Jordan Chiles is brimming with excitement and confidence as the 2024 Paris Olympics draw near.
Just three months out from the Games, many athletes would tell you they are anxious – but not Chiles.
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With a silver medal from the Tokyo Olympics already in her trophy case, along with three world medals, Chiles knows exactly who she is and her capabilities. She plans to carry that confidence through until the very end.
Chiles is set to make her season debut May 18 at the Core Hydration Classic in Hartford, Connecticut, almost three months after she withdrew from the Winter Cup after spraining the AC joint in her shoulder.
The injury left Chiles out of the gym for almost three weeks – an inconvenient, yet minor setback to start the year – but now, she’s eager to return to the competition floor.
In Hartford, Chiles plans to do all-around and hints there may be a few upgrades thrown into her routines as well.
“I’ll be there fully ready to show off everything that I’m working on and having fun,” Chiles said. “You know me, I always like to have fun and enjoy the moments with the audience and my teammates.”
‘I’m that girl’
Chiles is embracing a new motto this year: "I’m that girl."
The simple phrase serves as a daily reminder of who she is and what she is capable of, especially coming off a difficult year in 2023.
After a successful sophomore season with the UCLA Bruins, where she picked up NCAA titles on uneven bars and the floor exercise, as well as a second-place finish in the all-around, Chiles had a quick turnaround to prepare for her elite competition season.
Chiles considered staying in Los Angeles to train, but ultimately decided it was in her best interest to return to the World Champions Centre in Texas, where she began training in 2019.
With just a few short weeks of training with her coaches Laurent and Cecile Landi before her busy elite season got underway, she hit the ground running and didn’t look back.
Chiles finished fifth in the all-around at the U.S. championships, but struggled nearly a month later at the world championship selection camp, where it was ultimately decided that she would not be selected for the American team headed to Antwerp, Belgium.
As difficult as the decision was, Chiles used the time to reflect and refocus.
“There are times where you should take time for yourself and really focus on what you want, because at the end of the day you’re doing this for yourself, so you should understand your why,” Chiles said. “Did I want to make the world team? 100%. Was I supposed to make the world team? That was all God … telling me there’s a reason why.”
Though she missed the worlds team, Chiles kept her chin up and represented the United States well at the 2023 Pan American Games, winning team gold, vault silver and all-around bronze.
Then it was back to the gym to keep grinding.
Chiles decided to defer her enrollment at UCLA to focus solely on her preparations for Paris. The door is open to return for the 2025 NCAA season, but for now, Chiles is laser focused on her elite training.
SEE MORE: Trials: Jordan Chiles overcome with emotion after floor
With a fire lit beneath her, Chiles entered 2024 with a clear focus. More than anything she wants to enjoy every moment of the journey. After all, the decision to vie for a second Olympic Games was the result of feeling like she had more to give, not something to prove to the rest of the world.
Naturally, her mature wisdom has come with age and experience, but she has also taken a few notes from her close friend and training partner, four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles.
“You’re the only one who can make yourself do what you want to do,” Chiles said of what she has learned from Biles. “It’s your dream, your passion – it’s what you want to do. It goes back to your why. Why are you in the sport? Why do you wake up every day to do the things you are doing?”
For Chiles, it's her desire to inspire others, all while bringing her lifelong dreams to fruition.
Through the highs and the lows, Chiles has always maintained the belief that she can achieve anything she sets her mind to, citing this quote: "Always believe in the power of your dreams."
“Your dreams are very powerful,” Chiles said. “They are beyond measure and something you don’t want to take for granted.”
That mindset is what propelled her to her first Olympic team in 2021, despite every obstacle that came her way, including losing her love for the sport in her previous training environment and being overlooked for every world championship assignment leading up to the Games.
Because she lacked world championship experience, many considered Chiles to be an underdog for Tokyo. However, her consistency was undeniable in the moments it mattered most.
Chiles made the Olympic team after finishing third in the all-around at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials and her dependability proved to be critical for the U.S. team in Tokyo when Biles withdrew from the team final with the 'twisties.' Chiles stepped in on uneven bars and balance beam in place of Biles – two events she originally wasn’t scheduled to compete – and delivered like a veteran.
That same belief in herself and the power of her dreams could also be what propels Chiles to Paris.
This time around, Chiles is not only older and wiser, but she views herself as somebody who can help lead the American team, while also continuing to learn.
“I can lead, but there are also other people who inspire me,” Chiles said. “Yes, I have the experience, but I don’t have that much experience. Keep in mind, I went to an Olympics before I even went to a world championship. I can give (advice on) what to do, what not to do, how to take care of yourself … but at the end of the day, I’m not Simone Biles who has done 850 world championships. I try to get my tidbits from her so I can help, because it's a lot being in the position that we’re in. I think I’m a good leader – being a veteran as they always say is pretty cool – but I also do learn myself as well.”
No matter what the future has in store for Chiles, she’s guaranteed to walk away with her head held high.
She is an Olympian. She is a world champion. She is a daughter, a teammate, a friend. She’s "that girl," if you will.
And she is only just getting started.
“My titles and who I am will never be taken away from me whether I make the team or I don’t,” Chiles said. “I know that I did everything that I could to make it to Tokyo and I’m going to do everything I can to make it to Paris … I’m that girl. I’m not here to play around. I'm here to give it my all and (give) what I felt like I wasn’t able to do in Tokyo.”