RIO DE JANEIRO _ Aly Raisman won the silver medal in the floor exercise, the last event of women's gymnastics, and considered herself the best in the world.
That's because Simone Biles is otherworldly.
"I don't even consider myself competing against her," Raisman said. "She's just at another level. She's incredible."
Biles won her fourth gold medal and fifth medal of the Rio Games on Tuesday. The Spring, Texas, resident joins swimmers Katie Ledecky (2016) and Missy Franklin (2012) as the only American women with five medals at a single Olympics.
"It's pretty insane what I've accomplished in my first Olympics," Biles said. "It's definitely rewarding, and I'm very proud of myself. I don't know. It's crazy ..."
Biles competed every day of women's gymnastics competition, performing 11 times. Eight times she scored above 15, including Tuesday when she had a 15.966 in the floor exercise, which was .466 better than second-place Raisman.
It was Biles' consistency day in and day out that stood out.
"The reward is the medal, but if you don't bring your best performance, she's not satisfied," said Aimee Boorman, Biles' personal coach.
Biles' best performance might have been her worst score, a 14.733 in the balance beam Monday. Biles had a low takeoff on a front somersault, grabbing the 4-inch-wide beam to regain her balance. The fact that she didn't fall off tells the story of how good Biles is.
The fact that she still won the bronze _ not lost the gold _ despite an automatic half-point deduction explains how great Biles is.
"The fact that somehow because that expectation (to win five gold medals) was put on her, it became a letdown that she got a bronze on beam," said Boorman, who works at the Biles-owned World Champions Centre in Spring. "It's like, 'No, that's still an amazing accomplishment.' And it's even more amazing that she stayed on the beam with her two toes."
It became firmly established after team and individual gold medals that Biles would leave Rio as the greatest gymnast ever, supplanting Nadia Comaneci. Only four other women in artistic gymnastics have won four gold medals in a single Olympics, the last coming in 1984 by Romanian Ecaterina Szabo.
Biles, 19, appears to be the only one in gymnastics not signing off on the idea.
"I don't know," Biles said. "I would never rank myself. It's weird."
Gymnasts aren't long for their world, and this likely was the last we see of Biles in the Olympics. Boorman knows as much, becoming emotional when asked the question.
Biles isn't ready to address her future, though.
"First, we're going to have some fun, and I don't want to think about it yet," Biles said. "We all need to have a little bit of a break and kind of trying to be normal once we get back home."
One thing Biles will never see again is normalcy. Everyone will recognize her as the star she is. Five medals, four of them gold, will prove life-changing.
"It is kind of scary with the public eye being on me at all times, but it's rewarding as well," Biles said. "I think we'll get used to it."
Biles twice held up her index finger after winning the floor exercise. She is the one and only, and not just in one event.
Thanks for the memories, Simone.
