A (kidney) stone’s throw from dominance
Biles ignores pain to lead qualifying with 3 top scores and one second
In her first performance Saturday at the world gymnastics championships in Doha, Qatar, Simone Biles successfully performed a vault that had never been completed by a woman in international competition.
She racked up a fourevent score that was higher than the numbers she posted at the national championships in August, and she did so after spending several hours Friday night being examined at an emergency room in Doha for a kidney stone that she has dubbed the “Doha Pearl.”
It was, Biles said, a “capable” performance on her part. And with that, she adds understatement to the list of events at which she laps the field.
Led by Biles’ four-event score of 60.965 points, the U.S. team was in first place after the first day of women’s team qualifying at the International Gymnastics Federation championships. Qualifying will continue Sunday in Doha.
Biles, 21, of Spring and teammate Morgan Hurd of Middletown, Del., were 1-2 in qualifying for the individual all-around, and Biles had the top scores on vault (15.666, more 1.8 points ahead of her nearest competitor), balance beam (14.8) and floor exercise (15.333).
Biles was second on uneven bars at 14.866 to Nina Derwael of Belgium but is likely to make the eight-person final in that event as well. Her total score was eight-tenths of a point higher than her opening night at nationals, even though judging standards are generally harsher at the world level.
As for her overnight health scare, Biles, during an interview in Doha provided by USA Gymnastics, said she thought she was suffering from a stress-related stomachache. She decided Friday, after consulting with her mother, Nellie Biles, to seek medical attention to ensure she wasn’t suffering from appendicitis.
Informed by the doctor that she was suffering from a kidney stone, Biles said, “I’m like, ‘OK, cool. So can I, like, leave?’ and she throws a blanket over me. I’m, like, what are you doing? I’ve got to leave. I have practice in the morning,’ And she was like, ‘You might stay here,’ and I was, like, ‘I have to compete, so I’m leaving, but thanks for letting me know I have a kidney stone, and I’ll deal with the pain later.’ ”
Biles skipped the team’s morning practice. She said she still could feel pain from the stubborn stone when she performed Saturday but told herself, “If the pain stays like this all day, I think I’ll be good to compete. I can deal with this. I’ve had worse pain.”
“It hurts to stand and do some of the movements, but adrenaline definitely helps me out there,” she added. “Without my teammates, I don’t think I would have the confidence to go out there and do the routines like I did tonight. So I’m excited and happy that I did it, because I’m here for the team.”
She also joked that sudden movements, like riding on a roller coaster, might dislodge the stone, and “I’m basically my own little roller coaster out there, so I think it will be fine.”
Asked if she expected the stone to pass soon, she said, “It’s quite large, and I don’t think I’ll pass this one, but we’ll see.”
As for her performances, Biles had a slight hesitation at the top of a handstand on uneven bars, the event on which she has the most difficultly, and a front flip balance check on balance beam but otherwise sailed through the program.
“There are definitely still things to work on,” she said.
After the shaky bar routine, she then made it through beam and floor before wrapping up the day with the new vault that will now bear her name.
The “Biles” vault is a roundoff — similar to a cartwheel — approach to the vaulting table, followed by a half-turn and, after hitting the table with her hands, two full twists in the air before a blind landing facing away from the table.
With teams from Great Britain, Russia, Brazil and China scheduled to qualify Sunday, the U.S. had a 12.3point lead over Japan after Saturday’s events. Among individual events, Hurd was third on floor exercise and fourth on uneven bars, Kara Eaker of Grain Valley, Mo., was second on beam and Grace McCallum of Isanti, Minn., was fifth on vault.
“I think everyone had outstanding events, and that was exciting,” Biles said. “We have a lot of good gymnastics to bring.”