Biles twists Olympic trajectory, will headline Paris gymnastics

It was quite a foregone conclusion, but the four-time Olympic gold medallist put a bow on it on Sunday, as she aced the US trials in Minneapolis and will lead another American bid for glory in Paris 2024, just three years removed from her disconcerting case of the ‘twisties’ during the Tokyo Games.

“This is definitely our redemption tour. I feel like we all have more to give,” Simone Biles said after piling up 117.225 over two days of competition to earn an automatic berth on the five-strong national team ready to take on Paris later this month.

With another electrifying floor routine, her high-flying tumbling bringing the fans to their feet, the Ohio native finished off an impressive performance and reminded everyone in the sports world what she is capable of come prime time, just 25 days before the start of the Olympic Summer Games.

The 27-year-old told an exultant crowd in Minneapolis that in the immediate aftermath of Tokyo, when she experienced a case of the disorienting ‘twisties’ that forced her to cut short her Games participation, she had "never pictured going to another Olympic Games." After Sunday’s heroics, she became the oldest American woman to make an Olympic gymnastics team since the 1950s.

Considered the best of all time, she is now back and looking stronger than ever. "I never thought I would go back in the gym again, be twisting, feel free," said Biles, who returned to competition in August last year after a two-year break to win a sixth world all-around title and capture her eighth and ninth national championships, both records.

She'll be joined in Paris by three other members of the Tokyo Olympics team: all-around gold medallist Suni Lee, floor gold medallist Jade Carey and Jordan Chiles, who helped the US to team silver. The quartet -- who will be joined by 16-year-old Hezly Rivera -- have branded the Paris Olympics their redemption tour.

"I feel like we all have more to give and our Tokyo performances weren't the best," said Biles, who withdrew from the team final at the pandemic-delayed Games. "I feel like we have a lot of weight on our shoulders to go out there and prove that we're better athletes. We're more mature, we're smarter, we're more consistent."

The always-tense US trials were turned into an even more nervy affair as three top contenders were forced out of the competition by injury. Skye Blakely ruptured an Achilles tendon in training on Wednesday and Shilese Jones hurt her left knee in a warm-up vault on Friday, minutes before Tokyo Olympic alternate Kayla DiCello suffered what proved to be an Achilles injury on the opening vault of the trials.

The injuries unsettled everyone, but with less than a month before gymnastics competition begins in Paris, Biles was confident the team will be at its best. "If we can just do what we do in training, then I think we're going to hit it out of the ballpark," said Biles, who has captured world championships all-around gold and her eighth and ninth national titles since returning to competition last summer.

Simone Biles is back and looking better than ever. GETTY IMAGES

Biles launched her night with a soaring version of her Yurchenko double pike vault, and even though she skittered backwards a few steps on landing, she scored 15.50 points for a vault so difficult that no other woman has attempted it in competition.

After a sub-par balance beam performance on day one left her clearly furious, Biles was rolling through an impressive routine when she lost her balance and fell off -- still scoring an impressive 13.900.

Lee, whose return to the Olympics comes as she manages not one but two kidney diseases that threatened to end her career, finished second overall with 111.675 points.

It was a triumphant and emotional night for Lee in front of ecstatic fans in her home state of Minnesota. "I'm so, so glad that I never gave up," she said. "There were so many times where I thought about just quitting and just kind of walking away from the sport because I didn’t think that I would ever get to this point."

Chiles finished third, Carey fourth and Rivera fifth in the all-around -- although it was a nervous wait for the quartet behind Biles, who were named to the team after about half an hour of deliberation by the selection committee.

Rivera was buoyed by a strong showing on the balance beam and capped her night with a solid vault to edge out 18-year-old Joscelyn Roberson for the final berth.

All eyes in Paris, however, will be on Biles, who heads to France an overwhelming favorite to add to the four golds she won in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. "I love these girls and I'm going to take care of them in Paris," Biles said.