That’s all from me. Thanks as always for following along with us. Be sure to check out Tumaini Carayol’s full report. And we’ll leave the last word to Suni.
the people i do it all for 😭 I LOVE YOU ALL🤍 https://t.co/ofp9znzQ1j
— Sunisa lee (@sunisalee_) July 29, 2021
Also not to be missed: the on-camera reaction of former Brazilian gymnast Daiane dos Santos, the 2003 world champion on floor, to Andrade’s history-making silver.
Eu tô preso nesse vídeo, a Daiane representou o brasileiro comemorando a PRATA da Rebeca, foi muito emocionante! 🥺🇧🇷
— QG CAJU 🏜 (@QGCajuBR) July 29, 2021
PARABÉNS REBECA
pic.twitter.com/SBxJOBdxkE
Lee: 'It is so surreal'
“It feels crazy, it is so surreal,” Lee says. “It’s a dream come true. I don’t even know what to say. It hasn’t even sunk in. ... The past two years with Covid have been crazy. There was one point I wanted to quit. To be here and to be an Olympic gold medallist is just crazy.”
Rebeca Andrade, in her first major international competition since suffering a major knee injury in 2018, is equally thrilled with her silver.
“I am super happy,” says Andrade, who becomes the first woman representing Brazil to claim an Olympic medal in artistic gymnastics. “I hoped for this moment and I have trained and worked super hard for this moment. ... I don’t have any words to describe how I am feeling, nor the feeling of having the Olympic silver medal around my neck.”
She adds: “I gave 110%, I gave all of me. I put a lot of effort in to this, I worked hard with my coach and a psychologist. ... It’s been a tough road (since Rio 2016) with many bumps along the way. But I kept on focusing on my goal.”
Says Melnikova, the bronze medalist: “I am extremely happy. It has been a hard road to get here. All my dreams came true. ... I basically worked for it five years and I didn’t miss any major competition in all those five years.
“I want to dedicate it (my medal) to all the hard work I have done. It’s been a lot of work (laughs).”
Updated
Kerri Strug has entered the chat. And Nadia. And Alicia. And Chellsie.
Congratulations @sunisalee_ ! 🥇🇺🇸 Amazing courage and execution in the moment! #TeamUSA #Olympics @TeamUSA @USAGym
— Kerri Strug (@kerristrug96) July 29, 2021
History happened @Tokyo2020 @Olympics congratulations ladies👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻❤️. You wrote your own history @sunisalee_ #Rebeca Andrade @_gelyamelnikova pic.twitter.com/VsnPdKjaBA
— Nadia Comaneci (@nadiacomaneci10) July 29, 2021
Ugly crying out of joy for @sunisalee_ so proud of you lady! I love #teamusa and #gymnastics
— Alicia Quinn (@ASAQ_3) July 29, 2021
What an incredible performance, you are amazing @sunisalee_ Go USA 💙🇺🇸❤️
— Chellsie Memmel (@CMemmel) July 29, 2021
Updated
Scenes!
Suni’s sister takes a call from Suni right after Suni won gold #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/FfGrbsdM7M
— Peter Cox (@peterncox) July 29, 2021
Bright lights. Big stage. Suni shined. ✨ #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/oSBFkvTXHW
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 29, 2021
Updated
The United States had never won an Olympic individual all-around title until Mary Lou Retton’s breakthrough in 1984. Suni Lee’s win today is the country’s fifth in a row after Carly Patterson (2004), Nastia Liukin (2008), Gabby Douglas (2012) and Simone Biles (2016).
Suni Lee wins the U.S.' fifth straight Olympic women's all-around title. This was the closest of the streak.
— Nick Zaccardi (@nzaccardi) July 29, 2021
2004: Patterson by .176 over Khorkina
2008: Liukin by .6 over Johnson
2012: Douglas by .259 over Komova
2016: Biles by 2.1 over Raisman
2021: Lee by .135 over Andrade
Updated
St Paul’s own Suni Lee is your Olympic champion. And the reaction shots from the watch party back home in the Twin Cities suburb of Oakdale are everything you’d expect.
