Team, Women

The clear favorite for the gold was the United States team. Russia, as the Russian Olympic Committee, had surprisingly won in 2020, in part due to Simone Biles underperforming in the final, but as Russia was excluded from the Paris Olympics, this left the United States, gold medalist in 2012-2016, as the dominant team. The USA had already shown this at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships. The former title was won without star performer Biles, who returned in 2023.

With four gymnasts from Tokyo returning to the US team in Paris, this “redeem team” did not disappoint. Their lead in qualifying was 5.5 points over Italy and China. The Americans repeated their performance in the final. Although their overall score was a point lower, their gold medal was never in doubt. Biles fittingly secured the title with a 14.666 score in her floor exercise, by far the highest score of the field. For Simone Biles, it was her fifth career gold medal, making her the most decorated US gymnast in Olympic history.

The Italians, led by Alice D’Amato, repeated their qualifying performance for a silver medal, despite the absence of Alice’s twin sister Asia D’Amato, who had pulled out with an ACL injury during the European Championships. It was the first Italian medal in the event since 1928, when the sport made its Olympic début for women. Bronze went to Brazil, with standout performer Rebeca Andrade. Although not a surprise – they had won silver at the 2023 Worlds – it marked the first South American medal ever in the women’s team all-around. Great Britain finished fourth, despite missing three of their best gymnasts with injuries.