Yesterday, Simone Biles took home her 21st medal at the world gymnastics championships, breaking the record for the most medals won overall by a female gymnast at the event. She previously was tied with Russian gymnast Svetlana Khorkina, and is just two medals short of male Belarusian gymnast Vitaly Scherbo’s record of 23, according to the New York Times.
“Every year it feels better and better just because we’re adding to the legacy,” Biles told the Times. “I feel like I never think of records. I just go out there and do what I came to do, which is compete for the country.”
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Thanks in large part to 22-year-old Biles, the American gymnastics team took home their seventh consecutive team title at a world championships or Olympics, scoring 172.330 points — 5.801 more than the runner-up Russian team.
Biles has already broken plenty of records, including holding the most Gymnastics World Championships of any gender. Earlier this week, two of her signature moves — the triple-double and a double-double dismount from the balance beam — were named after her by USA Gymnastics (though the Federation of International Gymnastics needs to give approval before it’s official).
But Biles told NBC Sports she’s not keeping track of her accolades: “Whatever the medal haul at the end is, it’s whatever it is.”
Although she’s at the top of her game, this will likely be Biles’ last world championships: she's previously said she plans to retire after the 2020 Olympics. “Sometimes I wish I would quit,” she told NBC Sports at the world championships. “The other day, we walked out there, and I was like, I literally hate this feeling, and I don’t know why I keep forcing myself to do it. I hate that feeling like I’m going to puke before. But, you know, we love the thrill of it. Reminds me to never give up because one day I won’t have the opportunity to get that feeling.”