RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Simone Biles closed her Rio Olympics with more gymnastics gold.
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“All I can say is that to be the first is very special”, said Retton, who in 1984 became the first USA woman to win an Olympic all-around gold medal in women’s gymnastics, a feat since accomplished by Carly Patterson (2004), Liukin (2008), Gabrielle Douglas (2012) and Biles, of Spring.
As she reached down to steady herself on the balance beam – her first visible misstep during an astonishing Olympics that includes three gold medals and some of the most boundary pushing gymnastics ever – one thought ran through her head.
Douglas, who like Raisman competed in London four years ago, has three medals while Biles tied the record of four golds in a single games in Rio and earned bronze on the balance beam. While she admitted she was a bit exhausted on Monday after her only one real mistake of the games – a wobbly landing on beam that cost her a shot at gold – Biles didn’t look it during her signature event.
“I’m not disappointed in the medal that I received because anyone would love to have a bronze at an Olympics Games”, Biles said.
Her final gold game Tuesday in her best event, the floor exercise.
Amy Tinkler, the youngest member of Great Britain’s team, waits anxiously for the score of of another competitor to find out she won win bronze in the women’s floor at Rio 2016.
“You have to believe within yourself that you can do more than what people expect”, summed up Leyva.
US gymnast Danell Leyva took the silver in 15.900 points, followed by David Belyavskiy of Russian Federation in 15.783. Biles won everything else she entered – the team final, the individual all-around final, the vault and, on Tuesday, the floor exercise. Referring to the retiring Marta Karolyi, she added, “We’re Marta’s final group, so I think that we couldn’t have finished it on a better note”.
If it was up to Aly Raisman, the US would be credited with gold medal A. and gold medal B.in the floor exercise finals Tuesday. (How does she keep from going out of bounds?!) Though she also performs with powers and athleticism, Raisman’s skills are just a bit rougher, a little less polished than her teammate’s and so she scored four tenths below her with a 15.5, which was still half a point ahead of the rest of the competition. Sure, Russia had a 41-year old gymnast competing in her seventh Olympics, but that’s really uncommon in the sport.
Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson, who captured the women’s 100 meters on Saturday night, advanced Tuesday to the finals of the 200 meters, where’s she’s also expected to be a medal contender.
Near the back of a tight pack of runners, New Zealand’s Nikki Hamblin fell, and trailing right behind, US runner Abbey D’Agostino tripped over her.
And while Efron’s Brazil jaunt thrust him into a positive spotlight yet again, there’s little doubt that one of his biggest (and most satisfied) fans is just as popular Stateside right now.
Biles said she will take a post-Olympic break, starting with a pizza party and continuing on a 36-city tour with the team from mid-September through mid-November. “I am going to retire, and to finish like that is a dream comes true”. He was “a manager”, she said.
Biles and Raisman said they are planning a team watch party of their all-around final, as the Americans had yet to see it for themselves.
Even if Biles had nailed her routine, there’s no telling if she would have matched Wevers and Hernandez.
Now, she will head home, where her gym includes two elite US junior gymnasts.
China brought home one women’s medal – a team bronze – from Rio, continuing its slide since hosting the 2008 Beijing Games.
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“Your first Olympics you walk away with five medals, that’s not tough (disappointing) at all”, she said.
