Sports News | Olympics Gymnastics Latest: Simone Biles, Sunni Lee Seek Another Gold Medal in All-around Final
Get latest articles and stories on Sports at LatestLY. Simone Biles, fresh off leading the US women's gymnastics team back to the gold medal in team competition, returns to the mat on Thursday for the Paris Olympics all-around finals.
Paris, Aug 1 (AP) Simone Biles, fresh off leading the US women's gymnastics team back to the gold medal in team competition, returns to the mat on Thursday for the Paris Olympics all-around finals.
How does Olympic gymnastics scoring work?
There are two components to Olympic gymnastics scoring: The difficulty or D-score is what a gymnast does. The execution or E-score is how well they do it.
Technically, there's no limit on how high the D-score can go, but most elite routines top out between 5.4 and 6.0. Some exceptional ones can go higher — for example, Biles' floor routine at the team finals had a 6.8 D-score.
The E-table is based on a 10-point system, though no perfect 10 for execution has ever been awarded anywhere since the new paradigm was introduced (Simone Biles has come close a couple of times on vault). Anything over 8 is good.
The two scores are added together. A total of 13.0 or better is solid. Anything in the 14s is excellent and puts you in medal contention. A 15 or better (typically reserved for vault and reserved for Biles) and you're pretty much assured of a gold medal.
During the all-around finals, each gymnast is judged on vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor, and their scores are added together. Highest total wins.
Rivals and friends
Biles and Brazil's Rebeca Andrade are rivals — and friends.
“It's an honour to be able to compete alongside her,” Andrade said after leading Brazil to the bronze medal in the team's competition won by the US team in Paris.
“She's a reference and a role model for the whole world of gymnastics. And, also for other athletes.”
Andrade and Biles made their Olympic debut together in Rio eight years ago.
“To be able to watch how she competes and see how happy she is to compete, the hard work she does, it's fantastic to witness,” the 25-year-old Andrade said.
“I don't know what will happen when she's not around any more. I don't even know if I'm still around (by that time), either.”
Andrade won the gold medal in the vault at the Tokyo Olympics and was runner-up in the all-around to Sunisa Lee.
Simone Biles' new gymnastics skill: What to watch for?
Simone Biles has had five skills named after her in the gymnastics' Code of Points after completing them in competition.
There's a chance Biles could add a sixth element at the Olympics, where she has submitted a new skill on uneven bars.
She did not attempt the skill during qualifying or the team finals but could try it during the all-around competition.
If this was Jeopardy!,' then Kyla Ross would be a great answer
If this was “Jeopardy!,” here's your answer: Kyla Ross.
The question: “Who was the last gymnast to beat Simone Biles in a major all-around competition?”
It was March 30, 2013, at something called the Chemnitz Friendly in Germany, when Ross won the all-around gold and Biles finished second.
Biles has competed in 33 different all-around competitions since — Olympics, Olympic trials, world championships, US championships and so on — and won the gold at every one of them. That obviously doesn't include the Tokyo Games, where she withdrew and did not compete in the all-around.
Biles will try to run her streak to 34 straight all-around golds at the Paris Games later Thursday night.
Why isn't Jordan Chiles in the all-around finals?
Jordan Chiles posted the fourth-best all-around score during qualifying Sunday, but she won't compete for individual all-around gold.
The reason? Each country can only have two athletes in the all-around finals. Simone Biles was first and Sunisa Lee was third in qualifying, taking both of the spots open to US gymnasts.
Chiles does have one more chance at a medal this weekend after qualifying for the finals on the floor. She also had a good enough score to qualify on vault, but she didn't make that final because she finished behind countrymates Biles and Jade Carey.
Biles, Andrade and Lee will start on vaultSimone Biles, Rebeca Andrade and Sunisa Lee — the top three finishers in all-around qualifying — will compete in the same rotation tonight, starting on vault. They'll move to uneven bars, balance beam and then floor.
If the scores are tight heading into the floor, Biles has the advantage of getting to see how the others fare before starting her final event. Biles' floor routine will be the last event of the night.
It's been 11 years since someone beat Biles in all-around
Biles has an 11-year unbeaten streak in the all-around in meets she has started and finished in the finals. It's a run that has included an Olympic gold in Rio de Janeiro, six world titles and nine US Championships.
If she finishes atop the podium at 27 years, four months and 18 days, she will be the oldest all-around champion since then 30-year-old Maria Gorokhovskaya of the Soviet Union during the first women's all-around competition in 1952.
Some more perspective on how long Biles has been on top: Olympic teammate Hezly Rivera had just turned 5 the year Biles won her first national and world titles. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)