Her athletes – all of whom she’s nurtured from prodigies to champions – repaid her hard work with a fitting tribute of precision and tenacity.
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Lochte swam the anchor leg of the 4×200-meter relay, helping the U.S.to a comfortable win in its preliminary heat.
The American women’s gymnastics team successfully defended its 2012 team gold medal in a rout of Russian Federation and third-place China on Tuesday at Rio Olympic Arena.
Especially after a performance that reinforces everything that’s good about America at a time when the reminding is imperative.
Biles and two other USA gymnasts, Aly Raisman and London all-around gold medal victor Gabby Douglas, had finished with the three highest all around scores in the qualifying event on Sunday. Standout Biles will compete in all four events, while 2012 Olympic darling and individual all-around gold medalist Gabby Douglas will take the uneven bars.
Raisman, the team captain, also reminded Americans this Olympics will mark the end of an era. Karolyi knew she could nurture something special from the moment she saw a young Biles launch off the vault like a rocket and 9-year-old Laurie Hernandez tightrope-walk along the edge of a sidewalk like it was a balance beam.
The United States finished with a score of 184.897, more than eight points clear of second place Russian Federation.
It also meant the U.S. retained the title it won in London four years ago.
The top spot was never in doubt. Since USA Gymnastics installed the system Martha and Bela Karolyi created, the American women have 89 world or Olympic medals.
Karolyi joked she’s going to have to be a “normal person” in retirement and plans to poke her head in occasionally to “see if they are going in the right direction”. No detail is overlooked.
Rightfully, the USA came into the competition as the overwhelming favorites and would have needed multiple major errors to not win. No problem. They do that at the ranch all the time.
“She’s pushed us harder than anyone else, harder than our coaches”, said Biles. “It’s start. Stop. Start”.
WORLD-RECORD LIFT: Deng Wei won Olympic gold and set a world record in women’s weightlifting, hoisting 147 kilograms in the clean and jerk and 115 in the snatch for a total of 262. The job is not done. It may be Phelps’s best event, but he mistimed his finish in London and that allowed le Clos to beat him at the line.
SHAPIRO: NPR’s Russell Lewis, who is at the women’s gymnastics team final at the Summer Olympics in Rio – thank you, Russell.
At the World Championships, she became the first woman ever to win three straight all-around titles and the first gymnast to capture 10 gold medals.
“We called ourselves the “final five” because there will only be four girls next time and because of Martha (coach Karolyi) finishing after this”, said the 16-year-old.
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The sole agenda item: Come up with a nickname – something that would define them forever – if their dream came true in Rio and they won team gold to take their place alongside the Magnificent Seven of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the Fierce Five of the 2012 London Games.
