She didn’t flip, tuck or handspring onto the Commencement stage in academic regalia, but Simone Biles surely leaped into the hearts of the Class of 2025, delivering a memorable keynote address at WashU’s 164th Commencement ceremony.
“I would probably feel more comfortable if they had allowed me to vault onto the stage and do a little floor routine,” said Biles, one of the most decorated gymnasts in history with 11 Olympic medals — seven gold — and 30 world championship medals.
But once she stepped onto the podium — a gold, WashU-branded podium designed just for her diminutive 4-foot-8 frame — she owned it like the champion she is, to the delight of the more than 3,600 graduates and their families and friends gathered May 12 on a soggy Francis Olympic Field on Washington University in St. Louis’ Danforth Campus.
A slow, steady rain in the hours before the ceremony made umbrellas and clear ponchos as ubiquitous for the graduates — and their guests — as WashU’s familiar green academic regalia, but the rain didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits. The stadium erupted in cheers the moment Biles stepped through the Francis Field gates, her ebullient smile lighting up the giant screens that flanked the stage.
As the rain lightened up, Biles spoke for almost 15 minutes, getting interrupted by cheers and applause more than a few times in delivering a speech that seemed to speak to each member of the Class of 2025 individually. “The world doesn’t need you to be perfect,” she said. “It needs you to be bold, to care, and to keep going even when things don’t go as planned.”
To keep going. That was a theme echoed by Chancellor Andrew D. Martin, who also encouraged the Class of 2025 to embrace the courage and leadership qualities for which each of them, by virtue of being WashU alumni, already had aptitude. “Perhaps you’ve been leading all along, whether you realized it or not,” Martin said. “The world you’re entering needs you to embrace that capacity, to continue developing it, and to exercise it with courage.”
A roadmap to success
Biles, whose nickname is the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time), told the class that greatness, and the fancy moniker that followed, was never her goal. “My goal was to be the ‘Greatest Simone Biles of All Time,’” she said. “It is always about me being the best Simone I can be, and I’m so proud to say I’ve stayed true to that.
“And that’s all you have to do, too,” she added. “Show up and be the best you.
“We are not just celebrating the diploma you are receiving — we are also celebrating you for the work that you put in, for all the sacrifices you made to get here, for all the challenges you have overcome.”
Biles then presented a roadmap on how each member of the class could achieve singular greatness.
“Show up for yourself consistently,” she said. “Do something every day that scares you. Put in the work on the days you feel like you’re not even in the right arena. When you’re consistent, when you bring your best to your practice every day, then you’ll be ready for the big moments.”
Second, she urged creativity in decision making. “No matter what your goals are, or what you’re working in, prioritize your creative thinking,” Biles said. “Because no one’s, and I mean no one’s, success is a straight line. If Plan B doesn’t work out, then make a Plan C, and then guess what, there’s the rest of the alphabet.”
Third, she stressed the importance of prioritizing mental health. “Be mindful and take care of your whole self,” she said, words especially poignant in light of the fact Biles famously took herself out of competition in the 2020 Beijing Olympics, a move mental-health professionals lauded for its maturity and foresight. “Work can’t be everything,” she said. “Take quality time for yourself and prioritize your mental wellness just as much as your physical health. Lean into your friends and family who fuel your joy and fill your tank.”
And when given an opportunity for leadership, Biles urged the graduates to embrace each and every one. “Keep an eye on the rearview mirror as you pave a trail for those who look up to you,” she said. “When I had moments of struggle, when the world witnessed my falls or my failures, I’d think about the kids at my gym, and all the other young people who looked up to me. What would I tell them if they were in my position?
“I’d speak encouragingly to them. I’d remind them that a moment doesn’t define a person. I’d tell them to get back out there. I’d tell them that it’s OK to take time to breathe, to rest and to reset.”
Get back out there. That’s the courage that Martin spoke about as well, delivering the final remarks of the ceremony and quoting British writer and scholar C.S. Lewis. “(Lewis) said: ‘Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of virtue at the testing point,’” Martin said. “Your principles matter most when you’re tested. Your character is revealed not when leadership is easy, but when it demands sacrifice.
“My hope for you, graduates, is that whatever else you choose to do with your lives, you commit to being leaders who are capable of combining clear purpose with unwavering values,” Martin said.
“The world doesn’t need you to be perfect,” Biles concluded. “It needs you to be bold, it needs you to care, and to keep going even when things don’t go as planned. So go out there and write your own story — one that only you can tell.”
Read Chancellor Andrew Martin’s message to the Class of 2025.
View Simone Biles’ Commencement address. Read her remarks here.
