Current:Home > NewsWho will make the US gymnastics team for 2024 Paris Olympics? Where Suni Lee, others stand-DB Wealth Institute B2 Reviews & Ratings
Who will make the US gymnastics team for 2024 Paris Olympics? Where Suni Lee, others stand
lotradecoin partnership View Date:2024-12-25 17:27:16
FORT WORTH, Texas — Simone Biles is a gimme for the Paris Olympics. Because, duh. Did you watch her at the U.S. championships? Or any other competition since she returned last year?
The question is who joins the four-time gold medalist on the squad for Paris. And that answer is now both clearer in some ways and murkier in others than it was a few days ago.
Suni Lee and Skye Blakely improved their prospects with their performances at nationals last weekend. But now there are concerns about the health of Shilese Jones, who was considered almost as much of a lock as Biles until she withdrew from nationals to protect her injured shoulder.
“There's been a little bit of progress,” Jones told NBC on Sunday night. “I woke up and I was like, 'It's feeling a little bit better than this whole week.' It's been a little bit stiff, but some progression today."
Subscribe to USA TODAY's newsletter:Chasing Gold: Your guide to the 2024 Paris Olympics
The Olympic trials for gymastics are June 27-30, so it’s not time to panic just yet. In the meantime, here’s a look at the contenders:
Stock rising
Suni Lee
Lee competed the all-around for the first time since last spring, when a kidney ailment forced her to cut her final season at Auburn short. If not for a fluke error on vault on the second night — she stubbed her toe on the runway and had to cut her Yurchenko double to a 1½ — Lee would have finished third.
Lee was fabulous on balance beam, with her 14.9 on Sunday the highest score on the event of the entire meet. She missed being third on uneven bars by a mere 0.050 points despite her routine not having its full difficulty.
“Beam and bars are the one thing I need to — not prove myself on, but that’s where I’m going to be the most useful to the team. So I’m glad I could (do) both those (well),” Lee said. “I just have to go back into the gym and work on my consistency, get my bar routine with full difficulty and keep staying consistent on beam.”
Skye Blakely
She put together two solid and consistent nights that included the first 15 of her career, for her upgraded Cheng vault. She was second to Biles in the all-around both nights, and she was top three on vault, bars and beam.
Though she was a member of the last two world championship teams, Blakely played a supporting role. Her performance at nationals showed her — and she hopes the selection committee — that she’s ready to be a main contributor in Paris.
“Coming off this meet, I know what I’m capable of now, so that will put even more confidence in myself,” she said. “I see myself in training, so I know what I can do. But to be able to finally put it out there on the floor and show everybody and myself, it really means a lot to me.”
Jordan Chiles
The Tokyo Olympian is making steady improvement, but it was her silver medal on uneven bars that really stood out. Remember that the format for team finals is three gymnasts on each event and all three scores count, and Chiles would give the U.S. women insurance on bars and vault.
Hezly Rivera
The U.S. junior champion last year made quite an impression in her first nationals as a senior, finishing fourth on balance beam and fifth on uneven bars.
Work in Progress
Jade Carey
She has the big vaults, but she needs to score better on floor exercise, where she’s the reigning Olympic champion. That's not a complete surprise, given the quick turnaround between Carey's NCAA and elite seasons.
Kayla DiCello
High-scoring potential is one thing, but consistency is another. After a fall on uneven bars and a rough performance on balance beam, DiCello needs to show at trials that she can deliver under pressure.
TBD
Shilese Jones
If she's healthy, she’s on the team. These next three weeks will be big.
Kaliya Lincoln
Lincoln withdrew from nationals midway through the first night with an injury but petitioned into Olympic trials. Could add a big score on floor exercise.
Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.
veryGood! (1234)
Related
- Get 70% Off Kate Spade, 70% Off Coach, 40% Off Banana Republic, 40% Off Disney & Today's Top Deals
- Man who killed 83-year-old woman as a teen gets new shorter sentence
- Toyota recalls 1 million vehicles for airbag issues: Check to see if yours is one of them
- 'The ick' is all over TikTok. It may be ruining your chance at love.
- A slain teacher loved attending summer camp. His mom is working to give kids the same opportunity
- Chilling 'Zone of Interest' imagines life next door to a death camp
- Congo enters its second day of voting after a chaotic rollout forced the election’s extension
- Angola is leaving OPEC oil cartel after 16 years after dispute over production cuts
- These six House races are ones to watch in this year’s election
- After approving blessings for same-sex couples, Pope asks Vatican staff to avoid ‘rigid ideologies’
Ranking
- American Supercar: A first look at the 1,064-HP 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
- WHO declares new JN.1 COVID strain a variant of interest. Here's what that means.
- Oscars shortlists revealed: Here are the films one step closer to a nomination
- Polish viewers await state TV’s evening newscast for signs of new government’s changes in the media
- 'Love Island UK' stars Molly-Mae Hague, Tommy Fury announce split after 5 years
- Hungary’s Orbán says he agreed to a future meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
- Toyota recalls 1 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles because air bag may not deploy properly
- Storm prompts evacuations, floods, water rescues in Southern California: Live updates
Recommendation
-
Ryan Reynolds on his 'complicated' relationship with his dad, how it's changed him
-
The Super League had its day in court and won. What is it and why do some fans and clubs object?
-
Morgan Wallen makes a surprise cameo in Drake's new music video for 'You Broke My Heart'
-
'The ick' is all over TikTok. It may be ruining your chance at love.
-
Judge tells Google to brace for shakeup of Android app store as punishment for running a monopoly
-
Storm prompts evacuations, floods, water rescues in Southern California: Live updates
-
Woman stabbed in Chicago laundromat by man she said wore clown mask, police investigating
-
The 'Yellowstone' effect on Montana