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Joy

Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles bow before Rebecca Andrade, embodying the Olympic spirit

Seeing the GOAT give a "We're not worthy" bow to her competitor is a sight to behold.

Photo credits: Agência Brasil Fotografias, Sarah Ladot, Ocoudis

Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles gave Brazilian gold medal winner Rebeca Andrade her props.

Every Olympics has moments captured on camera that go down in history. The photo finishes. The inspiring displays of sportsmanship. The records being broken and humans doing things no human has done before.

Simone Biles has had her fair share—or more—of iconic Olympic moments. And she just added another one to her list with the help of her friend and Team USA teammate, Jordan Chiles.

Unsurprisingly, Biles was favored to win gold in the floor exercise final for women's gymnastics at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The floor is one of her strongest events, and the high degree of difficulty in her routine offered some wiggle room for small errors.

Biles on the floor is like Jordan on the court at his peak—literally gravity-defying and simply mesmerizing to watch. But Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade has been giving Biles a serious run for her money. In any other era, she'd have a pocket full of gold medals, but she's had the fortune-yet-misfortune of competing against the greatest gymnast of all time. However, she finally managed to eke out a win over the GOAT in the floor exercise final in Paris. Andrade took the gold, leaving Biles with the silver and Chiles the bronze.

If besting Simone Biles on the floor wasn't enough, Andrade got another boost as she approached the podium to receive her gold medal. In a synchronized gesture, giving props where it was due, Biles and Chiles knelt and bowed down before Andrade, creating one of those Olympic snapshots the world will never forget.

What was especially great about this moment wasn't just the genuine respect Biles and Chiles showed Andrade. It's the sheer joy with which they did it. Biles being so dominant in her sport could easily lead to pride and arrogance, which doesn't seem to have happened, and losing a gold she was expected to win could easily crush her spirit, but that also doesn't seem to have happened. The GOAT recognizes, acknowledges and honors greatness when she sees it, and Andrade clearly brought her A game.

Here we can see Chiles and Biles plotting to give Andrade the "We're not worthy" bow in real time:

Biles and Andrade have both talked about how they've pushed one another to be better, which is exactly what competition is about. And celebrating excellence wherever it comes from is exactly what the Olympic games are all about. Biles and Chiles embodied that Olympic spirit in the floor final and medal ceremony, doing what they came to Paris to do, making it to the medal podium and then lifting up the gymnast who outperformed them both.

Biles and Chiles spoke with reporters about what prompted them to do the bow and how much they admire "the queen" Andrade.

What a beautiful testament to good sportsmanship and joyful camaraderie between competitors, and what a wonderful example for us all.

Here's what people are saying about the moment:

"This is the best part of everything Just class and sportsmanship Soooo wholesome."

"This must be real meaning of the Olympics. How beautiful is that they congratulate and respect each other."

"This is exactly what it's all about! Celebrating the human spirit and perseverance. I love their story. Their competitiveness pushes each other to be their greatest selves."

"The nicest podium of all times. Fantastic women."

"The world's best - inside and out. What an amazing accomplishment."


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Team USA has 10 black athletes at the Winter Olympics. Here's what 2 of them had to say.

More than 2,500 athletes will compete in the Winter Games and only 45 of them are black.

Ten of those black athletes represent the United States.

Four of them are on the women's bobsled team.

Reaching the grandest stage in sports is an impressive accomplishment on its own, but the women of USA bobsled continue to beat the odds, representing the country and black women as they compete for a spot on the podium. I spoke with two of the five members of the team, to learn more about competing as black women in this thrilling winter sport.

Elana Meyers Taylor and Lauryn Williams of the United States in Sochi, Russia, in 2014. Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

Elana Meyers Taylor and Aja Evans hoped to make their Olympic debuts in the Summer Games, but life had other plans.

Meyers Taylor, 33, was a competitive softball player through college. When she didn't make the Olympic team in the sport, her parents suggested she look into bobsled.

"They saw Vonetta Flowers compete in 2002, and they were like, 'She's strong and athletic and she's a black woman like you. There's no reason why you can't be involved in bobsled as well,'" Meyers Taylor says.

It didn't matter that she didn't even own a winter coat at the time — Meyers Taylor saw the speed and excitement of a bobsled run and knew it was for her.

Elana Meyers Taylor, center, with her parents. Image via Procter & Gamble.

Aja Evans comes from an athletic family. Her father was a competitive college swimmer, and her brother spent eight seasons in the NFL. It was no surprise when Evans became a standout athlete at the University of Illinois, earning Big Ten Titles in shot put. When she didn't earn a spot on Team USA for the 2008 summer games, Evans turned her attention toward the ice.

