Breaking down the 13 women’s contenders at USA Gymnastics Olympic Trials
Who will make up the 2024 U.S. women’s Olympic gymnastics team?
The selection committee has a tough task on their hands this week in Minneapolis.
The USA Gymnastics Olympic Trials bring a star-studded field to Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the final competition that will determine the five-woman team for the Paris Olympics.
Simone Biles is set to make her third Olympic team and is en route to becoming the first Olympic all-around champion to compete in three Games. Alongside Biles are four of the six Tokyo Olympic team members and the field accounts for 60 total World and Olympic medals (Biles owning 37 of those).
Each athlete’s journey to this point looks different at trials and beyond. Some are legitimate gold medal contenders at the Olympics, while others are in Minneapolis gaining experience to prepare them for a run at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Note: Skye Blakely, Kayla DiCello, and Shilese Jones were part of the field for the USA Gymnastics Olympic Trials, but they both had to withdraw due to Achilles injuries.
Lock
Simone Biles (VT, UB, BB, FX, AA)
Simone Biles is undoubtedly the greatest female gymnast of all time. Her 37 Olympic and World medals are more than the rest of the field combined. Biles competes the most difficult gymnastics that the world has ever seen and has the potential to grab four of the five individual gold medals up for grabs at the Olympic Games.
Before the twisties hindered her run at the Tokyo Games, Biles qualified for all six women’s finals (including the team final). In Paris, she’s likely to qualify to compete in all finals except for bars – her “weakest event” – only because of how deep the field is expected to be on that event. (Read: Biles is no pushover on bars these days and could still qualify to the bars final depending on how the rest of the field performs – she did last fall at Worlds.)
While Biles’ gymnastics ability isn’t a concern, it will be important for her to prioritize her mental health at these Games to perform at her best. If she is solid in that area, then the gymnastics will follow.
Likely
Shilese Jones (UB, AA)
Note: Shilese Jones withdrew from trials Saturday after sustaining an injury during competition.
Shilese Jones has been the top U.S. gymnast this quad behind Biles. In Biles’ hiatus from the sport after the Tokyo Games, Jones was the best all-around gymnast from the U.S., taking all-around silver behind Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade at 2022 Worlds. She’s amassed six medals at the past two Worlds – two gold in the team event, silver in the all-around and on uneven bars in 2022, and bronze in the same events in 2023.
Jones particularly shines on bars, where she put up a 6.5 D-score at the 2024 Core Hydration Classic. If she puts together all her difficulty on the event, she will be a top contender for the event final at the Olympics. Jones has been set back with a nagging should injury, but is feeling good according to her coach, Sarah, ahead of trials.
Sunisa Lee (UB, BB, AA)
The reigning Olympic all-around champion is back and looking much healthier after discovering she had two types of kidney disease in 2023 (she’s now in remission). Sunisa Lee is strong on bars and beam, the latter of which she won the Core Classic title on in May.
On her specialty, bars, Lee is bringing an upgraded set to trials that should see an increase of 0.6-0.8 in her difficulty alone (Nabieva + Bhardwaj + Van Leeuwen incoming!) compared to championships. The undisputed connection queen, Lee can adjust her set on the fly and is capable of absurd combinations that will make your jaw drop.
With Blakely out due to an Achilles tear, the addition of a full-twisting double layout on floor, and a consistent double-twisting Yurchenko, Lee could easily contend for a top three finish at trials. A second Olympic berth seems likely – a triumph already considering all that she’s been through, not to mention that she can contend for multiple individual finals in Paris (and maybe get the full-twisting Jaeger named?)
Jade Carey (VT, FX)
With Skye Blakely’s Cheng no longer on the table, reigning Olympic floor gold medalist Jade Carey is no longer on the outside looking in.
Carey has been a question mark throughout this Olympic year, but an upgraded floor set and an Amanar on vault she showed during Olympic Trials podium training skyrocketed her chances of making the Olympic team.
Carey has struggled to meet the artistry benchmark on beam and floor this quad, which has shown in her scores. She competes some serious difficulty on floor, but the judges are not rewarding it as much as they used to. Still, Carey would contribute the most on vault and floor, and has the potential to make event finals in both events. As one of only two active NCAA gymnasts in the field (i.e. competed in NCAA in 2024), she may not put up the highest scores on bars and beam, but she’s a reliable backup routine on those events if things hit the fan.
Fighting for one spot
Assuming those four make the team, the following list of athletes will be fighting for the fifth spot. It’s also likely the Olympic alternates will come from this list of gymnasts (two traveling, and two non-traveling).
Jordan Chiles (VT, UB, FX)
Tokyo Olympian Jordan Chiles would contribute the most on vault and floor, where she was the silver medalist in both events at the 2022 world championships. She also has an undeniably strong bars set as the reigning U.S. silver medalist, which could prove crucial if Jones’ shoulder were to flare up again or Lee couldn’t compete. Across the board, Chiles provides security as a reliable all-arounder, and she’s looked particularly strong this month, showing she’s peaking at the right time. Plus, she’s been through a worst case scenario at the 2021 Games and only seems stronger for it.
