St. Paul native Suni Lee, Team USA wins gold in Paris Olympics
PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 30: Sunisa Lee of Team United States reacts after finishing her routine in the floor exercise during the Artistic Gymnastics Womens Team Final on day four of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Bercy Arena on July 30, 2024 in Paris, (Getty Images)
(FOX 9) - St. Paul native Suni Lee and her teammates earned gold for the women's gymnastic team finals during the Summer Games in Paris on Tuesday.
Lee, Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera took home gold in the team finals in what several athletes have called a "redemption tour" after finishing second to Russia during the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The U.S. earned gold with 171.296 points, Italy took home silver with 165.494, and Brazil secured the bronze medal after scoring 164.497 points during the team finals on Tuesday.
Team finals
PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 30: (L-R) Simone Biles, Jordan Chiles, Hezly Rivera, Jade Carey and Sunisa Lee of Team United States celebrate during the Artistic Gymnastics Women's Team Final on day four of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Bercy Arena on July 3 (Getty Images)
Team USA had a stellar performance at the competition on Tuesday. Lee competed on uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise. Biles and Chiles competed in all four events, while Carey joined the pair for the vault. Hazley did not compete in the team finals.
Chiles, Carey, and Simone delivered clean vaults during the first rotation. During bars in the second rotation, Lee fell during warmups and hit her feet on the ground during the performance, but she ultimately pulled through and delivered the highest beam score on the team, 14.566.
The third rotation started shaky for Team USA, with Chiles falling off the beam during her mount. The rest of the routine was solid, but she only scored 12.733 for the team. Lee followed and gave a rock-solid performance, earning 14.600, and leaped for joy after her dismount.
Lee’s final performance of the day earned a 13.533 on the floor, and she smiled ear to ear as she walked off the mat. Chiles also hit her floor routine, earning a 13.966 and breaking down in tears after her final pose on the mat.
Biles all but secured the gold after earning an impressive score of 14.666 during her floor exercise.
Individual and all-around competitions
Lee, the reigning all-around champion, will defend her title on Thursday against Biles, the 2016 champion. It’s the first time in U.S. history that two all-around gold medalists will compete in the Olympic finals.
Lee narrowly beat out Chiles for the coveted number two slot after performing a stellar routine on uneven bars during the qualifiers. The St. Paul native took home bronze in the event during the Tokyo Games but said she hopes to earn gold for uneven bars in Paris.
She is also set to compete on beam with teammate Biles.