Simone Biles wins 9th U.S. Championships title ahead of Olympic trials

gymnastics superstar Simone Biles won her ninth U.S. championship on Sunday, leaving little doubt that at 27 years old and more than a decade at the top of the sport, she is as good as ever.

Biles recorded a two-day all-around total of 119.750, nearly six points ahead of runner-up Skye Blakely and leaving little doubt that she appears poised to add a second Olympic all-around gold to go along with the one she won in 2016.

In front of an audience that included her husband, Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens, Biles put on a four-wheeler clinic that featured all the hallmarks of a typical Biles performance. There was jaw-dropping athleticism mixed with precision and more than a touch of arrogance.

Biles finished with the highest two-day score in all four events — something she had done only once before at nationals (2018) — to gain plenty of momentum ahead of the Olympic trials later this month in Minneapolis.

His only misstep on Sunday was on the jump. She failed her double Yurchenko spear—two back handsprings with her hands behind her knees—during the warm-up and overcompensated when needed, generating so much force that she ended up lying on her back. She even received 15,000 for her effort, a test of a jump that has never been completed in competition by another woman and only attempted by a select group of men.

Not that it bothered her. Biles composed herself, took a few deep breaths and followed by a Cheng leap that was rewarded with 15.1 and put a ninth national title within her grasp, heady territory considering no other gymnast in the history of the sport in the US has more than than Seven.

While Biles remains above the fray as ever, there is plenty of competition for the other four spots on the five-woman American team that will head to Paris as the heavy favorite to return to the top of the podium after finishing second to Russia in Tokyo, three years ago.

Blakely, 19, had another impressive performance and will head to Minneapolis with plenty of momentum. Three years after his bid to make the 2020 Olympic team ended with injury, Blakely is peaking at the right time.

Suni Lee, the 2020 Olympic champion who has spent the last year battling kidney problems that have limited her training, overcame an early vault error to put together elegant routines on uneven bars and balance beam that few in the world — even Biles — can match .

Olympians Jordan Chiles and Jade Carey are in contention, although both suffered falls on beam on Sunday. Third-place Kayla DiCello slipped on the uneven bars. Leanne Wong, perhaps looking tired after a long season competing in Florida, also suffered uncharacteristic errors.

Shilese Jones, considered the best all-around gymnast in the United States without the last name Biles, withdrew from the championships on Friday, citing a shoulder injury, although she said on Sunday that she was feeling better and planned to be available for trials. The same will happen to 18-year-old Kaliya Lincoln, who opted not to compete on Sunday after making some adjustments during Friday night’s opening session.

Both – if healthy – appear to be serious candidates for an invitation to Paris (Jones in particular). If they don’t, the door could open for others and test the depth that the elite senior program has been promoting for years.