ANTWERP – Simone Biles led a dominant performance by the U.S. women at the world gymnastics championships, posting an all-around total of 58.865 to lead qualifying through two subdivisions Sunday.
The 26-year-old, who is a five-time all-around world champion and seven-time Olympic medalist, registered the best scores on floor exercise, vault and balance beam and the second-best score behind teammate Shilese Jones on uneven bars through the first portion of qualifying.
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The American team of Biles, Jones, Skye Blakely, Leanne Wong and Joscelyn Roberson combined for a total of 171.395, which figures to be the best by a considerable margin by the end of qualifying. Italy was second at 162.230 through two of the 10 subdivisions.
Biles, whose 25 world championship medals (19 of them gold) is already a record, will get a chance to add substantially to that total throughout the week.
The U.S. will be heavily favored to win the team title on Wednesday. The all-around finals are Friday, with event finals scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
Biles, who returned to competition this summer following a two-year break after the Tokyo Olympics, completed her signature Yurchenko double pike vault with ease, scoring a 15.766 even though she voluntarily took a half-point deduction so coach Laurent Landi could stand on the mat as a precaution.
Jones, who won three medals at the 2022 world championships, will join Biles in the all-around finals after posting a total of 56.932 led by a sparkling set on uneven bars, where her 14.833 led all competitors.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games