Devastated Simone Biles Made Hurtful Confession About Gymnastics Career: “Shoulders Still Shaking”

She would go on to become the most decorated gymnast in history, redefine what excellence means in sports, and become the face of resilience worldwide. Simone Biles has flown higher than anyone ever dared. She has twisted physics, reimagined gravity, and made it look effortless. Eleven Olympic medals. Thirty World Championship medals. Five eponymous skills in the Code of Points. But long before the cheers, cameras, and historic landings—long before she found the courage to say “mental health matters” to the world—there was silence and heartbreak. Yes, everyone knows about the twisties. But let’s go back further—before Tokyo 2021, before the world paused with her. Because of the seed of Simone Biles’ greatness? It wasn’t planted in a stadium. It took root on a quiet night in 2011, soaked in tears, disappointment, and a missed opportunity that nearly knocked the wind out of her dream. And that moment? It nearly broke her.

Simone Biles was 14 years old when she stepped onto the floor at the 2011 U.S. Junior Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota. She didn’t know it yet, but this meeting would etch itself into the underbelly of her story. She placed 14th in the all-around. Thirteen gymnasts were selected for the U.S. junior national team. Simone Biles missed the cut by one. One spot. One moment. One fall. And it crushed her.“My bright, pasted-on smile hid my bitter disappointment,” she later wrote in Courage to Soar. “Coming in at number fourteen in the rankings, I’d missed making the thirteen-woman team by a hair, but it might as well have been a mile… Everything felt unreal in that moment, like a bad dream I couldn’t wake up from.”

The hotel room wasn’t just a place to sleep that night—it was a place to break. Simone, 14, had just missed the national team by one heartbreaking spot. Her world felt like it was caving in. She collapsed onto the bed, sobbing. Her mom, Nellie, knelt beside her. “Baby, it’s okay to cry,” she whispered, rubbing soft circles on Simone’s back. “But this is not the end. This is just one night. Tomorrow, we get back up.”

Her dad, Ronald, stood nearby, quietly ordering food. He didn’t try to fix it—he tried to ground her. “You’re allowed to feel this. But remember who you are,” he said gently. “One meet doesn’t define you.” And then came the call—a tether in the storm. “Hey, girl,” His brother Ron began. “You’re just one slot off—that is something. Use it. Let this drive you. You’re almost there. Maybe it’s not your time yet, but trust me—your day will come. You’re that good.” Even as tears soaked her palms, his voice broke through.

“Simone,” he added, “stop being so hard on yourself. All of us are proud of you. Now take your shower—and promise me, no more tears.” It wasn’t just reassurance. It was belief. The kind that builds champions. “My shoulders still shaking, my face still wet, I promised.”

Simone Biles hasn’t looked back since that day

After missing out on the national team, Simone Biles could have walked away. But instead, she walked into the gym and changed everything. Her longtime coach, Aimee Boorman, who guided her for 11 years at the World Champions Centre in Spring, Texas, didn’t let her wallow. She looked Simone in the eyes and said, “You have to understand you’re every bit as good as those other girls. Now you just have to perform as if you believe it.”

Together, they reviewed Simone’s routines and pinpointed the issue: overthinking. It made her tighten up, and when she was tense, mistakes crept in. Aimee encouraged her to take bold steps: train longer, drill harder, build confidence so deep that nerves couldn’t touch it. “As we reviewed my videos, we talked about my tendency to overthink my performance, which made me tighten up. And when I’m tight, mistakes are inevitable. I’m not in control; my nervous energy is running the show. Aimee told me to be bold about adding hours to my training regimen so I could become so rock solid on all my skills, I could go out and just enjoy myself in competition,” she wrote in her book.

And the results followed. In 2012, Simone finished third in the U.S. junior all-around. By 2013, she had won the senior all-around title—the first of four consecutive national crowns. Then came the Rio Olympics, where she soared to four gold medals and one bronze.

Since that pivotal shift, Simone hasn’t slowed down. With 41 medals across the Olympics and World Championships, she’s not just one of the greatest gymnasts ever—she’s the blueprint of triumph over adversity.