Simone Biles
FILE - Sunisa Lee, of the United States, performs on the floor during the artistic gymnastics women's all-around final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 29, 2021, in Tokyo. The 19-year-old Auburn freshman has helped lead Auburn to the NCAA gymnastics championships April 14-16 in Fort Worth, Texas. Lee has also parlayed her all-around gold into a run on Dancing with the Stars since the new name, image and likeness rules made college an easy decision. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
Olympic gold medalist Sunisa Lee banking more NCAA success

By John Zenor Apr. 05, 2022 12:56 PM EDT

Auburn gymnast Sunisa Lee performs during a meet at the University of Michigan, Saturday, March 12, 2022, in Ann Arbor, Mich. A record crowd came out to watch Lee, the reigning Olympic champion, and Auburn take on defending national champion Michigan. The arrival of Lee and several of her Olympic teammates at the collegiate level is helping fuel a spike in interest and participation in NCAA women's gymnastics. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
'Beacon of goodness': NCAA women's gymnastics is booming

By Will Graves Mar. 29, 2022 06:07 PM EDT

FILE - Paula Badosa, foreground, of Spain, is viewed through her trophy as she begins to hold it up after defeating Victoria Azarenka, left, of Belarus, in the singles final at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021, in Indian Wells, Calif. The photo was part of a series of images by photographer Mark J. Terrill which won the Thomas V. diLustro best portfolio award for 2021 given out by the Associated Press Sports Editors during their annual winter meeting. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Coverage of Simone Biles wins AP story of the year honors

Mar. 04, 2022 03:23 PM EST

FILE - United States' Chloe Kim celebrates during the venue ceremony for the women's halfpipe at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)
Mental health hovers over Olympics, on its way to mainstream

By Sarah Dilorenzo Feb. 12, 2022 12:58 AM EST

Mikaela Shiffrin, of the United States leaves the finish area after she skied out in the first run of the women's slalom at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022, in the Yanqing district of Beijing. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
NBC defends Shiffrin coverage, suggests sexism by critics

By David Bauder Feb. 09, 2022 08:58 PM EST

A team member consoles Mikaela Shiffrin, of the United States after she skied out in the first run of the women's slalom at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022, in the Yanqing district of Beijing. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
Column: Shiffrin's disappointment stirs lessons from Biles

By Paul Newberry Feb. 09, 2022 03:27 AM EST

Mikaela Shiffrin, of the United States sits on the side of the course after skiing out in the first run of the women's slalom at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022, in the Yanqing district of Beijing. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
Shiffrin shaken by 'letdown' of 2 exits in 2 Olympic races

By Howard Fendrich Feb. 08, 2022 09:38 PM EST

FILE - Women's halfpipe gold medalist Chloe Kim, of the United States, poses during the medals ceremony at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea on Feb. 13, 2018. Kim is eyeing a second gold medal on the halfpipe on her terms at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Kim stormed to victory as a teenager in Korea four years ago before taking an extended break. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)
Chloe's change: Olympic champ Kim eyes 2nd gold on her terms

By Will Graves Feb. 02, 2022 04:04 AM EST

FILE - Simone Biles, of the United States, stand on the mat during the warm up prior to the artistic gymnastics balance beam final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo. Two-time Alpine skiing gold medalist Mikaela Shiffrin has been thinking a lot about the stress and pressure that gymnast Biles and swimmer Caeleb Dressel discussed during last year's Tokyo Olympics. And Shiffrin knows that she will face similar burdens when her races at the Beijing Winter Games. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)
Shiffrin talks about watching Biles deal with Olympic stress

By Howard Fendrich Feb. 01, 2022 04:39 AM EST

FILE - Norway's Maren Lundby competes in the mixed team ski jumping World Cup event in Rasnov, Romania, on Feb. 20, 2021. Lundby has emerged as an advocate for change in a sport that has historically had athletes develop eating disorders in a quest to be as light as possible to fly farther. (AP Photo/Raed Krishan, File)
Olympic champion Lundby laments ski jumping's weight issues

