.

It does make me really nervous that
she's never had a really serious injury.

It's just so rare.

[Simone] And on top of that,

after championships,
I'm not really sure what happened.

I think it was just, like… training.
I'm just getting old.

No. No. [chuckles]

My calf started really hurting.

Then the doctor came in,
and we did an ultrasound.

I had told him,
"I don't think it's my Achilles."

"I think it's behind my Achilles."

And so I just have a small tear
in my calf muscle.

You know how I said
I was aging like fine wine?

Yeah, I think it's starting to rot.

So…

Just so you know.

A doctor would say, like,
"Take a couple days off,"

all of that stuff,
but we don't really have that time.

Still, I don't think…
I don't hear the table, so you're not

pushing it hard enough.

[Laurent] When the body
is not hundred percent

and you ask him to be hundred percent
on the field of play,

and then you question yourself.

But if the mind is ready,
it's like the body follows.

[Laurent] Like yesterday.
Yesterday, you were going there…

We definitely need to make sure
we ice after a workout

and put some heat before
to warm up the muscle,

but, like, you gotta do your job as well.

[Simone] I have to take extra precaution

about how I work towards healing my body
after every workout.

My body is on a ticking time b*mb.

That's how I feel.

[Cécile] So like that.

[Simone] I just turned too fast.

Yeah, but you gotta do it at the meet.
You go even faster at a meet.

We gotta figure it out now
before you lose one-tenth on dance.

[Simone] Still some days
where I come to the gym, like,

"Ugh, a couple more routines.
Let's just, like…"

"Let's get through the day."

[Cécile] Good. Come on.

Okay.

[Simone] But you have Olympic trials
to look forward to,

and you're like, "I wish it was
a week away instead of two weeks away."

[sighs]

[interviewer] You know you always joke
about how old you are, um… and you're not.

I'm not joking. I am.

No, no, no, I always joke
about how old I am for a gymnast.

Because in real life, whenever
I'm out on the streets, I'm young. Mm-hmm!

You can't touch me, but in the gym,
I'm like… [breathes heavily]

"Is there a chair?"

[reporter] The countdown rolls on.

We're just four weeks away
from the opening ceremony in Paris,

and this is the last weekend
of the US Olympic trials.

It is the women here tonight.

[Nadia] She's in a unique position.

What she tells to herself,

that's what she needs to do.

Not what everybody else says
that she needs to accomplish.

She may need to accomplish nothing.

[Simone] Going to any competition
or Olympic trials,

I never feel like I'm a lock,

'cause we also thought 2020
was gonna go better than it did.

So many people have an opinion
on how things should be done.

And she's like, "No.
I'm gonna do it how I want to do it."

Oh, I would love to see more of that.

I always feel like day one is really good,

and then day two is a little bit more
tiring mentally and physically.

And I've always been very humble,

but now I just feel like
I really do take it a day at a time.

[Cécile] Trials, you have
two days of competition.

At the end, they add both days.

The number-one athlete
is automatically on the team.

The other four spots
is up to the selection committee.

Olympic trials is your one and only shot
to get on the Olympic team.

Period. End of story. That's it.

Even on that one, don't you feel
that you're still rushing it?

Just swing around that bar.

You do much better in training
than right now.

[Simone] Between this morning's workout
and yesterday's workout,

I felt pretty stressed out.

Oh my God, so I just,
like, finally broke down this morning.

I went to the bathroom and had a good cry,
and I was like, "Okay, moving on."

[Cécile] Good, good, good. Come on.

[Simone] I knew
that I was gonna cry at some point,

but I thought it'd be at, like,
Classics, Championships,

like, second-guessing myself if I'm ready,

not at Olympic trials
when I know I'm ready and prepared.

[commentator] This meet really has
a lot of drama that is starting to build

with injuries and intrigue as well.

But there is still one stand-alone star,
and that is Simone Biles.

[mysterious music playing]

[Simone] All righty, let's see
how that stays today.

We shall see.

Nah, she did a better job
this time, though.

-[Simone] What are you talking about?
-No, the braid look good.

Baby, I'm talking about my flyaways.

[Jonathan] I was saying the braid…

I can't see, so I don't know.

I don't understand what you're saying,

'cause the braid has nothing to do
with the flyways that I have.

