Andrade became the first gymnast to beat the all-conquering Biles in a floor final in a major international competition, posting a score of 14.166 that finished just ahead of Biles at 14.133.
Biles earned silver in the floor exercise finals on Monday – her fourth medal in Paris and 11th Olympic medal overall – after a routine that included a couple of costly steps out of bounds.
Jordan Chiles, a longtime friend and teammate of Biles, earned the bronze and they decided to honor Andrade on the podium.
As the Brazilian raised her arms up to celebrate her victory, Biles and Chiles both got down on one knee and bowed down to her.
Olympics fans hailed Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles for bowing to Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade
Talking about their decision to do it, Biles revealed Chiles asked: ‘Should we bow to her?’
Biles replied: ‘Absolutely. It was just the right thing to do.’
The gesture sent social media ablaze as one fan described it as ‘the true spirit of the Olympics.’
Another wrote: ‘Beautiful. It’s great to see Rebeca Andrade get her props!.
A third posted: ‘Respect! This is what makes sports so beautiful. Congrats’.
‘Humility of Biles who would have wanted a gold after the previous event disappointment is admirable. Congrats to Rebeca,’ commented another fan.
‘A picture sufficient enough to tell about the true spirit of the Olympics,’ added another.
The 27-year-old Biles, considered the greatest in the history of the sport, wasn’t at her usual best during a routine set to music from Taylor Swift and Beyonce.
She’s going home with gold medals from the team, all-around and vault finals and a silver that came as a surprise in her signature event.
Brazilians thrilled as Biles upstaged by Andrade in floor final
Olympics fans were quick to praise both Biles and Chiles for the touching gesture in Paris
‘I can’t be more proud of how I’ve done,’ Biles said. ‘I’m 27 years old walking away from this Games with four medals to add to my collection. Not mad about it.’
Biles’ overall medal total (including seven gold, two silver, two bronze) ties Czechoslovakia´s Vera Caslavska for the second-most by a female gymnast in Olympic history.
She missed a chance to add a fifth Paris medal earlier Monday when she fell during the beam final, finishing fifth.
Though she can make it look easy at times, it is not. She thudded to the mat during her floor warm-up and had the balky left calf she tweaked in qualifying last week re-wrapped before she competed.
Chiles – the last competitor of the day – initially received a 13.666 from judges.
After some delay, her total was boosted by 0.1 when she filed an inquiry about the difficulty component of her score. That pushed Chiles past Romanians Ana Barbosu and Sabrina Maneca-Voinea and into third.
The trio held hands as they celebrated their success on the final day of gymnastics in Paris
Biles fell over as she warmed up for her floor routine, seemingly aggravating a calf problem
Earlier on, Biles had to step off the beam after becoming unbalanced during her routine
Biles’ floor silver came about an hour after a beam final in which half of the eight women in the field found themselves hopping off in the middle of their routine after losing their balance.
Biles included. She lost her balance at the end of her acro series and received a score of 13.100 to wind up fifth, tied with teammate Sunisa Lee.
Like Biles, Lee saw her hopes for gold end in the middle of her routine when she fell during the same part of her routine as Biles.
Afterward, the two Olympic champions and longtime friends who have a staggering 17 Olympic medals between them commiserated over the weird vibe inside an oddly silent arena.
‘It adds to the stress, just because it’s like you, yes, you’re the only one up there,’ said Lee, who will take some time off before making any decision about her future. ‘So I was feeling the pressure.’
Alice D´Amato of Italy took the gold on beam with a score of 14.366. Zhou Yaqin of China earned silver with a 14.100, just ahead of bronze medalist Manila Esposito of Italy.
