Consider the first leg of the “redemption tour” complete.
At last, the U.S. women’s gymnastics team is back on top of the Olympic medal podium after bringing home the silver at the Tokyo 2020 Games (171.296). Italy nabbed its first Olympic team medal in 96 years with the silver (165.494). Brazil won the bronze – it’s first Olympic team medal in history (164.497).
Simone Biles now has eight Olympic medals, including five gold, surpassing the legendary Shannon Miller to become the most decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast in history.
Biles, along with Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera, now land themselves in the history books as just the fourth American team to win an Olympic gold medal in this event.
Biles said after landing her vault - the event where she got the 'twisties' that forced her to withdraw from the team final and several events in Tokyo - that she felt a sense of relief.
"I was like, phew, at least no flashbacks or anything," Biles said. "I did feel a lot of relief and after I landed vault I was like, 'Oh yeah, we're definitely going to do this.'"
Carey, the reigning Olympic champion on floor, opted not to compete the event in the team final after a scary fall in the qualifying round, stating after the competition that she wasn’t feeling well.
"This means everything to me, I'm so honored to be on this team and to have been able to contribute today," Carey said. "This week hasn't exactly gone how I wanted it to, but I'm just grateful that I was able to compete tonight and get the job done and do exactly what this team needed from me."
Rivera, who is the youngest member of the entire U.S. delegation across all sports, was not selected for any of the lineups — the U.S. instead opted to rely on its veterans. Biles and Chiles competed on all four events, while the defending Olympic all-around champion Lee competed on uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise.
"It's just been an amazing experience," Rivera said. "Even practicing with them is so amazing because I see how everybody is working so hard in the gym - mentally and physically. I was so happy to be on the floor supporting them tonight and even though we've been through so much, we pulled it all together tonight on the day that counts. I'm so proud of this team and I loved supporting them tonight."
Great Britain showed a remarkable turnaround after finishing seventh in qualifications to advance to the final. Although the team won bronze in Tokyo, many of the country's top athletes sustained injuries ahead of the Games, casting doubt upon its medal hopes. The team finished fourth.