Paris (AFP) – Simone Biles made a triumphant return to Olympic competition after her troubles in Tokyo, and Shinnosuke Oka emerged as Japan’s latest gymnastics star at the Paris Games. AFP Sport picks out five talking points from the competition at the Bercy Arena.
**Biles dazzles**
Simone Biles ended her Paris Olympics campaign with three golds and a silver to burnish her standing as the greatest gymnast of all time, dazzling spectators with her brilliance. It was dramatically different from her harrowing experience in Tokyo, where mental struggles forced her to withdraw from most of her events. The charismatic 27-year-old US superstar drew a crowd of celebrity A-listers including Tom Cruise, Lady Gaga, and rapper Snoop Dogg.
Biles led the USA to the team title, produced an explosive floor routine to edge Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade for the coveted all-around crown, and then executed a spectacular version of her signature Yurchenko double pike, known as Biles II, to add the vault gold. Tiredness contributed to last-day stumbles on the balance beam, on which she failed to win a medal, and floor, where she had to settle for silver behind Andrade. In a charming touch, Biles showed the Brazilian how much she respected her, bowing to her during the medal presentation.
**Awesome Oka**
Biles may have left the door ajar to extending her Olympic journey until the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, but one gymnast already counting down the days to 2028 is Shinnosuke Oka. The 20-year-old finished his debut Olympics with three golds — team, all-around, and horizontal bar — plus a bronze in parallel bars. While Tokyo all-around champion Daiki Hashimoto had a low-key 2024 Games, Oka took flight to inherit the mantle of Japanese gymnastics’ new poster boy. “I might not have known all the past champions, but carving out my place in history feels amazing,” he said. “Competing at such a high level amongst legendary names is an honour.”
**History-makers**
Among all the familiar faces, the gymnastics competition in Paris produced some notable new champions. Algerian teenager Kaylia Nemour became the first African to win an Olympic gymnastics medal with gold on the uneven bars. “She looks like a feather up there,” marvelled American Sunisa Lee. On the pommel horse, Rhys McClenaghan etched his name into Irish sporting folklore as his country’s first Olympic gymnastic medallist. The 25-year-old shed tears of joy as he completed the grand slam of Olympic, world, European, and Commonwealth titles.
**Two-gold Yulo**
Another gymnast who left his mark on the competition was Carlos Yulo, who landed the Philippines’ first gymnastics gold — and just their second Olympic gold medal ever — on the floor. After a sleepless night, he doubled up on the vault. He was showered with praise and gifts, including a three-bedroom apartment and tens of thousands of dollars from the government. Restaurants are offering him free ramen, and a gastroenterologist has helpfully chipped in with free consultations and colonoscopies for life.
**Fall guys**
Monday’s closing finals were extraordinary affairs with competitors making mistake after mistake as tiredness and tension took a grip. Five of the eight finalists fell on the horizontal bar, while others stumbled on their dismounts. On the balance beam, Biles was one of four to hit the deck. Not that Alice D’Amato was complaining. She avoided a slip-up to claim a historic first Olympic gymnastics title for Italy.
© 2024 AFP