"When I brought [my family] the idea of bobsled, they were a little taken back by it because it's not your typical sport," Evans said. "Once I explained to them my potential in the sport and what I could bring to the table, they were all for it and once we started producing results and really getting into the swing of things ... I received a lot of support from my family and people in my city and all around the country."

Aja Evans with her mom, Sequocoria Mallory. Image via Procter & Gamble.

Being a black woman at the center of Winter Olympics success is nothing new for these athletes, but that doesn't mean it's easy.

"It's always an honor to represent your country, and it's always an honor to represent black women, especially in a sport where we're not typically represented," Meyers Taylor says. "Yes, there's some inequalities and injustices that go on in our country ... so we're just trying to go out there and do what we can every single day and not only represent us, represent the U.S., but also represent our race and ethnicity and show the world that no matter what you look like, you can be successful in whatever you want to be."

Elana Meyers Taylor speaks during the Team USA Media Summit. Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images.

Like Meyers Taylor, Evans takes pride in her unique space on Team USA.

Evans is arriving in Pyeongchang ready to return to the podium. Her confidence is buoyed by the people rallying behind her, at home and abroad.

"I'm very confident in myself, whether it be because of who I am as a black woman or the things I've accomplished as an athlete for Team USA," she says. "I do feel like when we step into rooms, we draw attention, whether it be good or bad. The main thing is that we own it, and we wear it well. It's not in a cocky way. It's not in a negative way or a timid way. We're proud to represent who we are."

Aja Evans at the United States Women's Bobsleigh Team press conference. Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images.

Regardless of their differences, what unites Team USA is their drive to win.

After years of hard work and dedication, both women have been successful in bobsledding's biggest competitions.

Pyeongchang will be Meyers Taylor's third Olympics. She pushed her way to a bronze medal in the 2010 Games in Vancouver, then switched to the pilot position, where she earned a silver medal in Sochi in 2014. Evans pushed Jamie Greubel Poser to a bronze medal in Sochi and is back in the brakeman position this year.

Canadian gold medalists and silver and bronze medalists from Team USA. Left to right: Elana Meyers Taylor, Kaillie Humphries, Lauryn Williams, Heather Moyse, Aja Evans, and Jamie Greubel. Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images.

What's it like inside the sled? Evans and Meyers Taylor shared what you won't see on TV.

It's an adrenaline rush like no other as the athletes speed down the 1,500-meter course with 16 curves, each with varying degrees of difficulty. The sleighs are typically made of metal and fiberglass and can reach speeds of up to 84 miles per hour.

"I think the most intense moment for me at the start is right when I'm about to run. Just standing on that line and feeling that heart in my chest. You're kind of zoning out all the noise and just focused on putting everything you can into the ice," Evans says. "Once [my drivers] put their hand up and signal that they're ready to go, it's just one speed from there."

Aja Evans during the women's bobsled event at the 2014 Winter Olympics. Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images.

For the most part, the trip down the icy track is a blur, especially for the brakeman.

"The brakeman can't see anything. They're in the back; their head tucked between their knees," Meyers Taylor says. As for the pilots, "We're actually driving the sled; we're not just leaning."

That means the pilots have to negotiate those twists, turns, and bends, their slopes ranging from 8-15%, with true precision. While they can't see the clock on the way down, there are ways to know if they've hit their mark.

"You can feel it in your hands. You can feel what the sled is doing. You can feel the ice beneath you. You know whether or not you're hitting the line," Meyers Taylor says. "You don't know how your time will compare to other pilots, but you know whether or not you're on. When you're on, it's the greatest feeling in the world."

Elana Meyers Taylor and Lauren Gibbs compete at the Women's Bobsleigh World Cup. Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images for IBSF.

Meyers Taylor, Evans, and the rest of Team USA take to the ice and bobsled coverage begins Sunday, Feb. 18.

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His remarks got under Mike Pence's skin. So the VP asked to meet. It … didn't work out.

As the first openly gay American athlete to qualify for the winter Olympics, figure skater Adam Rippon has a lot of things on his plate right now — chief among them, prepping for his performances in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

One item that won't make his to-do list? Meeting Vice President Mike Pence.

Rippon made waves last month for blasting Pence for his bigoted views on LGBTQ issues after it was announced the vice president would be leading the U.S. delegation in the Games' opening ceremony on Feb. 9.



“You mean Mike Pence — the same Mike Pence that funded gay conversion therapy?” Rippon said. “I’m not buying it.”

Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images.

The vice president has been under fire from LGBTQ rights advocates for once supporting so-called "gay conversion therapy" — a dangerous practice that attempts to change a person's sexual orientation. Pence has denied ever endorsing the practice. Yet, his 2000 congressional campaign website read "resources should be directed toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior."

Rippon's not the only Olympian who's criticized the decision to make Pence the country's delegation leader. Openly gay skier Gus Kenworthy called the move "strange."

“To have somebody leading the delegation that [has] directly attacked the LGBTQ community ... just seems like a bad fit,” he recently explained to Ellen DeGeneres. “I feel like the Olympics is all about inclusion and people coming together, and it seems like it’s not really doing that.”

Rippon also challenged the vice president's faith in his interview with USA Today, wondering how a "devout Christian" could possibly stand by President Trump:

“To stand by some of the things that Donald Trump has said and for Mike Pence to say he’s a devout Christian man is completely contradictory. If he’s OK with what’s being said about people and Americans and foreigners and about different countries that are being called ‘shitholes,' I think [Pence] should really go to church."

Pence was so troubled by Rippon's remarks, a new report in USA Today claims, that his staff reached out to the 28-year-old to meet in South Korea.

Rippon, however, didn't bite. The figure skater turned down a meeting with the vice president.

Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images.

Rippon had said previously he may be open to meeting with Pence after the competition overseas. But for now, Rippon has medals to focus on.

Much of the internet rejoiced in Rippon's decision.

Some people chimed in that they were "so happy" Rippon decided to refuse a meeting.

"Can someone contact the International Olympic Committee?" another Twitter used wrote. "They need to give Adam Rippon the first medal of the 2018 Olympic Games."

While some agreed with Rippon on LGBTQ rights, they argued advocating for the queer community in front of Pence could be "a good thing."

But plenty of others pointed out that Pence's request could easily be a ploy at positive public relations.

"Our gay ferocious prince doesn’t owe that grinning goblin shit," quipped Louis Virtel.

Rippon is in South Korea to win medals for Team USA, after all — not carve out time for bigotry.  

"I would absolutely not go out of my way to meet somebody who I felt has gone out of their way to not only show that they aren’t a friend of a gay person but that they think that they’re sick,” Rippon told USA Today. “I wouldn’t go out of my way to meet somebody like that."

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This U.S. men's hockey star is set to make Olympic history.

He'll become the first black hockey player to take the ice for Team USA in Olympics history.

In the 98 years that hockey has been an Olympic sport, no black athlete has ever been named to a Team USA roster — until now.

20-year-old Jordan Greenway is poised to make history when he takes the ice at next month's Winter Olympics. The Boston University forward was officially named to the team's roster earlier this week, and since then, he has found himself the center of a glowing profile by Sporting News.

With NHL players absent from this year's games — the league opted not to put a break in the season schedule as they'd done in years past — Greenway is arguably the face of U.S. hockey thanks to his newfound fame. (At least for the next month or so.)

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images.

Like many Winter Olympic sports, hockey is still very white, though its makeup is slowly changing.

Greenway understands that no matter what happens later in his promising career, this moment represents a unique opportunity to inspire a younger generation.

"I’ve been able to accomplish a lot of good things and just allowing a lot of African American kids who are younger than me who see kind of what I’m doing, I hope that can be an inspiration for them," he told Sporting News. "Go out and do something different against the typical stereotypes that most African-Americans play basketball, or whatever the case is."

Jordan Greenway scores against Connor Ingram of Team Canada during a preliminary round game in the 2017 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in 2016 in Toronto. The USA defeated Canada 3-1. Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images

The profile notes that Greenway is just one of 13 African American athletes playing Division I men's hockey, making up less than one percent of the total. When it comes to the pros, black athletes are represented slightly better, though they still account for just 2.29% of all players.

For what it's worth, the NHL has been investing time, money, and energy into increasing league diversity in past years.

Individual teams like the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers, Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and San Jose Sharks, have launched inner-city outreach programs aimed at making hockey accessible to kids of all backgrounds and income levels.

"We want to get sticks in the hands of kids by taking the cost out of by [sic] letting them play. They learn about hockey, they learn about teamwork and they learn about the sport," Chicago Blackhawks senior director of Fan Development Annie Camins told Rolling Stone in 2016. More than 90,000 kids have participated in the team's program since its launch.

Children in Vancouver are seen playing street hockey during the 2010 Winter Olympics. Photo by Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images.

The 2018 Olympic Winter Games run from February 9-24 in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

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