Welcome to Lunch Break, my exciting interview series where I chat with fascinating people over lunch!
Hello Dear Readers, for those in the USA, I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful day off, soaking up some sun and devouring some delicious food! Today’s letter is especially exciting because I had the opportunity to interview Olympic silver medalist Jordan Chiles just one day after she was named as a part of the the USA Women’s Olympic Artistic Gymnastics team heading to Paris! This was such a special opportunity, so this edition of Lunch Break will be available to everyone, as well as next week’s with Olympic gold medalist Laurie Hernandez!
Last weekend, I had the pleasure of joining Nike in Minneapolis for the USA Women’s Gymnastics Trials. Calling it thrilling feels like an understatement; it was exhilarating!!! Being in a stadium with over 16,000 enthusiastic fans cheering on these incredible athletes as they executed squat turns, leaps, twists, and other breathtaking feats was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I cannot thank the Nike team enough for including me in this experience (Thank you so much Lynne and Chloe!)! Witnessing these athletes, who have dedicated their lives to this moment, achieve their dreams was beyond inspiring and motivating . Additionally, I must highlight the remarkable diversity of this year’s women’s gymnastics team, which adds another layer of significance to their achievements.
When the team was announced (Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera), the athletes emerged wearing their stunning new jackets. These jackets were designed in collaboration with Nike and Sami Miro, a former competitive gymnast, making this a full-circle moment. The jackets pay homage to the Greek Goddess Nike—the goddess of victory. The jacket is cropped and rendered in white silk with strong shoulders. The coloring of the jacket calls to mind marble statues, while the shoulders and the Olympic emblem on the back evoke images of Nike’s wings. And hopefully, those wings will carry these incredible athletes to victory!
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Now, I am thrilled to share my interview with Jordan Chiles, one of the extraordinary athletes aiming for gold. This will be Chiles' second time competing in the Olympics, her first being the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Her performance was buoyant and energetic, and you could feel the electricity radiating from her even from a distance. I only had a few minutes to speak with her, but we managed to discuss her performance, the bespoke jackets, and of course Beyoncé.
Jalil Johnson: Hi.
Jordan Chiles: Hello.
JJ: Could you just start off by saying who you are and everything like that?
JC: Yes, I am Jordan Chiles. I am part of the Team USA Gymnastics Team, and I am a 2021 and now 2024 Olympian.
JJ: Fantastic. Well, we have to start off with last night. It was amazing. That was my first time seeing gymnasts perform in person, so it was such an honor to see you and the whole team perform. So just tell me how you're feeling about last night.
JC: Honestly, I'm still on a high, y'all. This has been a crazy ride. My journey has been crazy. I've had losses within my family, with my aunt and my grandpa, and injuries that have happened. So being able to finally be in this position to say I did it and I made it and I was able to put everything aside and just be me, that's how I felt last night.
Really, everything is just beyond words. This morning, I was like, "There's no way I'm going to Paris. There's just no way I'm going to Paris. I am representing Team USA in Paris." That's just crazy to say, so I'm really excited and can't wait to see how everything turns out.
JJ: And you're going to Paris your way, which is really amazing. And so of course, I think we have to talk about the fashion, because you're a fashion girl. And so let's start off with the jackets, the Sami Miro jackets, which are so special. As you probably know, this is the first time they've done a custom collaboration, and there's so much meaning behind the jacket. So just tell me: What were your first reaction to the jacket?
JC: Oh, my gosh. So they had told us. After we got told who was going to be on the team, they were like, "Okay, guys, you're going to go change into this outfit that we got you." And we were like, "Outfits? What do you mean?" We're not just going to walk out like, "Okay, it's fine by me."
The moment that we walked in and I saw the jacket, I didn't even see the pants or the shoes; I just saw the jacket. I screamed like I was two years old. I really was just in awe. I was just so impressed. Nike, they did they thing, and I get it. I get it 100%, because me being a Nike athlete and me being in fashion is the best thing. But man, that jacket, I could have slept in it, I kid you not. I wanted to take it with me that night, but I had to wait till today.
