Watch Aly Raisman’s Flawless Floor Exercise at the Olympics in Rio
Aly Raisman and the U.S. women’s gymnastics team put on a show at Sunday’s qualifying session in Rio de Janeiro.
The Needham native narrowly edged out her teammate and reigning Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas for a spot in the all-around final alongside Simone Biles. Raisman previously won gold medals for both team and floor exercise, as well as a bronze medal for balance beam, at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Biles received a final score of 62.366 while Raisman scored 60.601, just a fraction higher than Douglas’s 60.131. Despite having the third best overall score, Douglas was denied a chance to defend her crown in the all-around final thanks to a new rule which limits countries to two participants each.
Raisman wowed the judges early on with a flawless floor exercise routine that also earned the team captain a spot in the floor final opposite Biles, the 19-year-old phenom who’s hoping to make history by becoming the first female gymnast to win five gold medals in one trip to the Olympics.
As Raisman put on a near-perfect performance, her parents entertained viewers as well, clearly still nervous wrecks (remember London?) as they watched on from the stands.
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As a whole, the U.S. women’s gymnastics team set a high bar during the qualifying session, as they combined for an impressive total score of 185.238. The team is currently at the head of the pack and owns a nearly 10 point lead over China, which earned a score of 175.279.
Photo via AP
