Tokyo Olympics : US gymnast Simone Biles leaves for Tokyo games

U.S. gymnastics star Simone Biles and her teammates boarded a flight Wednesday to Tokyo from San Francisco International Airport for the 2021 Olympic Games. Biles, who won four gold and one bronze medals in 2016 Rio Games, departed her native Texas earlier in the morning and met up with her teammates at SFO to board the United flight to Tokyo. Biles says she's excited to represent the U.S. at the Olympics for the second time after the pandemic led to the 2020 Tokyo Games to be postponed a year. "I'm actually feeling pretty confident with my gymnastics and my mental state, so I'm really excited to go out there and represent again," Biles said in an interview with the Associated Press. "We have a really strong team going. So I'm excited to see what we'll bring." Biles will be competing an environment completely different from the 2016 Rio Games. The Japanese government has banned fans from attending any competitions as it works to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases. The 24-year-old American is following up on a staggering performance in Rio de Janeiro, when she won five medals (including four gold) and entered the rarified air of Olympic royalty reserved for the likes of Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and Nadia Comaneci. The reigning world and Olympic champion will headline the U.S. women's gymnastics team in Japan next month. She's trying to become the first woman in more than a half-century to repeat as Olympic champion. The lure of history and respect for her own immense talent is why she returned after a short break following her dominant five-medal performance in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. It's why she stuck around after the COVID-19 pandemic led officials to postpone opening ceremonies in Tokyo by a year.