Team USA men's gymnastics is eyeing redemption on Monday, as Deerfield native Paul Juda and his teammates hope to move past a sloppy fifth-place finish in qualifying rounds.
The Americans weren't nearly as sharp as their competitors during qualifiers; a number of stumbles kept them from placing higher.
The U.S. came to Paris believing it could return to the medal stand at the Games for the first time since 2008. While the possibility remains, better performances would be needed to make that a reality.
Only one American, Stephen Nedoroscik, a pommel horse specialist, made an apparatus final.
When it comes to individual, Juda's performance - although not his best ever - was good enough to earn the second American spot in the all-around, meaning he'll now play an integral role as one of the top medal contenders.
Juda topped U.S. favorite Brody Malone, who was expected to be the team's biggest medal contender but fell in multiple events in a disappointing showing. Only two athletes from each country can compete in the individual all-around finals.
Juda will compete alongside Frederick Richard, his teammate at the University of Michigan. The two finished in 13th and 10th place, respectively, Juda with a score of 83.498 and Richard with 82.865.
The Americans, who finished third at the 2023 world championships ahead of Great Britain, ultimately finished second in their subdivision with 253.229. After Subdivision 2, with long-time rivals and goal medal favorites China and Japan, and Subdivision 3, the U.S. placed in fifth, qualifying them for a spot in the finals.
Juda, who went viral for his reaction to making the team during the U.S. trials last month, was fired up after his performances in Paris, excitedly reacting to each finish with a cheer or a fist pump in the air.
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In an interview shortly after his finish, he called it the "experience of a lifetime" and said his "heart was racing."
Gymnastics is, in the eyes of many, an individual sport. There’s the individual all-around competition, and the individual event finals where gymnasts end up decorated in medals they earned based on their performance alone.
But Juda's main priority entering Paris was his team.
“Its not a one-man journey," he emphatically told NBC Chicago before the Games began.
His goal entering the Games was to help lift the U.S. to a team medal -- and that could still happen.
“Anything after that is gravy,” Juda said at the time.
Team USA will compete for the chance to medal in the team final on Monday, July 29, at 10:30 a.m. CT on Peacock and will re-air in primetime at 7:00 p.m. CT. Individual All-Around will take place on Wednesday, July 31, at 10:30 a.m. CT on Peacock and will re-air in primetime at 7:00 p.m. CT.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