Kayla DiCello (VT, UB, FX)
Note: Kayla DiCello withdrew from trials Friday after sustaining an Achilles injury during competition.
An alternate for the 2021 team, Kayla DiCello has found success in her elite comeback. Since deferring her sophomore season at Florida, she’s won the all-around at the 2023 Pan American Games and at Winter Cup this year. The block on her vault is stellar, and she’s shown increased difficulty on all four events, and when she hits, she’s one of the top all-arounders in the U.S.
The likely question for the committee will be Chiles vs. DiCello, and then you have to really look at bars, because the U.S. should be covered as a team on vault and floor in qualifying and team final. So who is more consistent on bars? Who can fill in if one of those above-mentioned bars workers can’t go? Chiles won that battle at championships, putting up matching 14.5s while DiCello put up a 14.5 Day 1 but fell Day 2. The decision could very well come down to which of the two hits all eight routines across the two days of competition.
Hezly Rivera (BB)
First-year senior Hezly Rivera surprised many when she took sixth place at championships earlier this month. The 2023 U.S. junior all-around champion hit all eight routines at her first senior championships and impressed on beam, her specialty. Rivera could contribute on that event in Paris, but she lacks senior international experience. If she can repeat her championships performance under the pressure of Olympic Trials, there could be a discussion. She’s a promising alternate choice as well.
Kaliya Lincoln (FX)
Kaliya Lincoln would be taken to Paris for floor and floor alone. The reigning Pan American Games champion on the event, she debuted a Moors this season. She has some of the biggest tumbling in the field, and she’s proven she can score well internationally.
Unfortunately, Lincoln was dealing with an injury at championships this year, which caused her to withdraw and petition to trials. To have a chance, she’ll have to overcome that injury, hit the best two floor routines of her career so far (and ideally hit her other events as well), and finish second to only Biles on the event. Still, she’ll probably need help from others to have a realistic shot at the main squad. An alternate spot is more likely, which would be an accomplishment in itself for the budding talent.
Leanne Wong (VT, AA)
Leanne Wong has been a member of every world team this quad after being an alternate for the Tokyo team. Wong is strong on all four events; she’s the type of gymnast that is able to step in on any of the four events.
Despite some inconsistencies this year, Wong came to the Olympic Trials podium training hungry, debuting a Cheng vault to the surprise of basically everyone (CEO behavior). A vault like that, depending on how clean it is, could make the lineup in a team final and contend for an individual medal.
Wong’s Cheng is exciting – but new. No video has been released, and the CEO will have the opportunity to perform the 5.6 difficulty vault in competition for the first time Friday.
Joscelyn Roberson (VT, FX)
Joscelyn Roberson’s standout events are vault and floor, where she competes some of the hardest skills in the world. Her vault is strong, but after sustaining an ankle injury at Worlds in October, her Cheng has yet to return to its previous form. Her floor has returned though, as she was one of only a few gymnasts to score a 14+ on floor at championships this year.
Tiana Sumanasekera (BB, FX)
Tiana Sumanasekera showed an impressive floor set at championships, alongside her steady all-around capabilities. With her self-choreographed floor routine, Sumanasekera was the bronze medalist at championships. She also has one of the highest hit rates of the field.
Regardless of if she makes this team or not, Sumanasekera is one to watch for LA 2028.
The next generation
These gymnasts are primed to lead USA Gymnastics in the next quad and will be ones to watch for years to come – in both elite and NCAA. Qualifying to Olympic Trials is a major accomplishment, and they will look to gain crucial experience at this meet.
Dulcy Caylor
Dulcy Caylor has had a solid 2024, earning her first international assignments as a senior – a major accomplishment. Caylor has a strong double-twisting Yurchenko and can score mid-13s on all four events. Her Beatles-themed floor is also a joy to watch.
Evey Lowe
Evey Lowe shows good difficulty on beam and floor and is a good all-arounder besides some challenges on bars. She was an alternate for the Pan American Games team last year and got her first-ever international assignment this year when she went to the Jesolo Trophy.
Zoey Molomo
Zoey Molomo is one of three first-year seniors who qualified to trials, and her clean gymnastics makes her standout from the rest of the field. While her routines don’t have the most difficulty, she does them all with good execution and has great lines. She has a huge block on her Yurchenko one-and-a-half, which could easily be upgraded to a double with time.
Simone Rose
Simone Rose, the third first-year senior in this field, is a beautiful gymnast to watch. She has strong bars and floor routines, which earned her gold medals at the Pacific Rim Championships this year. Her floor routine is one of the most captivating sets of the field with its powerful choreography. (P.S. Look to see if she has the underside of her hair dyed – something her and her teammate Jayla Hang like to do for meets.)