She did it. @sunisalee_ is the queen of the women’s gymnastics all-around finals and her parents. OMG. Tears every where. 🥺 #Gold #TokyoOlympics #hmong pic.twitter.com/n2xM7VJOPq
— Gia Vang (@Gia_Vang) July 29, 2021
Crowd reacts as Suni Lee appear to win the all around pic.twitter.com/5dudS51PPt
— Peter Cox (@peterncox) July 29, 2021
Updated
The final scores
The first Hmong American to compete for the United States at the Olympics has just won the most coveted prize in the sport. Sunisa Lee takes the gold (57.433) ahead of silver medalist Andrade (57.298) and bronze winner Melnikova (57.199).
Updated
Suni Lee is the Olympic all-around champion!
Andrade is out of bounds with two feet on her first tumbling pass. She needs to be perfect throughout the rest of this routine to win the gold. And she’s out of bounds again on the last tumbling pass.
She earns a score 13.666, finishing with a 57.298. That’s 0.135 behind Lee, who is the new Olympic champion.
Updated
Suni Lee. A double double. A double layout. A one-and-a-half to front full with a small hop. Didn’t do a fourth pass. Will the difficulty be enough to vault the ROC pair and hold off Andrade? Waiting on the score ... and it’s a 13.7. The American is back into first and is guaranteed at least the silver.
It’s all down to Andrade. She needs better than a 13.801 to become the first Olympic medalist in women’s gymnastics from Brazil.
Urazova scores 13.400 on her floor routine to a classical arrangement of the Stones’ Paint it Black. She’s into first for the time being with a score of 56.966 but it’s not going to be enough for gold.
An excellent routine by Melnikova earns a score of 13.966 to leapfrog her ROC teammate. She’s into first with only Lee and Andrade to go and will do no worse than bronze.
Derwael scores 13.433 on floor, 56.965 overall. She will finish behind Murakami, who moves into first for the moment with 13.766 on beam. The home country favorite hit on all four events and ends the night with a final score of 56.032.
Andrade submitted an inquiry on her score. Her score is raised from 13.566 to 13.666, moving her into second ahead of Urazova and behind Lee.
And Derwael will get the final rotation started on floor.
Suni Lee leads entering final rotation
It’s Lee, Urazona, Andrade and Melkinova in the top four, all within 0.5 points of each other.
A great save from Suni Lee when she nearly loses balance on her triple wolf turn. She fought the whole way through it, shines with the side aerial to two layout step outs. And it’s a 13.833 thanks to a lowered D score from taking out the second wolf turn and another wobbled toward the end of her set. Feels like a setback in a contest where every tenth counts.
Now it’s Andrade’s turn, last from the group on the beam. And she delivers a fantastic routine. If you were expecting her to flinch, it’s not yet happened. Waiting on the score ... and it’s a 13.666.
Updated
A very clean beam routine by Urazova earns a 14.2 score. Gorgeous with no wobbles highlighted by the aerial-split-Onodi sequence. Melnikova follows with a solid set, save for a minor wobble on her mount, for 13.7. That feels low. The ROC pair shoot to the top of the leaderboard with Andrade and Lee still to come.
Jade Carey’s podium hopes appear to be dashed after coming off the beam on her second layout stepout. Score of 11.533. The American who took Biles’ place in today’s contest was sixth coming into the third rotation, but won’t be able to crack top three barring a complete disaster by the leaders.
Murakami, who was eighth after two rotations, delivers a solid Yurchenko double twist for 14.533 (perhaps a bit underscored).
Updated
Two rotations down and it’s Andrade, Lee, Melnikova, Urazova and Derwael at the top, in that order. All five are within 0.8 points of each other. High drama at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre.
Team GB’s Jessica Gadirova comes off the beam on her layout but hit everything else. The score of 13.666 drops her to 18th.
