Biles, Lyles and the gifted cast of the 33rd Olympiad

The superstar gymnast’s bid to conquer the twisties’ is one of many mouth-watering narratives

- Jack Rathborn

The Paris Olympics is poised to deliver sporting excellence in abundance; blink and you will miss something extraordinary on the biggest stage in sport.

While records will tumble and pages in sport's history books will be frantically rewritten across two action-packed weeks, those individuals who rise to seize the spotlight, forging memories for generations, will mostly do so by pairing their athletic prowess with a human story. This is why there is such a feverish anticipation for Simone Biles and her Olympic return.

Widely recognised as the greatest gymnast of all time, having amassed 37 medals across Olympic Games and world championships, Biles is ready to dominate again. Yet this journey to Paris, including a 732-day layoff, has made the 27year-old an inspiration beyond the arena.

The intrigue surrounding Biles’s return on Sunday at the Bercy Arena for the team event qualification has much to do with the ghosts of Tokyo. She succumbed to “the twisties”, the condition which leaves gymnasts suffering from a mental block and a dangerous loss of spatial awareness while performing.

“A big old spill,” as Biles recently described it, occurred three years ago, with the American unable to contain her trauma any more. Biles had become a leader in the years prior, forcing USA Gymnastics to change in 2018 after speaking out as a survivor of sexual abuse by Larry Nassar, the former USA team doctor. Her voice would lead to the closure of Karolyi Ranch, the training centre where many gymnasts were abused, while Mary Bono would later resign as USA Gymnastics president.

Diagnosed with depression and anxiety, Biles has become more relatable and maintains “nothing can break me” ahead of the Paris Games.