When Simone Biles competes for gold, she’ll have some fierce competition in Rebeca Andrade.
Though the American GOAT recently earned yet another gold medal alongside her teammates at the 2024 Paris Olympics, she still has the women’s gymnastics all-around finals ahead of her.
And with them, she’ll be facing Brazil’s top gymnast—a worthy competitor who already made history at the Tokyo Games when Andrade won silver, making her the first South American woman to make it to the all-around podium, and who helped lead her team to a bronze medal at this year’s team finals.
Born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil, alongside her seven siblings by her mother, Rebeca showed an aptitude for the sport from an early age.
“I was always active when I was a small child,” the 25-year-old told the International Federation of Gymnastics. “So, my aunt took me to the gym where she worked and I began doing gymnastics. It was amazing. The gym looked like an amusement park.”
And she credits the program with a lot, adding, “I think that if it weren’t for that program, they wouldn’t have spotted my talent and I would have just been a girl playing on the street.”