[Jonathan] I was complimenting your braid.

[Simone] Leading up to a meet,
like, in the room while getting ready,

that's when I'm most anxious

and nervous
because I just want the meet to be here.

[fingers crack]

I'm ready.

Once somebody puts a label on you,

you kinda have to step up
and do even more than expected.

I just think
I have to keep a good headspace,

and I have to just do
nothing more, nothing less

once we get out there.

-[Jonathan] 3:05.
-Okay.

Oh yeah, I'm first on beam today.

-[woman] g*dd*mn, Simone.
-[Cécile] All the way through. Come on.

-That'll be nice, though.
-[Jonathan] So what do you end on?

Bars.

[Laurent] Bars. Step forward.

[Jonathan] So you gotta do
the vault a little tired.

[Simone] What?

You gotta go to the vault a little tired?

-[Simone] I know. I hate that.
-[Jonathan] Yeah.

-[Laurent] Even more.
-[Cécile] More round.

[Laurent] Better try that. Come on.

Get in the ring, little thing.

[Jonathan] It's gonna be cold.
Are your lips gonna be…

Do your lips stay good the whole time,
or do you ever have to…

Didn't you see it two nights ago?

-It stayed the whole night.
-Mm.

It'll stay the whole night.

Pardon me.

[chuckles]

-What?
-You don't think she did the braid better?

-It looks the exact same.
-Nah.

It looks the exact same.

-[Jonathan] I promise you, it doesn't.
-It's just… I did my edges better.

It looks the exact same.

You see I'm about to learn, babe.

[Simone] I don't know
what you're talking about.

-Can we see what's on TV?
-[Simone] I don't care.

Before the Olympics is always
anxiety ridden and anxiety filled,

and it's just
one of those situations where,

"Okay, it's time now.
Like, it's go time. It's so close."

[Laurent] She's very demanding of herself.

Hopefully, we gonna keep going up and up,

ramping it up
in the quality of her gymnastics.

But, uh, it's the day of the competition.

You don't know what's gonna happen,
really.

I feel like once we get past
beam and floor, then I'll be good.

[Jonathan speaks indistinctly]

You truly feel like you're gonna
throw up, cry, pee yourself.

Like, just all the things.

So it's an honor and a privilege
to feel that pressure.

[gasps] I forgot my other… I need, uh…

-My leo's upstairs… [chuckles]
-I got you, baby.

-I got you.
-In the… in the, um…

-Just bring the whole Athleta bag.
-[Jonathan] I got you.

[Jonathan] There was two Athleta bags,
so I grabbed both.

I said the one with my leo
by the trash can.

[woman] He got it!

He's a little sad. I'm being mean to him.

[both giggle]

[Jonathan] Literally ran down.

[indistinct chatter]

My mom says I'm mean on meet days.

Nah, you're just, like, focused.

-[woman] Have everything?
-Okay. Bye.

-Love you.
-Love you too. Good luck, baby.

-[Simone] Thanks.
-See you in a few.

-[Simone] Okay.
-All right.

[cheering and applause]

[commentator] It is the final evening of
the US Olympic team trials in gymnastics.

There will be deliberation, elation,
and emotion coming up.

Should be a great night.

[announcer] From Spring, Texas,

Simone Biles!

[cheering]

[commentator] Simone Biles.

Leader after day one,
trying to lock down her spot on Team USA.

[cheering]

[Simone] It is one of the hardest teams
in the world to make,

which we're so grateful
that we have that depth,

but it is really stressful

because we can have
one, two, three teams at the Olympics

go over and probably do really well,

but unfortunately, we're only allowed
to take one team and only five athletes.

[commentator] 13 athletes
competing tonight,

but we had three more that many expected
to be right there to make the team.

And unfortunately, injuries set in.

Skye Blakely. Take you back to Wednesday,
podium training.

[announcer 2] We knew something serious
had happened right when she landed.

Had to be carried off the floor.

[commentator] So an Achilles injury
for Skye Blakely.

And then Kayla DiCello on vault.

[commentator 2] Oh, whoa.

[commentator] Also an Achilles.

[Simone] It's so sad
seeing a teammate go down.

Mentally, it affects all of the athletes.

