Simone Biles headlines U.S. team for World Championships
The seven-time Olympic medallist leads Team USA as they seek an unprecedented seventh straight Worlds title
Artistic Gymnastics
Seven-time Olympic gymnastics medallist Simone Biles highlights the U.S. squad for the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, Belgium.
She'll be joined by 2022 World team gold medallists Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely and Leanne Wong. Newcomer Joscelyn Roberson rounds out the squad, announced Wednesday evening (20 September 2023) by USA Gymnastics. Tokyo 2020 replacement athlete Kayla DiCello is the traveling alternate.
Team USA will enter competition as the heavy favourites to win team gold, having claimed the last six world team titles, Olympic crowns in 2012 and 2016 and silver at Tokyo 2020.
The last time Biles competed at the Worlds in 2019, she came away with five gold medals (team, all-around, vault, balance beam and floor exercise), a feat she could repeat in Belgium.
A gold medal for Team USA would be a seventh-straight win at the event. The squad already holds the record for most back-to-back wins, but it would be Biles fifth in the event. She is currently tied with Romania’s Simona Amanar and China’s Huang Xu, Yang Wei and Chen Yibing as the only gymnasts to win four World team titles.
The U.S. women get their competition underway on Sunday, 1 October, during the second of 10 women's qualifying sessions.