USA Gymnastics Team Named
Team USA is ready for Rio! The five team members were named Sunday following the Olympic trials and of course our girl Simone Biles will be there to get her gold (yep we are claiming it for her NOW!)
Via People.com:
After a hard-fought Olympic trials, Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, Laurie Hernandez and Madison Kocian were announced as the team headed to Rio at the conclusion of the two-night trials on Sunday.
Even before the selection committee announced their picks, favorites Biles and Raisman cried and embraced one another. Douglas struggled on beam both nights of trials, with a fall each night, but her strength on uneven bars won her the spot on the team.
The three replacement athletes traveling to Rio with the team are Mykayla Skinner, Ragan Smith and Ashton Locklear.
Here’s the scoop on how Douglas still made the cut despite her struggles, via ESPN:
“When you really put everything, you put down what lineup you have for the team and what will be [in the finals], we still felt, all of us on the selection committee, that this is the best combination,” Karolyi said.
A combination that includes Douglas, who hopped off the beam during both rounds at trials and has openly talked about her sagging confidence. The 20-year-old adjusted her coaching staff between last month’s national championships and the trials, a move Karolyi said caused “confusion” in Douglas’ training.
There will be no confusion when Douglas arrives to work out with the national team in Texas later this week. Karolyi will be in charge, and she will expect Douglas to respond as she did last fall, when she shook off sluggish preparations to capture silver at the 2015 world championships behind Biles.
“If we put Gabby in regimented training with daily planning and daily assignments and training plans, she’ll see improvement just like we did last year,” Karolyi said. “That’s why she made the team even with the mistakes she had in the competition.”
We’re glad she made the cut. Go head Gabby and show them what you got in Rio!
Hit the flip for an individual look at each team member.