[commentator] Shilese Jones, another one
that, beginning of the week, you say,

"Yeah, she's gonna make the team."
This was in warm-up.

Unable to go to night two.

[Laurie] They're all competing
against one another, but they're friends.

They've been friends for years on end.

So it's so hard
to watch your friends go down,

like, crying, getting wheelchaired off.

It's a really scary feeling,
and then looking at that and thinking,

"Hmm, okay. Um, I have to compete now."

So just gotta figure out how to reset.

[Laurie] So tense out here.

I mean, I feel like I've had a tummyache
the whole night, and I'm not completing.

The stakes are so high.

They've worked so hard for this,
and you can see it in their work.

[Simone] Whenever something like that
happens, you're so terrified.

An injury can happen
to any of us at any point.

So I think we get a little bit wary
once that happens.

[Cécile] I know Simone,
she was scared of she would get hurt next,

and that's when
we kind of told the girls, like,

"Hey, stay in your bubble.
Just try not to look around."

But it's easier said than done.
Like, we all felt it.

It's good. Be normal.

Don't overthink.

You can do it every day.

[Simone] Most are gonna start to overthink
all of the logistics we never think about.

[cheering]

[Laurent] They're almost
at the end right now,

and they just need to focus
on what they've been working on

for the past couple of years.

[suspenseful music playing]

[cheering]

But as soon as you put question
in your mind,

then this is where trouble comes,
and then mistake can happen.

[spectator] Come on, Simone!

[suspenseful music ends]

[commentator 2] Didn't quite get
her back foot down,

but they need to be able to hit
under pressure here.

[Laurie] Mistakes happen,
and she cares so much

and has such a high expectation
for herself.

But she can make those mistakes,
and she's gonna be on the team.

[suspenseful music playing]

[cheering]

[O'Beirne] She could literally fall
three to five times,

that's a whole point, and still win.

That's how good she is.

-So annoying.
-[Laurent] But it was a great routine.

Better to happen now
than in a couple of weeks.

I've worked, what? Twenty-seven years
for this. You know what I'm saying?

And most people work 27 years to retire.

-[spectator 1] Come on, Simone!
-[spectator 2] Come on! Come on!

[Simone] Nothing just, like,
sets your heart on fire like that.

Being so determined for a goal

that you've worked your entire life to do.

[commentator] Simone Biles
makes impossible an opinion.

I never thought I would see
someone do gymnastics the way she does.

[commentator 2] Check it out.
She went 12 feet in the air.

[cheering]

[Simone] Yes, we're gonna have
other big milestones in our life,

but you'll just never feel what it's like
to work your whole life for something

and you to have one chance at it.

[commentator] And as expected, everybody
out of their seats at the Target Center.

Simone Biles cannot be caught.

She will be heading back to the Olympics.
The winner of the all-around here.

[cheering]

I can't believe I'm about to say this,
but at 27 years old,

you are the oldest female American gymnast
since the 1950s…

-Yeah.
-…to head to the Olympics.

[cheering]

[Simone] I knew I wasn't done
after the performances in Tokyo,

so just getting back in the gym
and working hard

and trusting the process
with Cécile and Laurent,

I knew I'd be back.

-[gymnast] Ready?
-[all] One, two, three, go USA!

[Simone] The same feeling, the rush.

I don't think I'll ever be as nervous

as I'll be at trials, at the Olympics,

as I'll be again in life.

[announcer] Your 2024
Team USA women's Olympic team!

[cheering]

[squealing]

[Simone] My end goal,
and I feel like I can say this,

because I have done,
like, two Olympic Games,

so many World Championships…

My goal isn't
to make an Olympic team anymore.

It's to, like, go over
and win the Olympics.

[indistinct chatter]

[Jonathan] Ah!

[commentator] So Simone Biles
left the floor,

and now she's coming back.

[commentator 2] She does not know
what her ankle's gonna do.

She didn't get to test it again
after she hurt it,

so her first pass is gonna be a warm-up.

That was a bad moment for me

simply because I did not know
what was going on.

[commentator] Simone continues
to test that lower leg.

I think, in the moment, we had
very little time to make a decision.

Should she continue the competition?
Is it safe for her to compete?

I'm gonna sit a little
'cause they'll probably wait.

