Olympic all-around champion Sunisa Lee shows off new elements, combinations as return to training continues
Plus, Pan Am and African Championships set to begin Friday (26 May) and a look back at Team France on the uneven bars at Atlanta 1996.
Artistic Gymnastics
Tokyo 2020 Olympic all-around champion Sunisa Lee of the United States looks to have something new in store for Paris 2024.
The gymnastics superstar continues to make and share progress in her return to the sport – including several new elements and combinations - following a kidney-related health issue kept her out of the final month of her sophomore season at Auburn University.
“I have been dealing with a non-gymnastics health related issue involving my kidneys,” she wrote in 3 April post on social media. “I will not stop pursuing my dreams for a bid to Paris in 2024. In fact, this experience has sharpened my vision for the future.”
The gymnastics star returned to training on 14 April, posting a TikTok of her first workout.
In the weeks since, Lee has shared several videos on her social media platforms. This week, Lee posted a video where she performed a double-twisting, tucked gainer dismount off the balance beam.
It’s a completely new element, and if Lee were to perform it at an international event like September’s World Championships or next summer’s Paris Games, it would be named in her honour.
Other videos have shown Lee working on skills she’s never competed before, including a Jaeger-half on the uneven bars and a round off, layout, back handspring, back handspring sequence on the balance beam.
Lee has yet to say publicly her competition schedule, but the U.S. women’s season begins in earnest on 5 August at the U.S. Classic in the Chicagoland area, followed by the U.S. Gymnastics Championships in San Jose from 24-27 August. Team USA will select its team for the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships at a selection event in Katy, Texas, from 20-23 September.
Pan Am, African Championships highlight busy weekend of gymnastics action
Two continental championships with Paris 2024 implications are set for Friday (26 May) through Sunday (28 May).
The Pan American Gymnastics Championships will see two men’s and two women’s teams advance to the Worlds in Antwerp, where the majority of the quota spots for the Paris Olympics will be on offer.
Individually, six men and 11 women will earn tickets to Antwerp.
American-born NCAA standout Lynnzee Brown is set to compete in her first elite competition representing Haiti, as first reported here on Olympics.com.
Schedule 2023 Pan American Gymnastics Championship
Here’s the schedule for the event, taking place in Medellin, Colombia. All times local to the event. The Pan American Gymnastics Union is set to broadcast the event on its YouTube channel.
- Friday, 26 May
10:30am - Men’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 1
3:30pm - Men’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 2
6:30pm - Men’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 3 - Saturday, 27 May
11:05am – Women’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 1
1:50pm – Women’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 2
3:55pm – Women’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 3
6:00pm – Women’s team qualifying, all-around and apparatus finals, subdivision 4 - Sunday, 28 May
10:30am – Men’s team final
4:05pm – Women’s team final
Schedule 2023 African Gymnastics Championship
At the African Gymnastics Championships in Tshwane, South Africa, one men’s team and one women’s team will advance to the Worlds while two men’s individuals and four women’s spots will also be at stake.
Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour, who has scored over 15.000 on the uneven bars this year, is set to compete after recently being cleared by the French federation.
The complete schedule for the event is below. All times local to the event.
- Friday, 26 May
5:15pm – Women’s team and all-around final - Saturday, 27 May
1:00pm – Men’s team and all-around final, subdivision 1
4:30pm – Men’s team and all-around final, subdivision 2
From the vault…
This week, we take a look back at the French women’s team on the uneven bars at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The team finished sixth on the apparatus with Elvire Teza and Isabelle Severino leading the way at 9.712 and 9.700, respectively. Overall, the team finished in eighth place.