Angelina Melnikova delivers a fantastic set on the uneven bars for a score of 14.9. And now it’s Suni Lee’s turn. This the harder version of her bars routine. And she hits! What a routine! All business as she hustles off the platform but cracks a momentary smile while slapping hands with Jade. This should be a big number ... and it’s a 15.3! Better than Derwael, even.
That score puts Lee a scant 0.066 points behind Andrade. And the drama should only build from here.
USA’s Jade Carey, in second after the first rotation, scores 13.5 on a clean uneven bars routine after leaving out the Church-Gienger, down 0.6 from qualification. Her best event, the floor, is still to come. Derwael, the two-time world champion on bars, delivers on her favorite apparatus with a score of 15.266. That should lift her into the top three for now.
A very crisp routine from Urazova earns a 14.866, more than enough to keep her near the top.
Murakami scores 14.0 on the floor and is very much alive for the top eight.
A gripping competition so far and no one is loving it more than the defending Olympic all-around champion.
Simone Biles is in the arena for the women's all around final and cheering *loudly* for gymnasts during their routines.
— Tumaini Carayol (@tumcarayol) July 29, 2021
Not just for US gymnasts, but others like Melanie de Jeusus dos Santos and Rebeca Andrade. She is the loudest person in the room.
Brooklyn Moors has submitted an inquiry on beam, but it was rejected and we’re on to the second rotation.
A rough night for France’s Melanie de Jesus dos Santos continues on the beam (12.166 after a big wobble on her mount and step back on the double back off) following a 13.833 on the bars. And more trouble for China as Tang Xijing falls on beam on her switch ring.
Meanwhile, Rebeca Andrade is locked in. A flawless bars routine, nails every connection then the Tsukahara dismount for 14.666. Two soaring scores for the Brazilian and the pack is chasing her.
Andrade, Carey and Melnikova are the top three after the first rotation. Lu Yufei falls on bars and the 13.333 score is a major blow to her podium hopes.
Only 0.8 points separate the top five.
Other scores from the first rotation on vault: a 14.633 for Melnikova on a Yurchenko double twist with only a small hop back on the landing, 14.5 for Urazova and 13.9 for Derwael.
Elsewhere in the arena, a very nice bars routine by China’s Tang Xijing capped by a double layout earns a 14.233 score.
Murakami’s 13.744 on beam is a promising sign for those backing the home country.
Suni Lee starts things off with a 14.6 on her opening double twisting Yurchenko vault. Clean in the air with only a tiny hop on the landing. That’s a very positive sign for the Minnesotan as the vault is not considered her strength.
But Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, in her first major international competition since suffering a serious knee injury in 2018, delivers a resounding statement of intent with an explosive Cheng that she lands for a 15.3 (and after a 0.1-point deduction).
Jade Carey follows with a Cheng of her own. One hop on the finish but the score of 15.2 puts her right off Andrade’s pace.
The athletes have marched into the Ariake Gymnastics Centre and been introduced to the crowd. One-touch warm-ups are under way and the first rotation should be under way momentarily. It has been more than eight years since Biles entered an all-around competition and did not walk away the winner. Her absence today lends this final with a sense of the unknown that we haven’t felt in nearly a decade.
Speaking of Simone, she’s looking on from the stands rooting on her US teammates.
The question from BTL is: how many non-European/North American women have won all-around gold? The answer: none. The only athletes to win a women’s individual all-around medal of any color have come from the Soviet Union/Unified Team/Russia, Czechoslovakia, the United States, Romania, China, Hungary, East Germany and Ukraine.
The competitors
Twenty minutes till start time. Here’s a more detailed look at the 24 women in today’s competition:
First group
• Sunisa Lee (USA)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 8th at 2019 WCh, silver in floor, bronze in uneven bars and 12th in beam. Won team event at 2019 WCh and at 2018 Pacific Rim Ch.
• Rebeca Andrade (BRA)
Finished 11th at 2016 OG. Gold at 2021 PanAm Ch, 63rd in 2018. In other events - gold in team event at 2021 PanAm Ch, silver in 2018. In 2019/20 season, gold in uneven bars and bronze in beam in Doha. She performed her individual floor exercise at the 2016 OG to a mix of songs from Beyonce, and has since become known as ‘Rebeyonce’ in Brazil.
