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Team USA wins gold in women's team gymnastics
The United States women's gymnastics team won the gold medal for all-around team performance Tuesday in Paris. It was the team's first gold medal in eight years after a disappointing showing in Tokyo saw it take silver.
Italy claimed silver Tuesday after a solid, clean evening of performances; it was Italy's first team gymnastics medal in over 90 years. Brazil stormed back from an unfortunate injury in warm-ups to claim bronze. China, an expected medal contender, fell out of the running after disastrous performances on bars and beam.
Team USA began its day on vault, one of its strongest and highest-scoring events. It was Jordan Chiles who set the tone with her near-perfect Yurchenko double full, delivering a 14.400 in Team USA's first vault of the rotation.
Jade Carey came next, battling through a severe stomach illness to make her appearance in the team final. She landed her Cheng — one of the hardest vaults in the world — with a small hop and earned a 14.800.
Simone Biles, batting cleanup, performed a Cheng vault of her own and bettered Carey's score with a 14.900. Biles's vault wasn't as difficult as the Yurchenko double full she competed in qualifying, but there was a reason for the switch.
In qualifying, teams are allowed to drop their lowest event scores, and "going big" is encouraged because the risk is minimal. In final competition, however, every score counts, and Team USA was clearly more interested in having Biles stick an easier vault than overshoot a more difficult one.
Just GOAT things.
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 30, 2024
Simone Biles kicks her day off with a solid vault. #ParisOlympics
NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/jcxpj0GuRZ
From there, Team USA moved on to the uneven bars. Both China and Brazil had significant mistakes on the bars in their opening rotation, and the pressure was on for the Americans to take advantage of those errors.
Again, Jordan Chiles went first, absorbing the pressure with ease, and delivered a stellar routine to position Team USA in first. Biles bettered Chiles' score, but it was defending all-around gold medalist Suni Lee who came through with the performance of the rotation. She overcame a fall in her warm-up to muscle through a tough routine and deliver Team USA's biggest bar score of the night.
Suni Lee’s uneven bars routine just left us SPEECHLESS! #ParisOlympics
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 30, 2024
NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/mGOk4hMnBD
The balance beam, traditionally the most nervy and mistake-ridden event of the night, began poorly for Team USA.
Chiles botched her mount and fell off the beam before her routine could even begin. The fall could've destroyed Chiles, but she reset herself and delivered a near-perfect routine from there, going as far to stick her dismount where everyone else couldn't. Her score, a disappointing 12.733, was rough for Team USA's gold medal hopes, but it was significantly better than expected after her initial fall.
It was Lee who came through as the hero again, taking the beam after Chiles and delivering a clean, confident routine to break the spell and reset the energy for Team USA.
It was a heroic performance from a gymnast whose health struggles leading up to the Olympics were debilitating. Lee was diagnosed with a serious kidney disease shortly after her gold-medal performance in Tokyo.
"She was dealing with an illness that, for most people, wouldn't allow them to go out for a walk in the park," Lee's doctor Marcia Faustin told The Athletic. "It was incredibly, incredibly difficult. In the beginning, we weren't even thinking about gymnastics. We were thinking about what her life could be."
Sunisa Lee Balance Beam. Extraordinary routine under massive pressure. Middle splits mount. Mitchell turn. Switch to switch leap to ring jump. Side aerial, layout, layout, not a wobble. Gainer full dismount. What a beautiful routine! #ArtisticGymnastics #Paris2024
— FIG (@gymnastics) July 30, 2024
After closing out balance beam, Team USA wrapped up its evening on floor, one of its strongest events. Chiles made up for her beam fall with a confident, energetic performance, and Biles sealed the gold with a wildly powerful routine.
WOW. SIMONE BILES JUST DID THAT. #ParisOlympics
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 30, 2024
NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/l4pLcI1QGg
Biles and Lee will compete in the individual all-around final on Thursday. Both are expected medal contenders.
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