Kaylia Nemour
Athletes competing in ladies’s creative gymnastics from 16 nations set, matched, or broke information for his or her nations on the Olympic Video games in Paris, France, making historical past within the sport and galvanizing future generations of athletes to observe of their footsteps.
ALGERIA
One of many greatest tales of the complete quad was Kaylia Nemour‘s combat with the French federation, which tried to pressure her to depart her gymnasium, Avoine Beaumont. When she as an alternative opted to symbolize Algeria internationally, the federation tried to dam her from qualifying to world championships final yr by denying her
Fortunately, Nemour received her battle and was capable of qualify to each worlds after which the Olympics, and she or he’s since been making historical past for her new nation, profitable the primary world championships medal for each Algeria and the African continent with a silver medal on bars final yr, after which doing the identical in Paris together with her gold.
The second athlete to symbolize Algeria in ladies’s gymnastics on the Olympic Video games, Nemour smashed each document set by fellow previously French competitor Farah Boufadene in 2016, together with ending first on bars, an enchancment from 72nd place; fifth within the all-around, an enchancment from 59th place; twenty second on flooring, an enchancment from eightieth place; and thirty second on beam, an enchancment from eightieth place.
BRAZIL
After a record-demolishing competitors in Tokyo three years in the past, Rebeca Andrade returned with much more on her to-do checklist, breaking particular person information on each equipment other than vault – she already set the usual there with gold in 2020! – and serving to the crew to a historic end as properly.
Her greatest particular person achievement was profitable the gold medal on flooring, changing into the primary to medal on this equipment for Brazil and breaking her personal document from Tokyo, the place she matched Daiane dos Santos‘ fifth-place document from 2004. She additionally completed second to win silver within the all-around right here, matching her document from 2020, fourth on beam to interrupt Flavia Saraiva‘s fifth-place document from 2016, and tenth on the uneven bars to interrupt Daniele Hypolito‘s 14th-place document from 2004.
The crew’s historic end was one of the vital unimaginable moments of the Video games, with the Brazilian ladies profitable a primary ever crew medal by narrowly edging out the British squad to win the bronze. Previous to Paris, the perfect crew end for Brazil was eighth place, one thing the women achieved first in 2008 after which repeated in 2016.
CANADA
In her fourth Olympic Video games, we noticed Ellie Black once more lead her crew and assist others with coronary heart and spirit, however on the similar time, she as soon as once more continued to have nice particular person performances, making the all-around and vault finals whereas serving to her crew match their historic fifth-place end that the Canadians set in 1984 and repeated in 2016, the place Black was additionally key to the crew’s success.
Individually, Black’s sixth-place end on vault tied Kelly Brown’s document from 1984, whereas her Sixteenth-place end on bars tied Brittany Rogers‘ document from 2012. The one document Black is now not a part of is flooring, so I assume we’ll must see her once more in LA 2028!
COLOMBIA
Former U.S. elite and College of Alabama standout Luisa Blanco made waves when she confirmed up at Colombia’s nationwide championships final summer time. Although it was too late for her to make a push for the worlds qualifiers, she was chosen to symbolize Colombia on the Pan Am Video games in Santiago, Chile, the place she made the all-around last and completed as the highest Olympic-eligible athlete to earn the continental berth for Paris.
On the Video games, Blanco broke each document for Colombia, which made its first Olympics look in 2008. Her greatest history-making second was changing into the primary Colombian girl to achieve a last, ending twenty third within the all-around to interrupt Jessica Gil Ortiz‘s Forty second-place document from 2012. Moreover, she completed Forty second on beam to interrupt Gil Ortiz’s 61st-place document from 2012, Forty second on flooring to interrupt Gil Ortiz’s 53rd-place document from 2012, and forty eighth on bars to interrupt the nation’s 61st-place document, set by Gil Ortiz in 2012 and matched by Catalina Escobar in 2016.
