Data Crunch #7.3

This isn’t the first time I’ve done an article like this, nor the second. But as I continue to tinker with gymnastics data I keep finding more ways to demonstrate the brilliance of Simone Biles. The data in the graphic below is nothing new. It comes from my points data that I have cited countless times in previous articles. What is different is that rather than provide the raw numbers, this time the top 40 gymnasts are listed out in a graph.

What I find so interesting about this graph is how the data appears to flatline after only the first four gymnasts. It shows that Simone, Larissa Latynina, Svetlana Khorkina, and Vera Caslavska were truly in a tier of their own. They have essentially created a “Mount Simone” with such an incline. But here’s a scary thought:

Unlike Latynina, Caslavska, and Khorkina, Simone Biles is still actively competing and is likely to add at least 10-13 additional points to her final point total once Tokyo-2021 comes to an end. Imagine the final graphic with an additional ten points and it becomes clear how much she dwarfs everyone else.