Born in Columbus, Ohio, Simone moved to Texas when she was 3 years old to live with her maternal grandfather, Ron, and his wife, Nellie, who adopted and raised her alongside her little sister, Adria. A chance day-care trip to a gymnasium at age 6 revealed a talent for tumbling and immediately attracted the attention of Boorman, who recalls her first impression of the young supernova: “She was so bouncy and muscular.” “Glad you found a great therapist. I have yet to find one non-affirming therapist.” Simone’s daring acrobatics have raised the bar in the playbook of gymnastics. Her signature floor-routine move, now officially called The Biles — a double layout with a half twist and forward landing, which she originally devised to relieve pain from a bone spur in her ankle — has assisted in Simone is heavily favored to nearly sweep Rio, but she maintains that her top priority is staying healthy. Beyond that, she says she hopes to contribute to a consecutive group gold for the United States. As Simone shares, “The team comes first.”Photographed by Jason Kibbler