The U.S. gymnastics team is often referred to as one of the hardest teams in the world to make. In fact, some might consider making the team a harder challenge than winning an Olympic medal in Paris. 

With just 10 Olympic team spots up for grabs (five for the men and five for the women), there’s a strong possibility that some of the athletes the world got to know at the Tokyo Games won’t be headed to Paris - that’s just how strong the field of contenders will be in Minneapolis. 

See below for our breakdown of the men’s and women’s competition, complete with analysis, predictions, and what to look out for each day. 

The U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials will take place in Minneapolis, MN from June 27-30. All sessions will stream on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com and the NBC/NBC Sports app. The first day of the men's competition will air on USA Network, with all other sessions airing on NBC.

The action in Minneapolis will get underway with the first day of competition for the men, marking the start of the Olympic Gymnastics Trials. 

These Trials are somewhat of a continuation of the performances seen at the U.S. Championships held May 30 and June 1. Although the top men’s all-around gymnast after both days of competition can guarantee his spot on the team (as long as he also places in the top three on at least three events), the rest of the team will be decided by a selection committee who will evaluate the highest-scoring team scenarios using scores from Championships and Olympic Trials, turning to other discretionary criteria if needed. (Click here for the full selection procedures.) 

Every routine in Minneapolis could prove to be crucial for determining an athlete's Olympic team chances. 

The event will be headlined by Brody Malone, who returned from a major knee injury to win his third all-around national title, and world all-around bronze medalist Frederick Richard, who finished second to Malone. Expect those two to make their mark early on, along with three-time world medalist Khoi Young, who won the NCAA all-around title earlier this year and finished third at Championships. 

Heading into Trials, those three athletes are on nearly all of the top-scoring team scenarios, but there are several athletes right on the cusp who will want to make a statement starting on Day 1. 

Tokyo Olympian and 2024 Winter Cup champion Yul Moldauer is in strong contention, as is Paul Juda, who helped the U.S. men win a team bronze medal at last year's world championships.

Whether or not the team will want – or need – a specialist remains a point of contention. For the Tokyo Games, pommel horse specialist Alec Yoder was selected for the team over the reigning national champion on the apparatus, Stephen Nedoroscik. Nedoroscik went on to become the pommel horse world champion and has won every single national title on the event since 2021. While his dominance is impressive, he needs to post some huge scores in Minneapolis to prove his worth to the team since pommel horse is the only event he competes. If Nedoroscik makes a mistake on Day 1 or doesn’t compete his maximum difficulty, that just may be enough to end his Olympic chances.

The women’s competition kicks off on June 28 and will be headlined by  37-time world and Olympic medalist Simone Biles, who is virtually a lock for the Paris team. In June, Biles won a record ninth national title, 5.9 points ahead of the next competitor. 

In case it wasn't abundantly clear, Biles remains untouchable. Minneapolis will serve as her final tune-up before Paris. 

The highlight of Day 1 could be the return of Shilese Jones who withdrew from Championships, citing an injury to her right shoulder. At full-strength, Jones is widely considered to be the second best U.S. gymnast, having landed on the all-around podium at the last two world championships. Jones withdrawing from the competition was a precautionary measure to ensure she is at full-strength when it matters most. If the shoulder is giving her any trouble, it will likely be evident on the first day of competition. However, Jones’ chances of making it to Paris remain incredibly high. 

Tokyo Olympic all-around champion Suni Lee is in great standing heading into Trials, where she’ll compete in front of a home crowd. At Championships, Lee competed in the all-around for the first time at the elite-level since winning gold in Tokyo. She finished fourth, but still has more to give. 

Watch for Lee’s uneven bar routine, where she could switch up her composition from what she showed at Championships. On June 19, Lee posted a video on Instagram of her training a Nabieva to Bhardwaj to Van Leeuwen – a challenging combination that could raise her difficulty value from a 5.8 to a 6.6.

Two-time world team champion Skye Blakely will miss the Olympic Trials after injuring her right Achilles in practice Wednesday, according to USA Gymnastics. Blakley was second all-around at the U.S. Championships and was in a great position to lock in an Olympic spot until the injury occurred while practicing her floor routine in the Trials competition venue. 

Blakley also withdrew from the Tokyo Olympic Trials three years ago after injuring her elbow while warming up on the vault. 

Blakely's absence now swings the door open for a group of athletes right on the brink of making the team. This includes Tokyo Olympic floor champion Jade Carey, Tokyo Olympic team silver medalist Jordan Chiles, Tokyo Olympic alternate Kayla DiCello, U.S. floor bronze medalist Tiana Sumanasekera, and first-year senior Hezly Rivera, who recently finished sixth all-around at the U.S. Championships. 

The performance of each of these athletes Day 1 could determine their Olympic trajectory.

Going into the second and final day of competition for the men, the Olympic team picture will hopefully become more clear. 