• Jade Carey (USA)
Making Olympics debut. Finished 62nd at 2018 PanAm Ch. In other events - gold in team at 2019 WCh, silver in vault. Silver in vault and floor exercise at 2017 WCh. Gold in team, vault and floor exercise at 2018 PanAm Ch.
• Nina Derwael (BEL)
Finished 19th at 2016 OG. Finished 5th at 2019 WCh, 4th in 2018, 8th in 2017. Finished 7th at 2017 European Ch. In other events - finished 8th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in uneven bars at 2019 and 2018 WCh, bronze in 2017. Gold in uneven bars and silver in beam at 2018 European Ch. In October 2019, a gymnastics training hall was named after her in her birthplace of Sint-Truiden, Belgium.
• Vladislava Urazova (ROC)
Finished 25th at 2021 European Ch. Silver at 2019 Junior WCh. Placed 20th at 2018 Junior European Ch. In other events - gold in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in uneven bars at 2021 European Ch. Gold in uneven bars and team event at 2019 Junior WCh, bronze in vault. She took up the sport at age four. ‘Create a dream and it will create you.’
• Angelina Melnikova (ROC)
Finished 28th at 2016 OG. Bronze at 2019 WCh, 5th in 2018, 16th in 2017. Silver at 2021 European Ch, bronze in 2019, 27th in 2017. Gold at 2019 European Games. In other events - gold in team event at 2020 OG, silver in 2016. In 2018, she started her own leotard business. ‘It is still at an early stage. For now, it’s more of a brand new project than a real business.’
Second group
• Jessica Gadirova (GBR)
Bronze at 2021 European Ch. In other events - bronze in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in floor exercise at 2021 European Ch, silver in vault. Her twin sister Jennifer also competes for GBR at the 2020 OG. Her sporting idol is USA gymnast Simone Biles.
• Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos (FRA)
Finished 20th at 2019 WCh, 6th in 2018, 5th in 2017. Gold at 2019 European Ch, bronze in 2017. In other events - 6th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in beam at 2021 European Ch, silver in 2019. Gold in floor exercise at 2019 and 2018 European Ch. She left her birthplace of Martinique to move to continental France in 2013 and join the national training programme.
• Tang Xijing (CHN)
Silver at 2019 WCh. Finished 4th at 2018 YOG. In other events - finished 7th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in beam and bronze in uneven bars at 2018 YOG. She began to train in gymnastics at age four and her goal is to win a medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
• Jennifer Gadirova (GBR)
Finished 4th at 2020 American Cup. Finished 7th at 2019 Junior WCh. In other events - bronze in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in vault at 2019 Junior WCh. Her twin sister Jessica was selected alongside her to compete at the Olympics in Tokyo. Her mother introduced her and her twin sister to gymnastics because she felt they needed an outlet for their energy.
• Zsófia Kovács (HUN)
Finished 33rd at 2016 OG. Finished 30th at 2019 WCh, 20th (final) in 2018, 29th in 2017. Silver at 2017 European Ch. In other events - gold in vault and uneven bars at 2020 European Ch. Won beam and uneven bars at Koper in 2019. Won beam at Szombathely in 2018. Won beam and uneven bars at Turnier der Meister World Cup event in 2016.
• Lu Yufei (CHN)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 2nd at 2019 Asian Ch, winning uneven bars and finishing 6th in beam and 11th in floor. Also won team event at 2019 Asian Ch.
Third group
• Alice D’Amato (ITA)
Finished 31st at 2021 European Ch, 4th in 2019. In other events - finished 4th in team event at 2020 OG. Bronze in team event at 2019 WCh. Bronze in uneven bars at 2019 European Ch. Her twin sister Asia is competing for ITA at the 2020 OG. She was part of the team that ended Italy’s 69-year wait for a medal in the team event at the World Championships by taking bronze in 2019.
