Editor's note: Follow the latest U.S. Olympic Gymnastics selections and updates on Simone Biles.
MINNEAPOLIS — The U.S. men's gymnastics team has been decided.
Three-time national champion Brodie Malone has made his second Olympic team along with qualifying winner Fred Richards, while Asher Hong, Paul Judah and Steven Nedorosic will join a five-man team looking to end a 16-year Olympic medal streak.
Richard qualified by winning the prelims and finishing in the top three in three events – floor exercise, parallel bars and horizontal bar – while Malone finished in the top five in every event except floor exercise, which isn't surprising considering it's been less than 18 months since she suffered a devastating knee injury that required three surgeries.
But the rest of the team played by calculation. The team medal was the top priority, and the scoring system for the finals meant that rankings didn't necessarily determine the best team. In the finals, teams had to field three athletes in each event, with each's scores counting. That meant they needed a team that could consistently get three high scores in every event.
The selection committee used a complex mathematical formula and these five teams emerged as the highest-scoring teams.
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“Heartbreaking” for Wiskas and other unsuccessful candidates
Shane Wiskas said he felt he qualified for the Paris team after placing third at the Olympic trials, but the math wasn't in his favor.
Unlike the women's gymnastics team, which is selected by committee, the men's team was determined mathematically based on average scores from national championships and qualifying tournaments, and that formula meant Wiskas, a University of Minnesota graduate who competes not far from where he grew up, was named an Olympic alternate.
“I had the best two days of my life,” he said, “so that's all I can do.”
Brett McClure, director of high performance for the USA men's gymnastics program, said while it was a simple decision mathematically, it was by no means an easy one.
“You're not human if you don't have those feelings for these incredible athletes,” McClure said. “All of these athletes put it all on the line and have been training their whole lives for this. It's just so heartbreaking. It's awful for those that didn't make it. It's amazing for those that did. It's life-changing for them. So the rollercoaster of emotions is real and in my position it's never easy to manage.”
Fred Richards says Olympics is 'a new mountain'
The first question for Fred Richard in the mixed zone was how he felt now that he was finally an Olympian.
“I'm a bit hungry,” Richard joked, a big grin on his face.
The 20-year-old said in all seriousness that the feeling comes from both immense excitement and the realization that his life will change. He likens the Olympics to “a new mountain in my life” that he's ready to climb, but also tries to keep the moment in perspective.
“I think tonight was honestly just a night of gratitude and grace, and I was remembering myself when I was younger and how proud he would be that I'm in this position now,” he said, “so I just felt like tonight was just a night of celebration, partying and gratitude.”
Fred Richards Qualifies for the Olympics
MINNEAPOLIS — Fred Richards has been selected to the Olympic team, and now it's time to see who will be next on the list.
Richard narrowly edged out Brody Malone to win the Olympic Trials on Saturday, beating the three-time U.S. champion by 0.2 points. Richard finished with 170.5 points.
But that wasn't enough for Richard to go to Paris. According to the selection procedure, the winner of the preliminary round must place in the top three in at least three events to qualify. Richard achieved that goal by placing first on the horizontal bar, second on the parallel bars and third on the floor exercise.
The men's selection committee will use a complex algorithm to determine the remaining five, combining scores from trials and nationals, so although Malone, Shane Wiskas, Paul Judah and Asher Hong finished in the top five, none are guaranteed a place on the Paris team.
The selection committee is currently meeting and is expected to announce the team names within the next 30 minutes.
Coy Young makes comeback on pommel horse
MINNEAPOLIS — After falling off his horse not once but twice in the pommel horse on Thursday night, Coy Young desperately needed a clean performance on the apparatus on Saturday, and while he got it, it might not be enough to get him back on the Olympic team.
Young minimized his errors and scored a 14.250 on the pommel horse, tying him with Paul Judah for the highest score by a non-professional on the day, moving into a tie for eighth place with one rotation remaining.
Frederick Richard and Brodie Malone are currently in first and second place, respectively, and are in the final rotation, which is to be expected. The three behind them, Shane Wiskas, Judah and Asher Hong, are the favorites to compete for an Olympic spot as the trials are nearly over.
Fred Richards leads after three tournaments
MINNEAPOLIS — Fred Richard's can start packing for Paris.
The winners of the qualifying rounds automatically qualify for the Olympic team if they finish in the top three in three or more events. Now, with two rotations remaining, Richard is first all-around and in the top three in three events. He's first on the horizontal bars and third on the floor exercise, both of which have already been completed. He also received the highest score on the parallel bars, and with five skaters remaining, it's unlikely he'll drop out of the top three.
Asher Hong remains in second place behind Richard but is more than a point behind and unlikely to catch the World All-around bronze medallist. Brodie Malone is in third place.
Steven Nedorosik scored a 14.850 on the pommel horse.
MINNEAPOLIS — Could the U.S. actually field a one-event athlete on its five-member team? That was the question after Steven Nedorosik scored 14.850 on the pommel horse, his only event of the day.
Nedorosic's routine on Saturday was much less difficult than he is capable of, but it was a step above the rest of the U.S. team, except for Koi Young. His inclusion on the team could help fill a gap, but it could also slow the U.S. down if other skaters get injured or withdraw. It's a big decision, and one that may ultimately be made automatically through the selection committee process, in which a team pairing is finalized if it can be mathematically shown to be better than other options.