Malone, Richard and Young are expected to be near the top of the leaderboard, so perhaps the more interesting battle will be the order in which they finish. 

Based on the routines he competed at Championships, Malone has a slight edge over Richard (a half point more in difficulty, to be exact). However, Richard is hoping to add a Liukin to his high bar routine on Day 2, which would add two tenths to his routine and could help close the gap. Young’s difficulty values have him nearly two points behind Malone, but clean execution and consistency could be what keeps his name near the top. 

Same goes for Moldauer, who is known for his execution and calm composure under pressure. 

Mistakes on pommel horse and vault left Moldauer ninth after Day 1 at Championships, but he climbed to fourth when all was said and done. Expect that same level of grit and determination in Minneapolis. 

If not for his all-around capabilities, look for Moldauer to be in the mix for a trip to a second Games for his parallel bars, floor exercise, still rings and pommel horse routines. 

Another battle to keep eyes on is between 2023 U.S. all-around champion Asher Hong and 2022 U.S. all-around silver medalist Donnell Whittenburg. While both compete in all six events, they have similar strengths – particularly vault and still rings – where they are event-final worthy on the Olympic stage. However, both of them making the team is unlikely, so consistency will be a huge factor. Whittenburg outscored Hong on both events at Championships, with the exception of rings on Day 1. Day 2 should offer some clarity on where they stand – whether it's one over the other, or a completely different athlete who can contribute higher scores. 

Depending on how the puzzle pieces are assembled, Juda, the 2022 NCAA all-around champion and world team member, could make a lot of sense on the Olympic team. Juda is strong on the floor exercise, pommel horse and vault, but truly can step in on any event if needed. Juda is known for his clean execution that can outscore routines with more difficulty, which certainly makes a compelling argument for his case. 

Other names on the watch list are Tokyo Olympian Shane Wiskus, who finished fifth all-around at Championships, Tokyo Olympic alternate Cameron Bock, 2023 World Championship alternate Colt Walker, and 2024 Winter Cup parallel bars and high bar champion Curran Phillips, who withdrew from Day 2 of Championships with a thumb injury, but is expected to compete at Trials. 

The five members of the men’s Olympic team, plus two traveling replacement athletes and up to three non-traveling replacement athletes will be named following the conclusion of the competition. 

In Minneapolis, Biles has a chance to make history as just the fourth American woman to make three Olympic teams, joining Muriel Davis Grossfeld (1956, 1960 and 1964), Linda Metheny (1964, 1968 and 1972) and Dominique Dawes (1992, 1996 and 2000). 

The top all-around finisher after the two-day competition will automatically punch a ticket to Paris. If all goes according to plan, expect that spot to go to Biles. 

Even if she is not at full-strength, Jones likely has already done enough to prove her case to join Biles. If she makes the team, Paris will be her first Olympic Games as she missed out on making the team in 2021. 

That leaves three spots up for grabs. 

Although she has all-around potential, Lee has been hindered by illness which has altered her training plans this Olympic cycle. However, she has made herself a strong candidate for the team based on her medal potential on uneven bars and balance beam alone. 

If both days of competition go well, Lee would be hard to overlook. 

For the remaining two spots, expect a tight battle between Carey, Chiles and DiCello. It just may come down to who hit the most routines Day 1 and can continue that momentum through Day 2. 

For Carey, the whole Trials experience likely will feel a little different than it did in 2021. Leading up to Tokyo, Carey had secured her spot as an individual athlete through the World Cup series. The pressure was completely off once she got to Trials. This time, she will have to fit the puzzle. 

Luckily, Carey still has a few upgrades she could pull out on her strongest events, such as an Amanar for her second vault and a tucked double double on floor, which would strengthen her case for a team final lineup and possible individual event medal in Paris.  

Chiles was a near-lock for the Tokyo team by the time Trials rolled around in 2021, but has struggled with consistency this Olympic cycle. Chiles missed out on the worlds team in 2023 and had some mistakes at the Core Hydration Classic and at Championships but can never be counted out. Chiles finished second on uneven bars at championships and could provide some great scores on vault and floor with a hit performance as well. 

Eager to upgrade from alternate status to Olympian, DiCello started the year with a bang by winning the Winter Cup, followed by an all-around bronze at Championships. DiCello could be the all-around athlete the team knows they can rely on to step in on any event that may be needed, but two solid days of competition at Trials are critical. 

Other potential contenders are two-time world team gold medalist Leanne Wong and 2023 world team gold medalist Joscelyn Roberson, mainly for her vault and floor scores. However, with Carey doing the same exact vaults, Roberson will need to do some of her best gymnastics at Trials if she wants to be considered. There is also Kaliya Lincoln, who is a standout on floor if the selection committee decides they want to bring a specialist.  

The five members of the women’s Olympic team, plus two traveling replacement athletes and two non-traveling replacement athletes will be named following the conclusion of the competition.