For example, Brazil has the top three women’s beach volleyball teams in the world and swept the podium at last year’s World Championships.
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That team finished less than 1½ points ahead of Russian Federation in qualifying.
Americans occupied three of the top four spots in floor exercise, with Biles finishing first, Raisman taking second and Laurie Hernandez finishing fourth. At the end of their subdivision, they had earned the highest team qualifying score, 185.238, by far. Hernandez did make the event final on the balance beam and Douglas made the uneven bars final. Their not-a-type score of 185.238 was almost 10 points better than second-place China through four of the five subdivisions.
The teams will be hoping to quality for the team final, the all-around final and the four apparatus finals.
Just Biles and Raisman will be eligible to compete in the all-around event. In what universe is it fair for Douglas to get shut out, as she was Sunday night, or for former world champion Jordyn Wieber to get shut out of the 2012 London all-arounds after she finished fourth in qualifications, but third on the USA team? The gymnast didn’t seem too upset about it, though.
“I hate the two-per-country rule”, she said. “I used to be so hard on myself and she’s like, ‘You know what, just go out there and be the best Simone that you can be”. It’s been an wonderful experience so far.
“We’ve done so many routines we’re kind of on autopilot right now, so it’s just like go, go, go, go”, warned Douglas, bidding to become the first woman since Czechoslovakia’s Vera Caslavska in 1968 to win back-to-back all-around Olympic titles.
Douglas will still play a key role in the team competition, where the United States women are favorites to repeat their gold medal win in London. There was Douglas gliding over the uneven bars.
Women’s Uneven Bars Final, Sunday, August 14 at 4:21p.m.
Over the past decade, the United States has proven to be one of the driving forces in women’s gymnastics. Douglas, who is based in Los Angeles, struggled in the first night of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, but her grit on the second day shows the “Fierce” part of the Fierce Five. Three of those medals were won by current members of the squad, with Raisman afforded the opportunity to defend one of those titles this year (balance beam).
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On Tuesday, the heavily favored US, which steamrolled through Sunday’s preliminaries, is expected to earn its way back to the gold medal stand for the all-around team competition.