Meanwhile, Frederick Richard remains at the top of the overall rankings after three rotations, followed by Asher Hong and Brody Malone.
Fred Richard has a Monster High bar set
MINNEAPOLIS — Fred Richard isn't just looking to win the Olympic Trials.
He's trying to make a statement.
Richard, the all-around bronze medalist at last year's World Championships, extended his lead with an incredible high bar set. The crowd cheered his beautiful release and Richard cheered when he landed it. His score of 14.45 was the highest score on the event and an encouraging result for the U.S. men, for whom high bar is one of their weaker events.
Richard finished with 114.850 points after two events, one point ahead of Asher Hong. Shane Wiskus continues to delight the home crowd and is in the running for a spot on the five-man team.
U.S. champion Brody Malone is in fifth place but just finished his weakest event, floor exercise, and should improve in the remaining four events.
Koi Young performs well on vault at U.S. Trials
MINNEAPOLIS — It's shaping up to be a big afternoon for Coy Young, and it couldn't have started any better.
The reigning world silver medalist in the event improved on her scores from the first day of trials and both days of nationals on the vault, scoring a near-perfect performance score (9.50 out of 10) of 15.100. While her 11th place overall wasn't much help, it could be enough to boost her chances of returning to the Olympics.
Young's Stanford teammate Asher Hong also started the day with a big score on vault (15.250), while Frederick Richard extended his lead with a solid performance on parallel bars. Reigning U.S. champion Brodie Malone had an uncharacteristic fall on the horizontal bar, one of his strengths, dropping him to third place.
When will Simone Biles compete at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials?
Simone Biles competed on Friday night, the first day of competition for the senior women. Biles will start on the vault on Sunday night, making her first attempt at approximately 8:20 p.m. ET, before moving on to the uneven bars and balance beam, and finally finishing with the floor exercise.
we Olympic Artistic Gymnastics Qualifying Schedule 2024
The senior men's team will start on Thursday and compete again on Saturday night, while the women's team will compete on Friday and then again on Sunday.
How to Watch the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials
The deciding sessions on Saturday and Sunday will be broadcast by NBC, which will broadcast the trials in full on its streaming service Peacock and offer both general and apparatus-specific streams for viewers who want to follow specific athletes.
U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials TV Program Listings
- Saturday, 3:15pm – 6pm ET: Men's competition, Day 2 (NBC, Peacock)
- Sunday, 8:10pm to 11:00pm ET: Women's competition, Day 2 (NBC, Peacock)
Brody Malone joins Simone Biles on her Gold Over America tour
MINNEAPOLIS — Brody Malone is joining Simone Biles on tour.
Malone joins Dutch skaters Frederic Richard and Casimir Schmidt in being added to the Gold Over America Tour lineup, which has had no men's skaters since the Tokyo Olympics, and Biles told The Associated Press she wanted to focus on women's empowerment.
“This time, it was like, 'OK, that worked, but let's do it a little differently and invite men too,'” she said.
The 30-city tour will begin on September 17th and run through November 3rd.
Who will be selected for the U.S. Men's Gymnastics Olympic Team?
Brody Malone will be guaranteed a place in Paris if he can repeat his qualifying performance from the U.S. Championships in early June, as will Fred Richard, who placed second in nationals, first on floor exercise and second on horizontal bar. Koi Young placed well in qualifying and was a sure bet for the team, but had a disappointing first day.
The candidates are Tokyo Olympians Yul Moldauer and Shane Wiskas, last year's world team member Paul Judah and Donnell Wittenberg, a two-time world championship medalist and an alternate in 2016. Also keep an eye on Cameron Bock, Colt Walker and Asher Hong.
If the selection committee determines he is strong enough in other events but needs a higher score on pommel horse, Steven Nedorosic, the 2021 pommel horse world champion, or Patrick Hoopes could be chosen.
Where is 2024?U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials?
The USA Gymnastics Preliminaries will be held at the Target Center in Minneapolis.
U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials announcer
NBC's coverage will be hosted by Mike Tirico, with Terry Gannon on play-by-play and commentators Tim Daggett, Samantha Peszek and John Roethlisberger joining the coverage.
Koy Young and hisStrugglingU.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials
Coy Young was the best American non-specialist on the pommel horse and the rare American medalist in the event at the World Championships, and was considered a sure bet to make the upcoming Olympic team.
But he has fallen off his horse twice over three nights of competition at the U.S. Championships and Olympic Trials, and his time of 11.65 seconds after falling twice in Thursday night's performance was his lowest score of the event.
Young, the reigning NCAA champion, also had issues on the bars and stills, dropping him to 12th place in tonight's competition. The only event he performed well on was the vault, where he is the reigning world silver medalist. His 14.95 was the highest score on the event on Thursday night.
Frederick Richards at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials
Frederick Richard pumped his fist and smiled broadly as he walked off the floor Thursday night. The reigning world bronze medalist had a lot to celebrate. He had just earned an 85.600 on the floor routine on the first day of the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials, narrowly beating three-time national champion Brodie Malone to take first place all-around.
