In Antwerp, Belgium, Simone Biles considers winning her sixth all-around title a truly remarkable achievement.
Should she win Friday night, it would tie the record for most all-around titles at the world gymnastics championships, set by Japan’s Kōhei Uchimura. It also would give her 34 medals at the world championships and Olympics, more than any other gymnast, male or female.
And it would extend her own records for most medals and titles at the world championships. After leading the U.S. women to a seventh consecutive title, also a record, Biles has 26 medals at worlds, with 20 of them being gold.
“That’s crazy,” Biles, who has often said she doesn’t keep track of her many milestones, said after the team final Wednesday night. “I think each and every time you are crowned a world champion, it feels a little bit different. I mean, I’m still surprised that I’m still going.”
Biles is favored to win. She has not lost an all-around competition since 2013, and posted the highest score in qualifying and the team final. Follow along with our live updates below as Biles competes for the all-around title.
Simone Biles uneven bars score: 14.33
ANTWERP, Belgium — Simone Biles is doing what she needs to do.
Uneven bars is Biles’ “weakest” event, and we should all be so fortunate to be as good at our worst thing as she is on bars. Her routine wasn’t the cleanest she’s ever done, and she missed at least one of her connections. She was laughing as she looked over at coach Laurent Landi after she finished.
But Biles scored a 14.333, not providing much of an opening for those trying to catch her.
Simone Biles in 2nd place after first rotation of all-around final
ANTWERP, Belgium — Simone Biles has the early edge on reigning world champion Rebeca Andrade.
Biles, looking to win a record sixth all-around title, is 0.400 ahead of the Brazilian after the first of four rotations. Biles did her Cheng vault almost perfectly while Andrade, doing the same vault, landed hers low. Andrade took one step and then another, the second taking her into the out-of-bounds area.
Biles scored a 15.1, including a 9.5 execution score, while Andrade had a 14.7.
Both trail Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour, who scored a 15.2 for a dazzling uneven bars routine. But bars is Nemour’s speciality, and she’s likely to drop back the longer the meet goes.
Fellow American Shilese Jones, last year’s silver medalist, is in sixth.
Simone Biles vault score: 15.1 for sticking Cheng vault
ANTWERP, Belgium — That’s about as good a start as Simone Biles could have hoped for.
Biles opted for the “less-difficult” Cheng vault, rather than her Yurchenko double pike. The Cheng is the second-most difficult being done, but its difficulty score is 0.800 less than the Yurchenko double pike. But with the way Biles did it, it doesn’t matter.
She got massive height and flew what seemed like forever. She pretty much stuck the landing, and immediately grinned. She got a 15.1, with an execution score of 9.5 out of 10.
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Where to watch the World Gymnastics Championships all-around competition: TV channel, stream online
The all-around final will be streamed on Peacock starting at 1:30 p.m. ET Friday, and there will be a highlights show on CNBC on Oct. 8. The full schedule is here.
Time in Antwerp, Belgium
Antwerp is six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, so the all-around competition begins there at 7:30 in the evening Friday.
Gymnastics all-around final order of events
The order of events for Friday night’s team final will be the same for Simone Biles and Shilese Jones as it was for the team final earlier in the week.
They’ll start on vault, with Jones up second in the group of six and Biles up third. Then it’s on to uneven bars, where Jones and Biles are the first two up in their group. After that it’s balance beam, with Biles leading off and Jones going last. They finish on floor exercise, with Jones the second-to-last competitor and Biles the last.
Also in their group is Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, last year’s world champion, and Britain’s Jessica Gadirova, the bronze medalist last year.
Who is Simone Biles’ competition for the all-around title?
Rebeca Andrade of Brazil, who won the all-around at last year’s world championships, is back. Though she had some struggles in qualifying, she rebounded with a spectacular performance in the team final, posting the second-highest score behind Biles.
Fellow American Shilese Jones won the silver medal at last year’s worlds and was second to Biles at the U.S. championships in August. Jones also had the second-best score in qualifying.
Also keep an eye on France’s Melanie de Jesus dos Santos, who trains with Biles at the World Champions Centre outside of Houston. She’s long been considered one of the world’s best gymnasts, but has tended to struggle in big competitions. Not in the team final, however. She had arguably the best meet of her life, leading France to the bronze, its first team medal at worlds since 1950.
Flavia Saraiva of Brazil; Canada’s Ellie Black; and Manila Esposito of Italy are some others to watch.
Jessica Gadirova replaced by Alice Kinsella for Britain
Britain’s Jessica Gadirova, last year’s bronze medalist, would have been on that list but will not be competing in the all-around.
Gadirova was third during qualifying, and also competed in the team final. British Gymnastics didn’t give a reason for her withdrawal, announcing just before the meet began that “as a precautionary measure” Gadirova would not compete and she’d be replaced by teammate Alice Kinsella.
Will Simone Biles do the Yurchenko double pike again?
To be determined.
Biles did the vault, so difficult few men even try it, during qualifying, meaning it will forever more be known as “the Biles” in the women’s scoring system. Actually, it’ll be known as the Biles II, since she’s already got a vault named after her.
Or maybe it should be the Biles V, since it’s the fifth skill named for her. She has two on floor and one on balance beam.
Coach Laurent Landi said after qualifying they hadn’t decided yet if Biles would do the vault again at this competition, and she didn’t do it in the team final.
“People I hope realize that’s maybe one of the last times you’re going to see a vault like that in your life from a woman gymnast,” Landi said. “So I think it’s time to appreciate it.”
Simone Biles floor routine that won gold
Simone Biles’ floor routine clinched a record seventh consecutive team title for the U.S. women at the world gymnastics championships, breaking a tie with the Chinese men (2003 to 2014). Biles has been on the U.S. team for five of those titles, and Wednesday night’s gold was her 20th overall at the world championships.
Simone Biles medals
American Simone Biles is on the brink of history. Well, more history.
On Wednesday at the world championships in Antwerp, Belgium, Biles, 26, led the Americans to team gold medal, putting her one medal shy of becoming the most-decorated gymnast, male or female. She now has 33 medals at the world championships and Olympics, tying Vitaly Scherbo.
Antwerp would be a fitting city for Biles to set the mark, considering it’s where she first stepped onto the world stage. At her first world championships in 2013, the then-16-year-old won four medals, including her first all-around gold.
How tall is Simone Biles?
Simone Biles’ height is widely reported as 4 feet, 8 inches.
How old is Simone Biles?
Simone Biles is 26 years old. She is the oldest member of Team USA that won a record seventh consecutive team title for the U.S. women at the world gymnastics championships. The other team members are: Skye Blakely, 18; Shilese Jones, 21; Joscelyn Roberson, 17; and Leanne Wong, 20.
