Americans roll at world championships, Canada impresses with fourth-place finish
DOHA, Qatar — Relaxed, relieved and with the gold medal the U.S. women’s gymnastics team flew halfway across the globe for secured, Morgan Hurd needed a break. So the 17-year-old hopped on the back of Simone Biles and went for a brief ride, the two teammates laughing all the way.
While the scene lent itself to an easy metaphor, that’s not the reality.
Sure, having the best gymnast on the planet tends to help while putting together a dynasty. Except the United States’ dominance in the sport — one that shows no signs of ending after the Americans won the world championship by a record 8.766 points on Tuesday — goes far deeper than its 21-year-old superstar.f
It’s 15-year-old Kara Eaker gracefully drilling her balance beam routine in her first major international meet. It’s 17-year-old Riley McCusker proving high performance co-ordinator Tom Forster’s hunch correct by being rock steady on beam after a shaking performance in qualifying. It’s Grace McCallum celebrating her 16th birthday by coming through on floor and vault. It’s Hurd posting top-five scores on vault and uneven bars on a day the U.S. put up the top overall scores by at least a full point in each of the four events.