What Does Simone Biles Write on the Balance Beam?

Getty Images Simone Biles' balance beam markings explained.

Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles has been competing in the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, France. There’s one thing that Biles and many of the other gymnasts have done during the competition that has left some people with questions.

Biles and others have been known to write things on the balance beam during the competition. Former Olympian Shawn Johnson has explained what that’s all about.

“A lot of times it’s like personal notes. You’re not, like, writing words. You’re not literally, like, writing out words. But you’re marking it. So, as you’re going through your routine, it can be really good place holders or reminders for yourself to say, like, ‘oh, start your skill here.’ You don’t want to be before it or behind it. It’s just like little mental notes and reminders throughout your routine. Does that make sense?” Johnson said on her Instagram Stories on July 31.

Johnson is in Paris providing commentary and cheering on the Golden Girls (Biles, Jordan Chiles, Sunisa Lee, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera).

Biles will be going for gold in the balance beam event on August 5.

Simone Biles Marks the Balance Beam With What Looks Like a Dollar Sign

Biles has been known to mark the balance beam before competing. However, she doesn’t just make a small line to mark her spot as Johnson suggested.

“You see, everybody puts their line on the beam, so I can never tell which one is mine. So, I put an ‘S’ on it, and it happens to turn into a dollar sign. People think I do it on purpose, but I don’t,” Biles told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2014.

Biles is poised to win gold in the balance beam event, but she has to stay focused — and healthy. Biles is competing in the 2024 Olympic Games with a sore calf. She’s been spotted competing with her lower leg taped up and has even been seen limping from time to time.

When a reporter asked if she was OK, she responded, “as good as I can be,” according to CNN. Nevertheless, she helped the Golden Girls win gold in the women’s all around on July 30.

Simone Biles Was Upset With Herself After Her Balance Beam Performance at the 2024 Gymnastics Trials

During the 2024 U.S. Olympic gymnastics trials in June, the gymnast was a bit more wobbly than she would have liked.

She was “very, very pissed,” her coach, Laurent Landi said, according to USA Today. “Her mental is still — it’s never going to be healed completely, so this is why she really needs to calm herself down,” Landi continued, adding, “she needs to rely on her own practice. … She hits everything perfectly normal.”

Biles herself spoke to the press about getting the wobbles during the event.

“I’m so upset about beam,” Biles told NBC after the outing. “I’m really disappointed in myself because that’s not how I train. And so going forward, I’m going to try to compete how I train on that event. Because I know I’m good at it. I know I can do better. So that’s what I’m going to work on,” she added.

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