The team is led by 19-year-old Biles, and she has a legitimate chance to win five of the six golds available in Rio. On Sunday, she shattered the world record in the 400-meter individual medley to win gold and on Monday became the first two-time gold medalist at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium, adding the women’s 100 backstroke title.
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Russian Federation won silver with a combined score of 176.688 and China won bronze with a score of 176.003. And here is where we will offer a spoiler alert.
In Sunday’s qualifying session, the Americans won by 10 points, an wonderful margin in a sport where teams are often separated by tenths of a point.
The Americans are spectacularly talented, so deep they could have brought their B team, as well, and both would have medaled.
A score of 15.800 confirmed the result and gave the USA their second successive team gold. She’s all smiles, and her music draws on the sounds of Brazil’s famous carnival.
Perhaps the craziest thing about Simone Biles is that she happened on gymnastics accidentally.
There are squeals and yells as the USA team hugs. Raisman will also be competing on the floor final with Biles, while Hernandez will compete in the balance beam final. It’s the kind of routine that will be played repeatedly. Plus Douglas had to live with a host family so she had to have more expenses when she moved to West Des Moines, Iowa when she was 14 to train at Liang Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute. Meanwhile, watch an interview of Gabby Douglas in the video below.
The weight of expectation after leading qualifiers by over 10 points had only made them stronger, said Raisman, a gold medal victor in London.
Today, her floor routine is now so incredible that she leaps nearly twice her height of 142 cm.
China’s gymnasts are showing art and grace on the beam. Sports Illustrated reported that, beginning in 2020, gymnastics teams will be made of four members. “If we only made one mistake, we might have won the silver medal”. Close inspections seemed to save the day.
“We’re confident because of the hard work”, captain Aly Raisman said. At the ranch, Karolyi drills her gymnasts to do enough repetitions that they are sticking dismounts even in the subconscious mind. No vases are ever broken, no walls needed for her to steady herself on landing. Raisman stuck almost every landing while Biles almost flipped to the rafters in her routine that uses music from the movie Rio.
And now she has become one of the greatest athletes on the planet, someone to emulate and celebrate. She earned a modest 15.366. It’s the U.S.at 93.365, followed by China with 89.339.
For Gabby Douglas, today’s team finals are almost the end of the road. In a four-way tie, Kocian won gold on bars at the 2015 world championships. Karolyi said. “We’re not in the theater”. Kyla Ross didn’t make an event final, coming up just shy on uneven bars.
China’s Mao Yi slipped off the mat on the floor routine, ending the 2008 champions’ challenge for silver, after Shang Chunsong had earlier tumbled off uneven bars.
They did just that, performing with a glorious blend of athletic brilliance and creative joy, of elegance and sheer power.
The arena is quite loud at times with cheering – particularly for the Brazilian team that’s concurrently competing on the floor exercise.
These young women, they’re in a class all by themselves. But the crowd had eyes for just one gymnast.
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After the first rotation, the USA team is in first place, with a combined 46.866 points.
