Gymnastics superstar Simone Biles won her ninth U.S. championship on Sunday, leaving no doubt that at 27 and more than a decade into her career at the top of the sport, she is as good as ever.
Biles posted a two-day total of 119.750, nearly six points ahead of runner-up Skye Blakely and leaving no doubt she looks poised to add a second Olympic gold to go with the one she captured in 2016.
In front of an audience that included her husband, Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens, Biles put on a four-rotation clinic that featured all the hallmarks of a typical Biles performance. There was mind-blowing athleticism mixed with precision and more than a dash of swagger.
Biles finished with the top two-day score in all four events, something she had done only once before at nationals (2018), to build plenty of momentum ahead of the Olympic trials later this month in Minneapolis.
His only misstep on Sunday came on the vault. She came up short on her double Yurchenko pike (two back flips with her hands clasped behind her knees) during warm-ups and overcompensated when it counted, generating so much force that she ended up on her back. She still received 15,000 for her effort, a testament to a lap that has never been completed in competition by another woman and has only been attempted by a select group of men.
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Not that it bothered her. Biles collected herself, took a couple of deep breaths, and then followed through with a turn from Cheng that was rewarded with a 15.1 and put a ninth national title within reach, heady territory considering that no other gymnast in the history of the sport in the United States has more than seven.
While Biles remains above the fray as usual, there is plenty of competition for the other four spots on the five-woman U.S. team that will head to Paris as heavy favorites to return to the top of the podium after having finished second to Russia in Tokyo three. years ago
Blakely, 19, turned in another impressive performance and will head into Minneapolis with plenty of momentum. Three years after his bid to make the 2020 Olympic team ended with injury, Blakely is peaking at the right time.
Suni Lee, the 2020 Olympic champion who has spent the past year battling kidney problems that have limited her training, shook off a first-time mistake on vault to put together elegant routines on uneven bars and balance beam that few in the world , even Biles. – can match
Olympians Jordan Chiles and Jade Carey are in the mix, though both suffered falls on the beam on Sunday. Third-place finisher Kayla DiCello escaped on the uneven bars. Leanne Wong, who may have looked tired after a long season competing in Florida, also suffered from uncharacteristic mistakes.
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Shilese Jones, considered the best all-around U.S. gymnast without the last name Biles, withdrew from the championships on Friday, citing a shoulder injury, although she said Sunday she was feeling better and plans to be available for trials. So will 18-year-old Kaliya Lincoln, who opted not to compete on Sunday after tweaking something during Friday night's opening session.
Both, if healthy, are serious contenders to earn an invite to Paris (Jones in particular). If they aren't, the door could be wide open for others and test the depth the elite senior program has been touting for years.
