Get mean, girls!
Shannon Miller, a seven-time Olympic medalist in gymnastics and member of the gold medal-winning “Magnificent Seven” team at the 1996 Atlanta games, has filed this look at the performance of the 2016 team for The Post from Rio on Sunday. Gymnasts on a mis
A S the US women’s gymnastics team walked into the arena for their first competition of the 2016 Olympic Games, it was with dazzling red, white and blue leotards and a mission to completely dominate the sport in a way that no other team has done in history.
They accomplished that goal with an ease that disguises the true difficulty of their routines, outscoring the competition by over ten points!
These five young women have already captured our hearts. Now it is time to capture the hardware.
Simone Biles has been continuously hyped as the most dominant gymnast in American history, and I wholeheartedly agree.
Last night, she crushed the competition — leading three out of four events and the all-around. She has the opportunity to walk home from these Olympic Games with an unheard-of five gold medals. I don’t believe we have ever seen this kind of dominance by one gymnast on the women’s side.
Still, the team’s position atop the leader board wasn’t the big story. And it wasn’t at all shocking to see Biles’ success in the qualification round.
Sunday night was all about who will qualify for the all-around competition. With one spot secure for Biles, the speculation began regarding which team members would be considered for the remaining coveted spot. With little international competition, the second spot could easily mean a medal.
In the end, Laurie Hernandez was taken out of the uneven-bar lineup, which allowed Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman to compete for the remaining spot. There are valid arguments on both sides of that decision — and it will likely continue on until the next Olympics. But the end result was one we’ve seen before.
As many pointed to her difficulties during the trials process, Douglas seemed determined to put that behind her. She walked into the arena with purpose, and she can be extremely proud of the way she performed. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t enough for an all-around berth.
Raisman — known as a “3 event” specialist — shocked everyone by beating out the reigning world champion, Jordyn Wieber, for an all-around spot in 2012. It was deja vu on Sunday as Raisman outscored Douglas for the final all-around spot.
What I love about Raisman is her patience, work ethic and leadership style.
There is a reason that both the 2012 and 2016 teams voted her to be their team captain. She is their rock.
While I truly, and very personally, understand the heartbreak of missing the mark after so much hard work and effort, I also know that mistakes are not what define us.
It is how we react, how we rise above that defines our true character. And I am eager to see how this team of amazing young women works together to define their legacy in the sport.
Follow Shannon Miller on Instagram and Twitter at @shannonmiller96