JJ: It was fantastic, and when I looked at the jacket, I saw so much in there, but of course, when my first thoughts came to Beyonce, it feels very of her, especially Renaissance. And so I was reading that you've declared that this is the I'm That Girl. That's your motto, mantra of the season. So can you just tell me: What is Beyonce to you? What does that mean to you? How does that help you show up in your performance?
JC: Well, obviously, Beyonce is a queen herself, and why wouldn't you want to look up to a queen? I feel like I'm a queen half the time. I wake up, and I'm like, "Woke up flawless, okay." But having somebody who has not only gone through a lot within her life, and you've seen it with the Renaissance tour, her shows, her going through a bunch of stuff within her family and all that stuff, it's really cool to really find out what it is that person has done to become who they are.
Because Beyonce, she's not just Beyonce. She made a name for herself, and that's something that my parents have always told me: "Try to make a name for yourself because it's only one you. You can try to be somebody else, but it's not going to be the exact same." So with knowing that she put effort in her life and all that stuff, I think it is something that really inspired me, and I just wanted to do the same thing.
So the motto, I'm That Girl, actually came from her song. I mean, if you listen to the lyrics, it makes a lot of sense and everything like that, but I don't use it in a cocky way. I use it in an inspirational way. It's an affirmation for a lot of people, and I feel like if you have that confirmation all the time, and you can just look at yourself in the mirror and be like, "Yes, I am that girl" then you can go into your life and go into everything that you're doing and feel confident as much as you can.
JJ: And I feel like I have to ask you. I won't ask you to name your favorite Beyonce era, because that's like choosing your favorite child, but can you give me your top three ranking of Beyonce eras?
JC: Oh, my gosh, Beyonce eras. It's hard to choose my Beyonce eras because she did R&B so good. She doing country so good. She did pop so good. She's a rapper. At this rate, Beyonce is just Beyonce, so I can't choose. But I think besides Lemonade, besides Beyonce, besides 4, besides all those albums, I think the biggest one that really caught my eye was Cowboy Carter, because you never knew that that was a side that she wanted to embrace.
And she is a country girl, and I think a lot of people take that for granted. She's from Houston. She's a Houston hottie, mixed with a cowgirl era in her. You got to let that girl be her at this rate, so Cowboy Carter definitely is an album that I'm just like, "Okay, she really changed the game and what music can be."
JJ: Well, I'm running out time, but I have to wrap up this with every question I always ask guest on my podcast. My newsletter is called Consider Yourself Cultured, so I have three kind of rapid-fire questions, all about culture. Don't worry.
JC: Okay, let's see. Okay, okay, okay.
JJ: Who is the most cultured person you know?
JC: Oh, I'm going to have to say Beyonce.
JJ: No explanation needed. Beyonce. What is your latest cultural obsession?
JC: Cultural obsession? Cultural obsession? I don't know.
JJ: Is there anything on TikTok?
JC: No, okay, I got it. I've been in this bow era, like the Coquette Bow era. Yeah, I've been in that era. Yes, I can say that.
JJ: Where are you getting your bows?
JC: I get my bows from Amazon, or if I see them in a store like PacSun or something like that. I got mine off of Nike, actually.
JJ: Oh, fantastic, Nike.
JC: Bows on Nike.
JJ: Oh, we love that. And the last question is: What should everyone read, watch, and listen to, to consider themselves cultured?
JC: Oh, you should watch BET. You should listen to, I think, any R&B artist or any female rapper. Sorry, I'm not coming at the men. The men are very cultured as well, but I feel like female rappers need to be recognized a little more. What was the third one?
JJ: Read.
JC: You should read affirmation books.
JJ: Do you have any recommendations for affirmation books?
JC: No, I really don't. I think honestly, every single time I go into Barnes & Noble or just a grocery store, I find just an affirmation book and kind of just read my life away.
JJ: Well, thank you so much, and congratulations, and then have a fantastic time in Paris.
JC: Thank you.
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Lunch Break with Jordon Chiles at the Lofton Hotel