Part 2 of “Simone Biles: Rising,” which premieres on Friday, October 25, follows the gymnast’s road to redemption at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Before the final two episodes were released on Netflix, director Katie Walsh spoke exclusively with Heavy Sports about one of the most stressful moments of Biles’ Olympic journey.
During the qualifying round, the first day of competition, Biles suffered a calf stain during warmups. While Biles went on to help Team USA win gold and reclaim her title as the all-around champion, there was serious concern that her Olympic journey was over before it started, much like her devastating run at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
“I was very stressed,” Walsh told Heavy Sports. “We were around the perimeter of the competition floor in Paris, myself and my camera woman, Jessica… I just remember there was sweat dripping down because I was like, ‘Gosh, what’s going to happen?’ There’s nothing we could do in the moment.”
“We couldn’t get involved. She was in the middle of competition and we just watched and waited to see how things were gonna go.”
The following day, Walsh waited on the sidewalk outside the Olympic Village for nearly three hours while Biles went through all her medical examinations. “It was like being in a waiting room,” she said. “We just had to wait and see and luckily we were able to speak with her later that day and she was able to give us a first-hand account of what was going on and how she was feeling.”
In the show’s trailer, former Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman says of Biles’ injury, “I asked [Biles], ‘How did you do it in so much pain?’ And she said ‘I couldn’t have people tell me I was a quitter again.'”
Simone Biles Reveals Her ‘Authentic’ Self in the Netflix Docuseries
Biles was face the 2024 Paris Olympics. Cameras followed her every move. Considering the amount of pressure on her shoulders, and Biles’ focus on mental health, it was surprising that she filmed a docuseries throughout the competition.
However, Walsh built a strong trust with the 11-time medalist, as the filmmaker worked with her on the 2021 Facebook series “Simone Biles vs Herself.”
“She was so open with her feelings and her experiences and really just giving of her time and energy,” Walsh said. “And I think that the authenticity comes across in the film. The person that you see on camera is the person that I got to know behind the camera. She doesn’t change.
“I give her a lot of credit for doing that because I think she really is able to inspire other people by showing just the more human side of her. We see the super, superhuman side of her when she’s competing.
“But to get to know her as a person and for a broader audience to get to know her as a person means that we can all relate to her as a human being, see some of those highs and lows, and know that what she’s going through isn’t easy at times and it makes what she does on the gymnastics floor all that more impressive.”
Katie Walsh Captured the ‘Little Moments’ Not Shown on TV During the Paris Olympics
While Biles was a fixture on TV throughout NBC’s broadcast of the Olympics games, the Netflix series is a more behind-the-scenes look at her two-and-half-week journey throughout the competition.
“Everyone saw her success in Paris, but it’s also a little moments in between, the personal moments time with her mom, even just being with her family and the stands and seeing the way that they interact with her when she’s competing. That’s the stuff that you don’t get to see as much on the broadcast.
“So, I hope that those little moments help fill in the gaps a little bit and connect the dots for what her experience was really like. I wanted it to be her from her perspective, so you have a better understanding of what [it was really like] for her and for the family as they were going through it.”
With part 2 of “Simone Biles: Rising” premiering less than two months after the Paris Olympics came to an end, “I slept, but I didn’t rest,” Walsh said. “We just kept our heads down and moved forward the whole time… The whole team we have in post-production, they all worked so hard and really put everything into making those episodes.”
The hard work is already paying off. “Simone Biles: Rising” was nominated for two Critic’s Choice Awards, Best Sports Documentary and Best Sports Documentary.
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‘Simone Biles Rising’ Director Reveals Scary Truth Behind Gymnast’s Injury