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Simone Biles Takes Photo With Shaq, Introduces ‘Ragged Old Flag’ Video Ahead Of Super Bowl LI

It’s almost always funny to see NBA players posing for pictures with other athletes: the height disparity is usually more than noticeable, but one pair of sports stars took it to a whole other level.

Simone Biles Takes Photo With Shaq

Ahead of Super Bowl LI on Sunday, gold-medal winning U.S. Olympic gymnast Simone Biles took a photo with NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal. The picture may seem fake at first but it’s completely real, and Biles tweeted it:

That’s a great photo, and the 4-foot-9, 19-year-old Biles looks tiny compared to the towering Shaq.

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Golf player John Daly also recently took a photo of himself with a tall, former NBA star: Chinaman Yao Ming. Daly also shared the picture on Twitter, saying in one of his hashtags: “His putter is as long as my driver” (all in one word).

Both seem like great opportunities.

Biles also introduced the “Ragged Old Flag” video before Sunday’s Super Bowl. The clip, introduced by Biles and singer Harry Belafonte, featured picturesque scenes across the United States while Johnny Cash’s song of the same name played in the background.

The video’s main intent seemed to be to remind us that, no matter how great our differences in political views may be, we are still one nation.

Following a brief message from Belafonte regarding the rights of all Americans, Biles states: “Our forefathers got it right 240 years ago. Equality, freedom, they belong to us all. And in case we falter in our ways, they wrote it down for us to always remember and cherish. We, as Americans, have a duty to uphold and protect those rights. That is what unifies us. And the symbol of our unity has 50 stars and 13 stripes.”

Here is the video:

The video was just one of the many politically-charged commercials that aired before or during this year’s Super Bowl as a reflection of the turbulent and divisive times America currently finds itself in.

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – AUGUST 16: Gold medalist Simone Biles of the United States celebrates on the podium at the medal ceremony for the Women’s Floor on Day 11 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Rio Olympic Arena on August 16, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

Pablo Mena

Writer and assistant editor for usports.org. NY Giants and Rangers fan. Film and TV enthusiast (especially Harry Potter and The Office) and lover of foreign languages and cultures.

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