MINNEAPOLIS — The United States men’s Olympic gymnastics team is the favorite to win its first Olympic medal since 2008.
The men’s team has been named at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials in Minneapolis on Saturday: Frederick Richard, Brody Malone, Paul Juda, Asher Hong and Stephen Nedoroscik head to Paris.
The Olympic alternates are Shane Wiskus and Khoi Young. They narrowly missed out on official selection, but are still considered Olympians by the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Richard, the current world all-around bronze medalist, led the general classification after both nights of racing. Richard, 20, from Massachusetts, is also a star on TikTok, where documented your journey to the Paris Olympics. He secured an automatic Olympic berth after finishing first overall and in the top three in three of six events.
US national all-around champion Brody Malone led the first half of the competition but finished two tenths of a point behind Richard.
Despite struggling in his best event, the high bar, in the first rotation, Malone had a strong showing overall and made his second Olympic team. He missed last season after battling a serious knee injury, which almost extinguished his Paris hopes.
Nedoroscik got his ticket to Paris with just a pommel horse routine.
He is a world champion on the device and could compete for a medal in Paris. The pommel horse is notoriously fickle and Nedoroscik’s prowess on it secured his Olympic place, despite him being a specialist in one event.
Hong, a standout at Stanford University, will make her Olympic debut after strong performances on rings and vault. It will also be Judah’s first Olympics.
Minnesota’s Shane Wiskus wowed his hometown crowd, exceeding expectations by finishing third overall and first on floor. Despite his performance, he will settle for an alternate spot after representing the U.S. in Tokyo in 2021.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
