Biles cruises to her fifth national all-around title
BOSTON — Simone Biles had nothing to prove at the U.S. gymnastics championships this weekend, the second stop on her comeback tour. But she had one person to please: Herself.
“I can quit if I wanted to,” Biles said Friday, after the first night of competition. She did just that, for a while — forgoing training for most of 2017 after winning the all-around title at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, making room for both celebrity appearances and downtime with family and friends.
But Biles, 21, knew that she could still push herself and, perhaps more important, that she could enjoy the ride. So she returned to competition, and on Sunday night put an exclamation point on her status of world’s best female gymnast. She became the first American woman to earn five national all-around titles, and she was the first to sweep all four events at the championships since Dominique Dawes did so in 1994. She was also the oldest women’s all-around champion since 1971.
“I didn’t think coming into the events this year I would do as well as I did,” Biles said. “I knew I was capable of it, but I kind of thought I was going to be a nervous wreck.” She added: “But so far, so good.” The result felt predetermined even as Biles showed up at TD Garden. The only question was: How much she would win by? The answer was 6.55 points — she could have fallen more than once and still placed first. These championships were mostly a race for the silver medal, which was won by Morgan Hurd, the current world champion. Riley McCusker repeated as the bronze medalist, and last year’s champion, Ragan Smith, finished a distant 10th.
“I feel like this has given me the burst of confidence that I needed going into the rest of the season,” Hurd said.
The screams for Biles were earpiercing. Fans and competitors alike yelled, “Come on, Simone!” and “You’ve got it, Simone!” as she hit routine after big routine. (The crowd seemed to hold a collective breath for her just once, as she wobbled during a turn on beam.) Her highest score Sunday came
on vault, where she drilled a skill called a Cheng.
But Biles’ thrilling return has not overshadowed the fallout of the sexual abuse scandal that has rocked USA Gymnastics, the sport’s governing body. Lawrence Nassar, the former women’s national team doctor, was sentenced in January to 40 to 175 years in prison for his abuse of young athletes, with hundreds of gymnasts, including Biles, making their stories a matter of public record.
Biles said she competed in a teal leotard — the color of sexual assault awareness and prevention — to honor the victims.
Kerry Perry, who took over as
USA Gymnastics president on Dec. 1, finally broke her silence with the news media Sunday, taking questions for about 15 minutes. Inquiries about the organization’s legal woes, financial health and plans to curb abuse in the sport were with met with vague answers.
“We want all of our athletes to understand, including our survivors, that it is our intent to keep moving forward with them,” she said.
Chellsie Memmel, a world champion who was part of the panel that selected Perry, expressed disappointment, say-
ing she had expected Perry to be “the face of USA Gymnastics and the positive change and the positive force. “I want more,” Memmel added. The lack of certainty about USA Gymnastics’ path forward loomed over these championships. Hours before the men’s event began Thursday, Kyla Ross and Madison Kocian, both Olympic gold medalists, came forward as Nassar victims on CBS This Morning, with Ross saying the organization has “not reached out and seen how we’re doing.” And on Saturday, the New York Times published several gymnasts’ accusations of emotional and physical abuse by a coach, Qi Han, in North Carolina.
At TD Garden, screens showed old footage of coach John Geddert embracing Jordyn Wieber, also an Olympic gold medalist and Nassar victim. Geddert operated two Michigan gyms where Nassar molested girls, and he himself has been accused of verbal and physical abuse. Geddert was suspended by USA Gymnastics in January.
There was no official acknowledgment of Nassar’s victims at the women’s event, but organizers did pay tribute to the 2008 Olympic gymnastics team. While applause for Perry was tepid, droves of girls in the stands cheered loudly for the Olympians, a group that included Memmel and all-around gold medalist Nastia Liukin.
Like Biles, Liukin returned to elite gymnastics after a break. Her comeback ended after a fall on the uneven bars at the 2012 Olympic trials.
“Physically, she’s better than she was in Rio,” Liukin said of Biles, adding, “I have no doubt that if she continues doing what she’s doing, there’s not a chance in the world that anybody is going to be able to beat her. That’s cool-slash-scary to think. I never felt that way.”
If Biles makes the 2020 team, she could be the first Olympian to repeat as women’s allaround champion since 1968.