WASHINGTON — The U.S. dominated the Subdivision 2 qualifier for the Women's Artistic Team All-Around in gymnastics, led by a triumphant Simone Biles.
Biles suffered a calf injury while warming up for one of the four events that make up the All-Around competition, but didn't let that stop her from performing a number of highly technical and challenging routines that left her in one of the top spots in the qualifier.
At the end of the second subdivision, Biles had the highest single athlete point total with a score of 59.566.
Biles dazzled a star-studded crowd on balance beam to open qualifying, then appeared to tweak the leg while warming up on floor exercise. She left the floor with Team USA doctor Marcia Faustin — an eerily similar scene to what played out in Tokyo, when Biles dropped out of the team competition to protect her safety.
With her ankle taped, Biles posted the highest score on floor and vault through two subdivisions. She did limit the difficulty of her uneven bars routine, skipping a unique skill she submitted to the International Gymnastics Federation on Friday. She did her usual set to score a 14.333, then tried to keep from putting too much weight on her leg following her dismount.
Team USA, made up of Biles, Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles, Hezly Rivera and Jade Carey, scored a combined total of 172.296 points, nearly 8 ahead of second-place finisher Italy.
Because of the way the All-Around competition works, only the top two athletes from the winning team advance to the finals. Biles, with her dominant scores in all four performances that make up the event, was easily one of the two.
But the battle for the second spot was a much closer matchup. Sunisa Lee, who won gold in the Tokyo Games, edged out teammate Jordan Chiles by a mere 0.067 points.
With Lee and Biles competing for the U.S., they will make history regardless of how they place in the final. It is the first time in Olympic history that two gold medalist All-Around athletes will go head to head in the final — from any country, let alone with both coming from the U.S.
The final is set to take place Thursday.