Opinion: Simone Biles didn't win any golds in Tokyo but still enhanced her legacy

TOKYO — Simone Biles came to the Tokyo Olympics as the greatest gymnast the sport has ever seen, and she leaves that way, too.

It does not matter that she did not become the first woman in more than a half-century to repeat as Olympic champion. Or that, projected to win a record five gold medals, she won none. It is irrelevant that she did only six routines. Or that she did not get yet another skill named after her.

Yes, Biles’ withdrawal from the team competition one event in, and her subsequent absence from the all-around and the first three event finals before returning to win a bronze on balance beam, will be part of her legacy. But it does nothing to diminish what she has done as a gymnast – and only enhances who she is as a human.