The difficulty of this vault gives Biles a significant edge over her peers,similar to how her complex routines on other apparatuses also boost her all-around total. As the Americans opened competition at the world championships,Biles led the squad with a huge 58.865 all-around total – well higher than the score that led to Rebeca Andrade’s gold last year (56.899).
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Even without Biles at the world championships a year ago,the Americans had an edge of 2.668 points in the qualifying round and a 3.201-point cushion in the final. Three of the gymnasts from the 2022 team returned this year,and because of Biles’ difficult routines and superb execution,the winning margin could be even larger,reminiscent of past squads headlined by Biles.
The only time a Biles-led team didn’t capture the gold medal was when a mental block,known in gymnastics as “the twisties,” derailed Biles’ run through the Tokyo Olympics. She withdrew from the team final after feeling lost in the air during her vault – a twisting version,not the double pike,and in her absence,the Americans slipped to second. (Before winning the gold,Russia,a perennial gymnastics power banned from this event because of its invasion of Ukraine,had also outscored the United States in the Olympic qualifying round,when Biles performed on each apparatus.)
Biles’s trouble in Tokyo is why this season,and particularly this week’s return to a major international competition,sparked so much interest,with fans wondering if she could return to full form. Her performances this summer – with her usual array of difficult skills,including twisting elements – proved that she had. In August,Biles earned the best all-around score in the world this year. But at those national-level competitions,Biles hadn’t yet faced the challenge of a week-long global event that is packed with pressure.
On Biles’ first day of competition in Antwerp,she tallied an all-around score not far off from her best-mark this season (59.300),and judging at international competitions is generally stricter than at national-level meets. Biles also will almost certainly advance to every individual final.
“She just needs to control her emotion when she competes,” Landi said. “I think it was her old self. That’s pretty much it. She had a great day. I know she can even do better,but we’ll take that.”
The Washington Post