Michelle Obama named Simone Biles a G.O.A.T. on her Mount Rushmore of female athletes, drawing a grateful reply from the Olympic champion.

Former first lady Michelle Obama, answering a podcast question about her top female athletes, placed the gymnast alongside tennis icons Serena Williams and Billie Jean King and WNBA legend Lisa Leslie, USA TODAY reported.

A clip from the “Is She Game?” interview with content creator Coach Jackie J was released Tuesday, Oct. 20. Obama went further than a simple ranking. She called Biles a G.O.A.T., Greatest Of All Time, and spent time praising the physical and mental demands of elite gymnastics.

Biles, the 29-year-old who stands 4-foot-8 and ranks as the most decorated gymnast in history with 41 medals from world championships and the Olympics, answered the same day on Instagram.

The exchange was warm, familiar, and unsurprising to anyone who has watched the two trade public respect for years. It also arrived while Biles is still weighing whether to chase another Games in 2028.

Obama’s list and the G.O.A.T. case for Biles

Obama did not treat the Mount Rushmore prompt as small talk. She zeroed in on what gymnasts actually do, the height, the conditioning, and the age at which the training starts.

She said of Biles:

"She can do it all. There are no words. Not only do I love gymnastics, I do think we don't give gymnasts the credit for the training, the conditioning, the physical ability. When she's doing her tumbling run, how many feet up in the air? Is it 13 feet?"

USA TODAY had previously reported in 2024 that Biles can get as high as 12 feet off the ground on floor. Obama’s estimate was in the same neighborhood, and she used it to argue the sport still gets less credit than it deserves.

She also pointed to how young gymnasts are driven and how little she believes the sport has changed on fitness, health, and nutrition.

Obama said:

"To realize how young they have to be and how little the sport has evolved from a fitness, health, nutrition standpoint. These kids were bootcamped, many suffered abuse. To know what they were going through and still performing at that risk level, and conquering it. I mean, the mental stamina that it takes, I think that a Simone Biles has to be a G.O.A.T. I say that for all gymnasts, but if I have to pick one, you pick Simone."

That is a heavy charge wrapped inside a compliment. Obama tied Biles’s greatness not only to medals and amplitude, but to competing through a system she described as harsh and slow to protect its athletes. The podcast clip did not litigate specific cases; it offered her judgment in plain terms.

For a public figure who still draws crowds on the speaking circuit, including a sold-out arena talk on character and dignity, the appearance fit a familiar pattern: cultural commentary paired with personal admiration.

Biles answers, and the mutual admiration file grows

Biles did not play it cool. In an Oct. 20 Instagram story she wrote, “Mrs. Michelle Obama, you made my year,” with heart and tear emojis, according to the coverage of the post.

The respect has run both ways for a long time. After the 2016 Rio Olympics, Biles visited the White House and met Obama. In a 2021 interview with People, Biles said Obama’s example mattered to kids who needed to see someone who looked like them in high places.

Biles said then:

"Representation matters, kids looked at her and said, 'If she can be there, then I can too.' From the way she pushed boundaries to how she inspired young people to eat better and exercise, she changed so many lives."

So the latest praise lands on an existing relationship, not a cold open. Obama elevates Biles as the face of a brutal sport. Biles credits Obama as a barrier-breaker and health advocate. Each gets a flattering mirror from a famous ally.

Obama’s public brand has long mixed personal image, media projects, and political organizing, from lifestyle moments to the Obama media company Higher Ground to campaign-season outreach. A podcast Mount Rushmore fits the same lane: soft power, carefully framed.

Paris sparkle, L.A. uncertainty

The sports résumé behind the compliment is not in dispute. Biles is the record-holder. At the 2024 Paris Olympics she competed while wearing a necklace with 546 diamonds, a flashy detail that matched a career built on gravity-defying difficulty.

What remains open is 2028. In comments to The Associated Press in September, Biles said she has not locked in a decision on the Los Angeles Olympics.

“I don’t know what the decision (is) I should make, but I don’t necessarily have to make it just yet. But I feel like it’s kind of in the works which way I’m leaning towards,” she said.

That is the practical backdrop to the G.O.A.T. talk. Praise is easy to give in a podcast chair. Another Olympic cycle is a different kind of bill, training load, risk, and timing for a 29-year-old already stacked with hardware.

Readers who follow Obama’s own media rhythm know the former first lady rarely disappears from the stage for long, whether the moment is a casual public appearance or a larger brand play. The Biles segment is another reminder that her cultural lane stays active even when no ballot is on the calendar.

None of this settles sports arguments that fans will keep having, Mount Rushmore lists are opinion theater by design. Williams, King, Leslie, and Biles is one famous person’s four. Other lists would swap in different legends without apology.

What the clip does settle is narrower. Obama was asked for a list, put Biles on it, and called her the G.O.A.T. among gymnasts. Biles thanked her in public the same day. The medals, the height on floor, the White House history, and the open 2028 question are the rest of the file.

Hollywood and political celebrity circles are good at handing each other crowns. Taxpayers and ticket-buyers still judge athletes by the work that shows up under the lights.