• Elisabeth Seitz (GER)
Finished 17th at 2016 OG, 10th in 2012. Finished 6th at 2019 WCh, 21st in 2018, 9th in 2017, 10th in 2015, 15th in 2013, 11th in 2011. Finished 5th at 2021 European Ch, silver in 2011. In other events - finished 9th in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in team event at 2015 European Games. She is a non-commissioned officer in the German Armed Forces.
• Carolann Héduit (FRA)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 12th (final) at 2021 European Ch. Was 19th at 2019 European Games. Finished 4th at 2019 Birmingham World Cup event. In other events - finished 3rd in uneven bars at 2018 Junior European Ch, 5th in team event.
• Mai Murakami (JPN)
Finished 14th at 2016 OG. Silver at 2018 WCh, 4th in 2017. Finished 4th at 2019 American Cup World Cup event, 1st in 2018 Tokyo WCup event. In other events - bronze in floor at 2018 WCh, gold in floor at 2017 WCh. Won Asian Ch team event in 2010.
• Brooklyn Moors (CAN)
Making OG debut. Finished 14th at 2019 WCh, 24th in 2018, 15th in 2017. In other events - gold in floor at 2019 PanAm Games and 2017 PanAm Championships. Won floor at Szombathely World Challenge Cup event in 2017, 3rd in vault.
• Roxana Popa (ESP)
Finished 42nd at 2019 WCh, 13th in 2014, 12th in 2013. Finished 6th at 2013 European Ch. In other events - finished 12th in team event at 2020 OG. Bronze in uneven bars at 2019 World Cup event in Szombathely. She missed nearly four years of competition from 2015-19 after undergoing three operations on her right knee. She was born in Romania and moved with her mother to Spain at age six.
Fourth group
• Martina Maggio (ITA)
Finished 6th at European Ch in 2021 and 2017. Placed 13th at 2015 European Youth Olympic Festival. In other events - finished 4th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in vault at 2016 Junior European Ch. Her parents tried to sign her up for gymnastics classes at age three but she was so hyperactive the coaches asked her parents to wait another year.
• Jutta Verkest (BEL)
Finished 10th at 2021 European Ch. Placed 14th at 2019 European Youth Olympic Festival. In other events - finished 8th in team event at 2020 OG. She would have been too young to compete at the Olympics in Tokyo had they been scheduled in 2020. ‘The postponement of the games was positive for me.’
• Lieke Wevers (NED)
Placed 20th at 2016 OG. Bronze at 2015 European Games. Placed 8th at 2021 European Ch. In other events - 11th in team at 2020 OG. Twin sister Sanne won gold in beam at 2016 OG. Father Vincent is her coach. Took a four-month break to travel in 2017 but only returned to international competition in 2019. ‘I could no longer press a button to do what I wanted again. I just lost control of my body.’
• Kim Bui (GER)
Finished 31st at 2014 WCh, 41st in 2011. Finished 7th at 2021 European Ch and 5th at American Cup in 2019. Mother is from Vietnam and father is from Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Named German Female Gymnast of the Year in 2014.
• Giulia Steingruber (SUI)
Finished 10th at 2016 OG, 14th in 2012. Finished 18th at 2019 WCh, 7th in 2017, 5th in 2015. Gold at 2015 European Ch, 4th in 2013, 9th in 2011. Silver at 2015 European Games. In other events - gold in vault at 2021 and 2016 European Ch. She was presented with the Prize for Elegance at the 2015 WCh in Glasgow, Scotland. ‘On the big occasions I wear the earrings I got from my grandparents.’
• Lee Yun-seo (KOR)
Making OG debut. Finished 28th at 2019 WCh. In 2019 World Cup events - finished 7th in Tokyo, 9th In American Cup. Finished 13th at 2018 YOG. In other events - finished 5th in uneven bars at 2018 YOG.
The format
Twenty-four women have qualified for today’s all-around final. They will compete in groups of six following Olympic order on each of the four apparatuses: vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor.
The first group of Lee (USA), Andrade (BRA), Carey (USA), Derwael (BEL), Urazova (ROC) and Melnikova (ROC) will begin on vault and end on floor.
