Hezly Rivera’s performance at the Paris Olympics has been disappointing, as she will not be competing in the team final alongside her Team USA teammates Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Jordan Chiles. The 16-year-old gymnast, who was the youngest member of the U.S. team, struggled during the July 28 qualifiers. Her scores were the lowest for Team USA, with a 12.633 on the beam and a 13.900 on the uneven bars, placing her 26th and 13th respectively. Consequently, she did not advance to the finals in any individual events.
Despite Hezly’s lower scores, her performance on the uneven bars contributed to Team USA’s advancement to the finals. The team decided to drop her beam score to minimize their error margin, and if Team USA wins the gymnastics finals on July 30, Hezly will still receive a gold medal. The U.S. team finished the qualifier with a leading score of 172.296, ahead of Italy and China, positioning them favorably for the finals.
The competition lineup for Team USA has seen some changes. Simone Biles, despite dealing with a minor calf injury, will participate in all four events—beam, bars, floor, and vault. Jordan Chiles will also compete in all four events, while Suni Lee will take part in beam, bars, and the floor event. Notably, Suni’s inclusion in the floor routine came as a surprise since Jade Carey, who won gold in the floor exercise at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, will only compete in the vault.
Jade Carey, who struggled with illness during the qualifiers, had a lower score than expected. She mentioned on social media that she had not been feeling well and had trouble eating. Despite her efforts, she fell short of her usual performance. Jade expressed gratitude for the support she received and her dedication to giving her best effort despite her health challenges.
Aly Raisman, a former Olympic gymnast and gold medalist, publicly supported Jade Carey. Raisman praised Jade’s performance and offered encouragement, emphasizing the importance of recognizing athletes as human beings who can make mistakes. Jade appreciated Raisman’s words and responded with gratitude, acknowledging the support from both Raisman and her fans during this challenging time.
