Keep your thoughts about Simone Biles’ hair to yourself, please.
A massive heat wave affecting Paris and much of France is already forcing the 2024 Paris Olympics to make tweaks to the games, Reuters reports. With temperatures reaching a peak of 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 on Tuesday), competitors are being allowed more rest and water breaks.
The eight-time Olympic medalist said she’s also feeling the heat in a series of Instagram Story posts she shared on Tuesday. She specifically asked people not to mind her hair, considering she was traveling on a bus without air conditioning.
“Don’t come for me about my hair. IT WAS DONE but bus has NO AC & it’s like 9,0000 degrees,” wrote Biles, 27, on IG.
“Gonna hold your hand when I say this 💋 next time you wanna comment on a black girls hair. JUST DON’T,” she added.
In a new interview published earlier this month, Biles told Elle that doing her hair has become a part of her self-care routine and that she learned about essential products and Black hairstyles from social media.
“Nobody taught me [how to do my hair],” Biles told Elle’s Danielle James. “I always went to the professionals.”
“I’m finally learning to love my hair and the texture that I have and the styles that I can do,” she added.
The world-renowned gymnast also mentioned that she’s aware that her hair could be a focal point while competing in Paris, saying, “I used to worry about [my hair being considered] not professional. But I’m not embarrassed about it anymore.”
Biles won her eighth Olympic medal, the most by any American gymnast, after leading the U.S. women’s team to gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Tuesday, according to USA Today. Biles remains the most decorated gymnast ever, with 38 world championship and Olympic medals.