Simone Biles given top US award by President Joe Biden

Image source, Getty Images

Superstar gymnast Simone Biles has been awarded one of the highest honours a US citizen can get.

President Joe Biden gave her the Presidential Medal of Freedom - a rare award given to people whose work or actions are seen to be a positive contribution to the United States.

At 25 years old, Simone is now the youngest person to have received this honour.

She is the US's most decorated gymnast, having won more than 30 Olympic and world championship medals to date.

But aside from her amazing work as an athlete, Simone has also been praised for her honest conversations about mental health and the challenges she's faced as a professional sports star.

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, Simone Biles has been celebrated for her skills as a gymnast and for her open conversations about mental health

Simone was awarded the medal alongside 16 others at the US President's home - the White House.

Champion footballer and Ballon d'Or winner Megan Rapinoe was also given the medal by the President.

Another awardee was an intensive care nurse called Sandra Lindsay - the first person in the US to receive a vaccine for coronavirus.

Previous winners of the Presidential Medal of Freedom include actor Tom Hanks, billionaire technology developer Bill Gates and civil rights campaigner Rosa Parks.