The five ladies for the USA Women’s Olympic Team have been chosen!
Simone Biles
Gabby Douglas
Laurie Hernandez
Madison Kocian
Aly Raisman
These five ladies came to the trials this past weekend with the intention and hope of making it to the Olympic team! If you watched the trials, you know that this was one tough competition considering some uncharacteristic events took place, leaving everyone unsure of who was really going to make the team.
Despite what spectators believe, these ladies are human. They make mistakes, and must push through those speed bumps on their way to the Olympic dream. Gabby Douglas, the reigning All Around Champion, made a mistake on beam, a fall on her full turn that caused her to bump down to 7th place halfway through the trials. Despite the fall, Gabby is quoted to say, “Don’t give up on me yet.” The confidence she gained from her past Olympic experience will surely come back after this mistake, as she works hard in training at The Ranch leading up to Rio. Martha Karolyi is confident in her and isn’t giving up on her yet.
Simone Biles also showed us an uncharacteristic mistake, seeing as many have watched her practically flawless routines and numerous championship titles add up over time. Simone’s fall on beam on day two of the trials was a shake to her confidence, but in “Simone-style” she came back stronger than ever, proving that she was made for this team!
Although Gabby Douglas is the reigning champion, her spot wasn’t technically guaranteed based on the other competitors. Her tears of joy as she was announced a team member showed that she didn’t take for granted her past experience, and that she was willing to work just as hard and earn her spot on the team like the other girls. It is assumed that Simone and Aly had guaranteed spots, however, they waited until they heard their names to believe it, and shed tears of joy just as Gabby did.
The stadium was full of adoring gymnastics fans, and when the team was finally announced, chills filled the arena. This team is arguably one of the strongest teams USA has had going into the Olympic Games. Less than a month from now, we will get to witness history as our fiercest ladies get to show what they have in Rio.
Congratulations, ladies! See you in Rio!