Spots on the U.S. team for the world gymnastics championships are up for grabs this week.
Eight gymnasts will compete at the world team selection camp Tuesday and Wednesday in Crossville, Tennessee. The top gymnast in Tuesday’s all-around meet automatically makes the four-woman team for next month’s world championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, with the other three gymnasts named after event competition Wednesday.
Hezly Rivera, the only member of the 2024 Paris Olympic team competing at the elite level this year, would have been a heavy favorite, both to make the U.S. squad and contend for an all-around medal. But the reigning U.S. champion announced Friday that an ankle injury will keep her out of both camp and worlds.
Here’s everything you need to know about the world team selection camp:
Who is competing to represent the US at the gymnastics worlds?
Paris alternates Leanne Wong and Josc Roberson lead the field. They finished second and third, behind Rivera, at the U.S. championships last month, with Wong also winning the vault title and finishing third on uneven bars. Roberson claimed a silver medal on floor exercise.
Skye Blakely, a favorite to make the Paris team before she tore her Achilles during training at the Olympic trials, is also competing, though she’s expected to only do uneven bars and balance beam.
Dulcy Caylor, Jayla Hang, Gabrielle Hardie, Simone Rose and Ashlee Sullivan are the other gymnasts competing.
Is Simone Biles competing at the world gymnastics championships?
No.
The G.O.A.T. has not ruled out competing at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, but she is currently taking a break from gymnastics. She also took time off after the Rio and Tokyo Games.
Suni Lee, who won three medals in both Tokyo and Paris, has said she thinks Paris was her last competition. Jordan Chiles and Jade Carey are taking a break after competing in NCAA gymnastics this past season.
Shilese Jones and Kayla DiCello, both of whom were injured at the Olympic trials last year, have not said what their future competitive plans are.
What’s at stake at these world championships?
Individual medals.
There is a quirk in the gymnastics calendar that the world championships the year after an Olympics does not include a team competition, only individual events. For the women, that means the all-around, vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise.
For the men, it’s the all-around, floor exercise, pommel horse, still rings, vault, parallel bars and high bar.
While this meet has no bearing on the Los Angeles Games or selection for that team, it is always a good indicator of the gymnasts to watch in the new Olympic cycle.
What international gymnasts are competing?
The big news is that Russian athletes — sorry, independent neutral athletes — will be competing at a major gymnastics competition for the first time since 2021.
Russia is persona non grata in the Olympic community thanks to its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and the International Gymnastics Federation banned its athletes from 2022 until 2024. Though the FIG allowed independent neutral athletes in Paris, Russia opted not to send them. That policy has since changed.
Russia sent Angelina Melnikova, who won the world title in 2021 after leading Russia to gold in Tokyo, to the World Challenge Cup earlier this month. Melnikova claimed two medals, a gold on balance beam and a silver on uneven bars.
Melnikova is expected to be joined at worlds by ereigning Russian champion Anna Kalmykova, Leila Vasilieva and Lyudmila Roshchina.
Also keep an eye on Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour, who was fifth in the all-around in Paris. She’ll be looking to win her first all-around medal at worlds or the Olympics.
How to watch US gymnastics’ world team selection camp
The all-around competition begins at 5:30 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, Sept. 30. The event competition starts at 11 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday, Oct. 1.
Both competitions will be streamed on FlipNow.tv.
