Simone Biles returns to the mat for the same reason she left

3 years ago

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August 3, 2021

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! It’s Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, the Gates divorce is finalized, and Simone Biles is back. Have a great Tuesday.
– Comeback. The will-she or won’t-she drama that dominated the Tokyo games since last week concluded this afternoon Tokyo time when Simone Biles competed in her first individual event of the Games.
After pulling herself out of the team all-around, the individual all-around, and three apparatus finals for mental health reasons, the 24-year-old who’s considered the greatest gymnast of all time returned to the mat for the balance beam finals, her last chance to capture a 2020 individual medal.
What a return it was.
If Biles was suffering from any mental fatigue, it didn’t show as she executed her routine with few flaws, albeit with a less difficult dismount that avoided the twists that have haunted her. She was never a favorite to win gold in the event, and in the end, Guan Chenchen of China captured the top prize; Biles won bronze.
The medal—Biles’ seventh—ties her with Shannon Miller for the most-decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast of all time. But Biles says she didn’t compete on Tuesday to chase records, or to please fans, or to silence naysayers. (They’ll never be satisfied.)
She stepped away from the mat for her own well-being, and returned to it for the same reason, a revelation in a sports culture where athletes are expected to serve fans and a bottom line—but rarely themselves. She said, “I was just going out there doing this for me.”
Claire Zillman
claire.zillman@fortune.com
@clairezillman
The Broadsheet, Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women, is coauthored by Kristen Bellstrom, Emma Hinchliffe, and Claire Zillman. Today’s edition was curated by Emma Hinchliffe.

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ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Equal Pay Day. Today is Black Women's Equal Pay Day, the day in the current calendar year that marks the point at which Black women have earned as much as white men did a year earlier. The extra eight months of work boils down to Black women facing a pay gap of 63 cents on the dollar, and Fortune's Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez explains why that's a problem for everyone. Fortune
- Divorce court. The Gates' divorce is official. Kind County court in Washington state approved the divorce petition between Bill and Melinda Gates on Monday. According to the court documents, Melinda French Gates will not be changing her name and neither party will receive spousal support. The full separation agreement was not part of this filing. Fortune
- Hello Blackstone. Hello Sunshine, the media business founded by Reese Witherspoon, sold to a Blackstone-backed venture run by two former Disney execs for a reported $900 million. The company made its name adapting books to the screen to tell stories about women. Wall Street Journal
- More from Tokyo. Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya sought the protection of Japanese authorities at the Tokyo Olympics after she said her team was forcing her to return to Belarus after she publicly criticized her coaches; she will reportedly seek asylum in Poland. Simone Biles isn't the only athlete to openly discuss mental health: China's Shi Tingmao, a four-time gold medalist in diving, spoke out about suffering from depression. The IOC is investigating whether a gesture by U.S. shot putter Raven Saunders on the medal podium violated its rules on protest. Saunders, who is Black and gay, said the 'X' she made with her arms "represents the intersection of where all people who are oppressed meet."
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Katherine Rice joins GingerBread Capital as a partner.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

- Revived review. A U.K. effort called the Hampton Alexander review spent five years pushing to reach the target of women holding 30% of board seats at British companies. That review came to a close, but lawmakers are preparing to relaunch it with a new target of 40%. Financial Times
- Patient testimony. As the fraud case against Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes heads to trial, prosecutors are hoping to put forward testimony from patients who were affected by inaccurate blood tests. A judge has yet to decide if patients will be allowed to testify. Holmes has continued to deny the allegations of fraud. Wall Street Journal
- #MeToo and celebrity. Canadian-Chinese pop star Kris Wu was detained in Beijing last month on suspicion of rape. (Wu denied the allegations when they first surfaced online.) Now the case is seen by many women in China as a victory for the #MeToo movement, but by the Communist Party as a crackdown on "celebrity worship." New York Times

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PARTING WORDS

“I hope all the little girls watching really understand that they can go and get master’s degrees, they can go and win Olympic medals, and they can go and have balance in their lives, focusing on very big things.”
- Adeline Gray, who won the silver medal in wrestling for the U.S.