[spectators] Allez, Simone!

[woman] And making sure that she knew,

or if she felt
"I'm not sure I'm safe enough to go,"

then she wasn't going to go.

[Simone] On every single punch and
takeoff, I could definitely feel my calf.

But we're doing so much,
you can't really focus on it.

[Simone] So I need to do a hop on.

And then a layout and a double… whatever.

[Laurent] I know it was hurting

because I can see in the face
a little bit of… she start to freak out.

It's only pain. Pain will be there.
Don't worry. It's not gonna go away.

But your readiness
is not gonna go away neither.

[commentator] The atmosphere in this place
has changed a bit.

Apprehension right now

after watching her struggle
with the lower leg.

[commentator 2] They know her story.

They know this is the event
where it happened at the last Olympics.

[Simone] Qualifications
is super stressful.

We know how much that can impact
the rest of our Olympic trajectory.

[Laurent] It's actually
a very important day

to… to have a good day,
the first day of qualifications.

Pretty much make it or break it
for the rest of the week.

[Nellie] Obviously,
she looked like she was hurt.

And it didn't go away.

[commentator] US has made their way over
to vault. The warm-up for Simone Biles.

[Laurent] I hope she can give
hundred percent of herself

and actually does
what she's prepared to do.

Can I crawl?

[commentator] Whatever was hurting,
it's hurting more now.

[commentator 2] Tell me if I'm wrong.
That's painful anyway.

[commentator] Oh yeah.

[Simone] It's either that or hopping.

I'm gonna need a wheelchair.

[Simone] Because I'm so anxious about it

that I feel like,
"Everything's gonna be okay."

"Calm down. Don't freak out."

And you don't know if it's a fluke yet.

[commentator] The stakes are as high
as they were in Tokyo,

but the vibe is different.

[commentator 3] Now then,
it's Simone Biles on vault.

[suspenseful music playing]

[commentator 3] My goodness me!

We will see the Yurchenko double pike,

and we will witness
the hardest vault out there in the world.

[Laurent] What I care about,
that she can handle her pain

and that everything is under control
and that it doesn't get worse.

[Simone] They were like, "Are you okay?"
I'm like, "We are not doing this again."

[chuckles] "We're not doing this again."

[cheering]

[Aly] Gymnastics is so dangerous as it is,

and I honestly don't know
how she continued to go.

But she said something to me after
that will always stick with me

and really broke my heart.

And I asked her, "How did you do it
when you were in so much pain?"

And she said, "I couldn't have people
tell me I was a quitter again."

[reporter] Why make it easy?

My goodness, the legend grows.

[reporter 2] She's through qualification,
but the big question.

How is her calf? How is the injury?

What next for Simone Biles?

♪ Will you ♪

♪ Come with ♪

♪ Me to Paris? ♪

♪ I know I will sing you the night away ♪

♪ And we'll give it our last dance ♪

♪ Will you ♪

♪ Come with ♪

♪ Me to Paris? ♪

♪ I need you to give us
Just one more chance ♪

♪ Need you to give us
Just one more chance ♪

♪ Did you ever think of coming back ♪

♪ To find me, spark my love? ♪

♪ Do you now regret it all? ♪

♪ You got me in a silver platter ♪

♪ Does it even matter ♪

♪ What we call ourselves? ♪

♪ Why don't you give in
Take off, begin? ♪

♪ And I'll hold onto your fears
We'll take it all from here ♪

♪ We'll travel round the sphere
And make it last a year ♪

♪ We can stop when our limbs run cold ♪

♪ And make it last, make it last forever ♪

♪ But maybe that's just daydreaming ♪

♪ I know we're getting
Just a little closer ♪

♪ To be honest
Rather keep my clothes on ♪

♪ All you ever do is hurt me, baby ♪

♪ Tu me haces daño, so maybe ♪

♪ I'll keep you out
For just a little longer ♪

♪ To be honest
It just feels so wrong, and ♪

♪ All you ever do is hurt me, baby ♪

♪ Tu me haces daño, so tell me ♪

♪ Will you ♪

♪ Come with ♪

♪ Me to Paris? ♪

♪ I need you to give us
Just one more chance ♪

♪ Need you to give us
Just one more chance… ♪

[lyrics in Spanish]