Rebeca Andrade made history of her own in Paris. Her four-medal tally, including one gold, made her the most decorated gymnast in Brazil’s Olympic history. Overcoming three ACL injuries in four years, the gymnast showed great determination to beat an inspired Simone Biles in the floor exercise at the Olympics, while running her close in other events. Despite her immense success, Andrade shares a trait with her rival- humbleness.
Winning the second Olympic gold medal of her career, Andrade took her haul to six medals. This added to her growing reputation as one of the best gymnasts in the world right now, with three world championship medals also to her name already.
But speaking after her successful campaign in Paris, she was quick to remind everyone of her roots. In an interview posted by GYMeme on X, Rebeca Andrade shared a heartwarming reflection: “My whole country, you know, being who I am, the way I am, the way people look at me today is really, really great, but for me I will always be Rebeca, daughter of Rosa, Chico’s athlete and I understand, really I understand the place I’m in and that’s why I said I’ll take care of it with so much affection.”
Andrade was born in Guarulhos, Brazil, in 1999 and took up gymnastics when she was four years old. With seven siblings and a single mother, she didn’t have it easy while growing up. The financial situation of the family meant she didn’t have much money to spend on her training and there were times when her brothers would walk her to the gym as they couldn’t afford a bus pass.
In her interview she further added, “But being Rebeca, for me, I have a lot of dreams, very big dreams but also keeping my foot on the ground, understanding my whole story, I think it’s what makes people keep admiring me, you know. And that’s how I’m going to be because it’s a soul and I love being the person I am.”
Andrade moved to Curitiba away from her family at the age of nine after her coach invited her to join a high-performance training center in the city. From there she moved to Rio de Janeiro, a year later.
Apart from her gold medal in floor exercise, Andrade won two silver medals- one each in vault and individual all-around competitions. She also helped her country clinch bronze in the team all-around event. Her comments about being “Rebeca” remind us of a similar statement by Biles after she won the individual all-around gold medal at the Olympics.
After her win, the American proudly rocked her GOAT necklace—a little reminder that even she knows she’s the greatest of all time. But she was humbled by the accolades she has been showered with. “At the end of the day, it’s crazy that I am in the conversation for the greatest of all athletes because I still think I’m Simone Biles from Spring, Texas, who loves to flip,” Biles said.
Despite the spirited rivalry, both Biles and Andrade have been respectful of each other as seen at the World Championships last year. The mutual admiration was on display again in Paris. These two incredible athletes have managed to lift each other in the most special ways.
Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade turned their fierce gymnastics rivalry into a friendship for the ages!
Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade’s rivalry has always had a special touch of closeness. Their paths first crossed on the Olympic stage in Rio 2016, where Biles claimed her first all-around gold. When Biles took a break from gymnastics to focus on her mental health, Andrade stepped up, winning the all-around title at the 2022 World Championships and gold on the vault at Tokyo 2020. At the 2023 World Championships, after Biles snagged gold in the floor final and Andrade earned silver, Biles crowned Andrade with her own gold medal—a gesture of grace and camaraderie that spoke volumes.
Their bond grew even deeper at the Paris Olympics. After their floor final, Biles and teammate Jordan Chiles bowed down to Olympic gold medallist Andrade. This moment was more than just a show of respect; it marked a historic first: an all-Black podium in gymnastics at the Olympics. “Rebeca’s so amazing, she’s a queen,” Biles said. “She’s such an excitement to watch and then all the fans in the crowd were always cheering for her, so it was just the right thing to do.”
Before this touching moment, Andrade had finished second in the all-around finals, just behind Simone Biles, whose stellar floor routine clinched the gold. Even with such close competition, Andrade remained gracious. “Simone is the best, and she brings out the best of me,” she said.
Biles, feeling the intense pressure of such close competition, admitted, “I’ve never had an athlete that close, so it definitely put me on my toes.” She even joked about not wanting to compete against Andrade again.
