Sean Savage
The silence that filled Bercy Arena on Monday for the women’s gymnastics balance beam final was “awkward” for 11-time Olympic medalist Simone Biles.
When reflecting on Monday’s competition, in which she placed second in the floor exercise final and failed to medal on the beam following a fall, the standout American gymnast called attention to the “really weird” atmosphere.
“You’re trying to stay in your zone, and then people start cheering and then the shushing gets louder, so really, they should be shushed because they’re louder,” Biles said, according to USA Today.
“It was really weird and awkward. And we’ve asked several times if we can have some music, or some background noise, so I’m not really sure what happened there. But, yeah, not our favorite. None of us liked it.”
Biles, 27, added how smaller noises such as “Android ringtones going off” and “the photo flickers” seemed heightened amid the quietness.
Teammate Suni Lee, who also fell off the beam Monday and tied for fifth in the final event, was thrown by the unwavering silence in the 10,000-seat venue.
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“Even watching the other finals, I was like, ‘It’s a little too quiet in here,’” Lee said.
“When I was up there, I was like, ‘People can probably hear me breathing.’”
Even as Team USA standouts, that didn’t stop some members of the crowd from shushing Biles and Lee as they supported one another. The pair agreed the shushing was “annoying.”
Given most gymnastics competitions in the U.S. have events taking place at the same time, applause and cheers are bound to erupt regularly from the crowd.
Silence, however, was integrated into the “sports presentation plan at Paris 2024,” according to a spokesperson for the International Gymnastics Federation. The organization does not have regulations concerning music or background noise, per USA Today.
It wasn’t just the gymnasts who took issue with the silence.
Biles’ coach, France’s own Cecile Landi, said “it was the first time that I heard anybody shush.”
“So, it was really strange. I don’t know if they thought the athletes wanted it to be quiet,” she told the outlet. “I can tell them now: No. They did not. They do not like it.”