HAITI
Although she missed out on qualifying for the Olympic Video games finally yr’s world championships and Pan Am Video games, Lynnzee Brown‘s scores have been ok to make her a contender for the tripartite nomination, which acknowledges athletes from nations that traditionally haven’t had excessive illustration on the Video games.
As the primary athlete to compete in ladies’s creative gymnastics for Haiti on the Olympics, Brown set program information by ending 53rd within the all-around, sixty fourth on flooring, Seventieth on beam, and 74th on bars.
INDONESIA
One of the heartbreaking moments at worlds final yr was watching Rifda Irfanaluthfi fall and get injured on bars in what was her third try to qualify for an Olympic Video games. Nonetheless, when her rating got here up, Irfanaluthfi was capable of safe the final obtainable spot for Paris because the host nation berth was reallocated into the all-around pool when France certified a crew.
Although she wasn’t capable of get again to full well being in time for the Video games and was solely capable of compete on one equipment, Irfanaluthfi made historical past as the primary Indonesian girl to compete in gymnastics, setting this system document on bars by ending in eightieth place.
ISRAEL
In her second Olympic Video games, we noticed Lihie Raz put up certainly one of Israel’s finest general performances in historical past, matching or breaking three separate longstanding particular person rankings after beforehand breaking the vault document in 2020.
Raz completed thirty first within the all-around {qualifications} to match Nancy Goldsmith’s document set in 1984, at a Video games that was boycotted by the Soviets and its allies in the course of the Chilly Conflict. She additionally completed thirty third to interrupt Goldsmith’s 54th-place document from 1984, and her Fiftieth-place end on bars broke Ruth Abeles’ Fifty fifth-place document from 1960.
ITALY
One among my favourite moments of this yr’s Olympic Video games was watching Alice D’Amato turn out to be a celebrity for the Italian program, changing into the primary Italian girl to win a gold medal in gymnastics when she surprised to win the beam title. Each she and teammate Manila Esposito, who received the bronze, had already made historical past on this equipment by being the primary Italians to achieve this last, breaking Vanessa Ferrari’s Sixteenth-place document from 2012, however with their podium finishes they’ll now formally say they’re the perfect beam employees in Italian historical past.
Moreover, D’Amato completed fifth on the uneven bars to interrupt Miranda Cicognani’s ninth-place document from 1960, and although she didn’t break the all-around document, her fourth-place end within the last is the perfect within the fashionable historical past of the game, with 1948 Olympian Laura Micheli the one athlete to rank larger, having completed second on the London Video games (although the ladies weren’t acknowledged individually with medals). D’Amato was additionally integral to the crew’s medal-winning efficiency, with the Italians incomes the silver for the second time in historical past 96 years after the Italian ladies stood on the rostrum in 1928, the primary time ladies’s creative gymnastics was contested at an Olympic Video games.
NEW ZEALAND
Longtime elite standout Georgia-Rose Brown represented Australia at 4 world championships, most not too long ago in 2022, however was by no means capable of make it to the Olympics after giving it a run in 2012, 2016, and 2020. With Australia incomes a crew spot for Paris, it appeared like she might presumably be within the combine, however reasonably than probably miss out for a fourth time, Brown opted to alter her nationality so she might symbolize New Zealand, which was assured an all-around berth by way of the continental championships.
Brown ended up qualifying by way of the uneven bars via the world cup collection – a fortunate break as New Zealand’s Olympic Committee ended up not permitting the continental qualifier to compete because of a low world rating, which seemingly additionally would’ve been the case with Brown – and she or he finally broke three of Courtney McGregor‘s information from 2016 in Paris, together with ending twenty sixth on bars, an enchancment from Seventieth place; thirty first within the all-around, an enchancment from forty first place; and 54th on beam, an enchancment from 57th place.
PANAMA
This marked the second time an athlete from Panama competed in ladies’s gymnastics on the Olympic Video games, with Hillary Heron including her identify to the document books 3 times after spectacular performances on her two finest occasions.