By Larry Lage Jan. 27, 2022 02:25 AM EST

Sean McCann stares through a spotting scope at the targets 50 meters away during a Biathlon event at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center biathlon shooting range, Monday, Oct. 25, 2021, in Midway, Utah. McCann is a clinical psychologist who works for the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee — one of seven assigned to various sports teams. At certain times of the year, he's “embedded” with the U.S. biathlon team to help them perform at their best. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Finding the 'happy bubble': Mental health key for Olympians

By Martha Bellisle Jan. 24, 2022 11:08 AM EST

Alabama quarterback Bryce Young holds the Heisman Trophy at an award ceremony, Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in New York. (Todd Van Emst/Heisman Trust via AP, Pool)
Ode to Sports: A year when games and fans came off the bench

By Fred Lief Dec. 23, 2021 12:24 PM EST

FILE - Simone Biles watches gymnasts perform at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Tuesday, July 27, 2021. Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka were not the first elite athletes to struggle with their own mental health, but their public admissions this year spotlighted a crisis not often addressed in the sporting world. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)
Mental health among athletes spotlighted in tumultuous 2021

By Jenna Fryer Dec. 22, 2021 09:56 AM EST

FILE - Simone Biles, of the United States, finishes on the balance beam during the artistic gymnastics women's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. Biles’ 2021 experiences, and how she talked about them, helped drive a robust conversation about athletes’ emotional health. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)
2021 Notebook: For athletes, mental health took center stage

By The Associated Press Dec. 14, 2021 05:27 PM EST

Shaun White, of United States, makes a qualifying run on the halfpipe Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021, at the U.S. Grand Prix snowboarding event at Copper Mountain, Colo. (AP Photo/Hugh Carey)
On road to 5th Olympics, White finds the risk is worth it

By Eddie Pells Dec. 13, 2021 02:20 AM EST

Forster, leader of U.S. women's gymnastics team, resigning

By Will Graves Dec. 08, 2021 10:05 PM EST
U.S. women's gymnastics high-performance director Tom Forster is stepping down at the end of the year. USA Gymnastics announced Wednesday night that...

FILE - Simone Biles, of the United States, performs on the balance beam during the artistic gymnastics women's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. Simone Biles believes the post-Olympic tour she headlined proved cathartic. It also served as a touchstone for a movement within her sport and within herself. The 24-year-old gymnastics star thinks the tour -- which will be made available to stream in December -- expanded her horizons about what's next. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, file)
Regroup, reset: Biles to rest after trailblazing tour

By Will Graves Nov. 08, 2021 07:01 AM EST

Angelina Melnikova, center, of Russia, with her gold medal, Leanne Wong, left, of the U.S., with her silver medal, and Kayla DiCello, of the U.S., with her bronze medal, pose for a photo during the victory ceremony after the women's all-around finals in the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Kitakyushu, western Japan, Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Melnikova wins all-around final at gymnastics worlds

Oct. 21, 2021 07:55 AM EDT

FILE - In this Aug. 2, 2021, file photo, Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, performs on the floor during the artistic gymnastics women's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. The 50th artistic gymnastics world championships started Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 and will continue through Sunday in Kitakyushu, featuring more than 300 gymnasts representing 59 countries. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
Uchimura, 5 new Olympic champs headline gymnastics worlds

By Jim Armstrong Oct. 18, 2021 12:02 AM EDT

United States Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney testifies during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General's report on the FBI's handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington. Nassar was charged in 2016 with federal child pornography offenses and sexual abuse charges in Michigan. He is now serving decades in prison after hundreds of girls and women said he sexually abused them under the guise of medical treatment when he worked for Michigan State and Indiana-based USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians. (Saul Loeb/Pool via AP)
Biles: FBI turned 'blind eye' to reports of gymnasts' abuse

By Mary Clare Jalonick, Will Graves And Michael Balsamo Sep. 15, 2021 12:48 PM EDT