The second group, those who finished from seventh to 12th among those eligible to advance, includes Jessica Gadirova (GBR), Melanie de Jesus dos Santos (FRA), Tang (CHN), Jennifer Gadirova (GBR), Zsofia Kovacs (HUN) and Lu Yufei (CHN). They will start on bars and end on vault.
The third group will start on beam and end on bars, while the fourth will start on floor and end on beam.
If you’re wondering about scoring (and asking yourself where the perfect 10 went), the short answer is each routine is given a ‘D score’ for difficulty and ‘E score’ for execution. Those numbers are combined for the final score. A more thorough explanation can be found here or below, courtesy of the AP:
Starting in 2006, scores were broken down into two parts. The difficulty (D) score is based on what a gymnast does during their routine. The harder the elements the athlete successfully strings together, the higher the total.
In theory, the D-score can be open-ended. Most elite routines carry a D-score between 5.4 and 6.0. Exceptional routines like what Biles does on floor or what Lee does on uneven bars score 6.5 or higher.
The second score is the execution (E) score. It is based on a 10.0 scale, but the perfectly executed routine does not exist. Not even Biles has managed to hit that plateau during her rise from prodigy to the unquestioned greatest gymnast of all-time.
Any execution score over 8.00 is good. Anything over 8.5 particularly on bars, beam and floor, where deductions quickly pile up is extraordinary.
On Sunday, Biles received a 6.7 D score for a floor routine that includes two elements named after her. Judges dinged her for sloppy again, by her standards performance, giving her a 7.733, for a 14.133 total, second-best of the day behind Italy’s Vanessa Ferrari.
Upshot: a 14.0 is good. A 14.5 is really good. Anything over 15.000 and you’re likely to head home with some serious hardware in your carry-on.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to Ariake Gymnastics Centre for today’s women’s individual all-around final. For a long, long time up until less than 48 hours ago, today’s contest was thought to be a little more than a walkover. American megastar Simone Biles was the runaway favorite to become the oldest woman in more than five decades to win the Olympic all-around title, the sport’s most coveted prize, and the first repeat champion since Vera Caslavska did it for the former Czechoslovakia in 1968. And with good reason! The incandescent Biles has walked away with the overall title in every major international competition she’s entered since 2013, often winning by margins that are unusually large for gymnastics.
Then came Tuesday’s women’s team all-around, when the 19-time world champion and four-time Olympic gold medalist removed herself from the contest following one rotation citing her mental health and the intense pressure she’s faced. The next day, Biles withdrew from today’s individual all-around, though she’s left the door open to compete in the four apparatus finals she’s qualified for next week.
Which brings us to today’s big question: Who will succeed her as the Olympic women’s all-around gymnastics champion? The prime contenders are Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, who finished second to Biles in qualifying, followed by Sunisa Lee of the United States and the Russian pair of Angelina Melnikova and Vladislava Urazova. All four were separated by only three-tenths of a point in qualifying, which means a competition once thought to be a fait accompli has become a wide-open race pregnant with drama.
Belgium’s Nina Derwael and China’s Tang Xijing, the all-around silver medalist at the last world championships in 2019, also expect to figure in the mix. Then there’s the American Jade Carey, who had the meet of her life to finish ninth in qualifying but was initially left out of the individual all-around thanks to a federation rule limiting countries to two athletes per event in the finals. Biles’ absence means the 21-year-old from Phoenix will enter the field in her place.
More to come ahead of today’s final, which is set to start in an hour’s time: 6.50am ET, 11.50am BST and 7.50pm in Tokyo.
Updated
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime, here is a look at the start list for today’s all-around final.
Start list for today's Olympic women's individual all-around final (6:50am ET). The first group of Lee (USA), Andrade (BRA), Carey (USA), Derwael (BEL), Urazova (ROC) and Melnikova (ROC) will begin on vault and end on floor. pic.twitter.com/v0u9WfUc43
— Bryan Armen Graham (@BryanAGraham) July 29, 2021
