Page 18 - atoday
P. 18
A18
SPORTSWednesday 28 October
U.S. women roll to 3rd straight world gymnastics title
WILL GRAVES so deep at the moment resistant rotations around
AP Sports Writer pink-clad SSE Hydro, put-
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) its competitions feel more ting up a total of 181.338,
— The gap is becoming more than five points
a canyon. No matter the like exhibitions. The world clear of China and surprise
stakes, the year or the bronze medalist Britain, a
young women with the USA championship the Ameri- blowout in a sportwhere
patch on their shimmering the differences are often
leotards, there is the gym- cans won on Tuesday measured in fractions.
nastics’ powerhouse con- “We never just assume we
structed and relentlessly night appeared so easy will be on the first place,”
maintained by national Karolyi said after the pro-
team coordinator Martha they were more focused gram captured its fifth
Karolyi and there is every- championship since she
body else. on Karolyi’s approval up in took over in 2000. “Only
And it’s not close. Not really through dedication and
close to close. the stands than whatever hard work, you can get
The U.S. is so steady and better. That’s our philoso-
scores the judges felt like
handing out.
“We’re unstoppable,”
Gabby Douglas said.
The reigning Olympic gold
medalist was kidding, but Team United States pose with the gold medals on the podium
after winning the women’s team final competition at the World
only a little. The U.S. won its Artistic Gymnastics championships at the SSE Hydro Arena in
Glasgow, Scotland, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015.
third consecutive world title
Associated Press
by delivering four pressure-
phy. Hard work, discipline her fingers while waiting
and also high number of to be introduced for un-
repetition which takes pa- even bars and she playfully
tience and can be boring fanned herself at the be-
sometimes.” ginning of an attitude-filled
To the point where the girls floor exercise befitting of
joked about going on strike someone whose nickname
after qualifying last Sat- happens to be “Swaggy
urday, citing a stretch of Maggie.”
nearly three weeks without Only afterward, when she
so much as a day off. caught a glimpse of the
Karolyi acquiesced a little scoreboard with that fa-
by allowing them to get out miliar American flag at the
and explore Glasgow on top, did Nichols let the mo-
Monday. Then it was right ment sink in.
back in the gym for anoth- “I got the shivers, it was so
er one of those necessary cool,” she said.
but monotonous workouts She might want to get used
that makes doing it in front to it. Less than 10 months
of the crowd and for the before the flame is lit in Rio,
rest of the world seem like the Americans’ five-wom-
a vacation. an Olympic lineup appears
Maybe because in a way, close to set between Nich-
it is. ols, Biles, Douglas and Rais-
Maggie Nichols, the only man.
American chosen to com- Three years removed from
pete in all four events on a Olympic triumph in Lon-
team that includes Doug- don as part of the “Fierce
las, two-time world cham- Five,” Douglas and Rais-
pion Simone Biles and man might be getting bet-
three-time Olympic med- ter. Sporting gold nail pol-
alist Aly Raisman, seemed ish she bummed from Biles,
perfectly at ease during the Douglas was spectacular
biggest meet of her life. The on uneven bars, her 15.333
18-year-old calmly blew on the highest of the night. q
