Biles the Magnificent
American star Simone Biles captured an unprecedented third consecutive World All-around gold Thursday evening in Glasgow, becoming at 18 the first female gymnast in history to win three in a row.
Biles joins Russia’s Svetlana Khorkina (1997, 2001, 2003) as the only other gymnast to have won three World All-around titles. As the only woman to have done it in consecutive years, she stands alone.
In competition, Biles took the lead with her Vault in the first rotation and never relinquished it. Even a stumble forward after a front flip on Balance Beam and bounding out of bounds on her signature element on Floor wasn’t enough to stop her: With big tricks and crowd pleasing razzle-dazzle, the smiley Texan accumulated 60.399 points, more than a point ahead of 2012 Olympic champion Gabrielle Douglas, who completed a clean competition to win the silver.
“I kind of overthought it tonight, because everyone was talking about the three-peat,” Biles said. “What keeps me going is the amazing teammates, National Team coordinator Martha Karolyi in the gym and the friends and family guiding me along the way. I just never get tired of it.”
With 11 World medals, eight of them gold, in the bank, Biles now holds the American record for most medals won at the World Championships, and she’ll have three more chances to add to that total in event finals on Vault, Balance Beam and Floor Exercise this weekend. While a place on the U.S. Olympic team next summer is not guarenteed for anyone, Biles’s three-year domination nonetheless makes her one of the early favorites for gold in Rio.
Silver-plated return for an Olympic gold medallist
If anyone had a chance to challenge Biles, it was Douglas, who earned silver at her first Worlds since returning to international competition in March following a two-year hiatus. Though miles behind Biles, Douglas impressed as she put on a calm display of flight and precision on Vault, Uneven Bars, Balance Beam and Floor Exercise, showing that she has the mettle to possibly become the first woman to defend her Olympic title since 1968. Good as she was, Douglas estimated herself to be only at about “80 percent” of her capabilities as she gears up for a second Olympic Games. “There’s more to come, and I’m so excited for the road ahead,” she said.
The revenge of Larisa Iordache
Following the Romanian women’s meltdown in team qualification, it was up to reigning All-around silver medallist Larisa Iordache to salvage something from this World Championships. In a performance that included the top score of the night on Balance Beam, Iordache was on point to earn bronze, which will be Romania’s only medal in the women’s competition. “I tried to take revenge. I had goals in my head and I did it for myself and my teammates,” Iordache said. Bronze is not the Romanian standard, but it still beats the country’s dismal 13th place finish in the team competition.
Gravitating around the podium
Shang Chunsong did what the Chinese don’t always do in finals: hit her routines. The 19-year-old veteran of the Chinese team mastered her complicated exercises on Uneven Bars, Balance Beam and Floor Exercise but just missed the podium due to a poor score on Vault.
Second All-around in the qualification round, Switzerland’s Giulia Steingruber’s chances at an All-around medal were swept away when she slipped off the Balance Beam. She finished fifth, followed by Japanese standout Mai Murakami. After setting a record with her ninth-place finish in 2014, Pan American Games heroine Elsabeth Black bettered her ranking by two places this year, giving the Canadian women a new best-ever finish at Worlds.
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