By ending forty fourth in all-around {qualifications}, Heron matched Isabella Amado‘s document from 2016, and she or he additionally completed twenty ninth on flooring, breaking Amado’s 63rd-place document from the identical yr. As the primary Panamanian girl to finish two vaults on the Video games, Heron additionally set this system document on this equipment together with her 14th-place end.
PHILIPPINES
The Philippines was one of many solely nations with no full crew to maximise the eligible variety of particular person rivals for a program, with three Filipino People qualifying by way of world championships, the world cup collection, and the continental championships over the previous yr. On the nation’s second look at an Olympic Video games, all three ladies have been capable of smash the information set by Evelyn Magluyan 60 years in the past at Tokyo 1964.
First, we’ve Aleah Finnegan, whose Seventeenth-place rating on vault was an enchancment from 83rd place in 1964. Subsequent up, 2020 U.S. Olympic alternate Emma Malabuyo completed twenty fifth on flooring, an enchancment from 82nd place, and 57th on beam, an enchancment from 83rd place. Lastly, Levi Jung-Ruivivar completed fortieth in each the all-around and on bars, each an enchancment from 83rd place.
PORTUGAL
In her third Olympic Video games, Filipa Martins – who already held 4 of Portugal’s 5 Particular person information – continued to be dwelling proof that her gymnastics is getting old like a positive wine.
Martins turned the primary Portuguese girl to qualify to an Olympic all-around last in Paris, the place her Twentieth-place end broke her Thirty seventh-place document from 2016.
SLOVENIA
After lacking out on the chance to contend for an Olympic spot at world championships final quad, Lucija Hribar had an excellent efficiency final yr to safe the second-to-last obtainable all-around berth.
In Paris, Hribar completed Fifty fifth within the all-around to interrupt Mojca Mavric’s longstanding 62nd-place document from 2000, which was the primary time a Slovenian girl had competed in Olympic gymnastics, and she or he additionally completed Forty second on bars to interrupt Sasa Golob‘s Seventieth-place document from 2012.
SOUTH AFRICA
In her second Olympic Video games, we sadly noticed Caitlin Rooskrantz – who first put South African gymnastics on the map together with her beautiful uneven bars routines final quad – must withdraw from the all-around competitors because of a foot damage on flooring.
Nonetheless, she put up her nation’s finest efficiency on bars by ending twenty fifth to interrupt her personal Thirty ninth-place document from 2020, and regardless of her damage, her 73rd-place end on flooring broke Naveen Daries‘ 77th-place document, additionally from 2020.
TAIWAN
The fabulous beam employee Ting Hua-Tien made her second Olympics look this yr after qualifying via the world cup collection.
This yr, she determined to focus solely on her finest equipment, and although she once more missed out on the ultimate with a set that didn’t fairly go her approach, she nonetheless managed to tie her record-breaking efficiency from 2020 by once more ending in Fiftieth place.
UNITED STATES
The U.S. ladies have received gold medals in each class on the Olympic Video games, so now the sport is all about including to their medal collections, which they managed to do in Paris by profitable seven particular person medals along with the crew gold, the fourth for the US after additionally profitable in 1996, 2012, and 2016.
In her third Olympic look, Simone Biles received her second all-around title after additionally topping the rostrum in 2016, and this was additionally the seventh all-around gold for the U.S. ladies, with different winners together with Mary Lou Retton in 1984, Carly Patterson in 2004, Nastia Liukin in 2008, Gabby Douglas in 2012, and Sunisa Lee in 2020. Enjoyable truth – with seven all-around titles, the U.S. ladies now match the Soviet Union for many WAG all-around wins in Olympic historical past!
Moreover, Biles profitable the gold on vault was the second time a U.S. girl has stood atop the vault podium, with Biles matching the first-place document she set in 2016.
Article by Lauren Hopkins
