The curse of 15 years and the dream of countless people in America has become true. Yes, the men’s gymnastics team, which was unable to secure a podium spot in the Olympics since Beijing 2008, has finally made a resounding return. It’s once again a shining bronze for Team USA this time. 2024’s men’s gymnastics roster was full of talent. With Brody Malone being the only vet on the team, Asher Hong, Fred Richard, Paul Juda, and Stephen Nedoroscik are all living their dreams after the spectacular win. But none of it would have happened had the USA’s biggest rival, Japan been on point with its performance.

USA’s biggest rival was none other than Japan’s Daiki Hashimoto. But even the reigning all-around gold medalist, could not be at his best to defend his title. From fumbling on routines in qualifiers to fumbling again in the Team Event Final, Japan, despite winning gold in Team All-Around, Hashimoto’s scores from today were less than that of Brody Malone.

How important was winning this medal for the USA’s Men’s Gymnastics Team?

2024 has been an iconic year for all of Team USA’s team members. Be it Simone Biles’ comeback after Tokyo’s Twisties or Paul Juda aiming to recover from Tokyo’s heartbreak, the whole team has come far. While talking about comebacks, how can one forget Brody Malone’s devastating injury, multiple surgeries, and trying to learn to walk again? The Stanford gymnast’s story is one to tell. The start of the Paris Olympics was challenging for him, with one fall on the pommel horse and two falls on the high bar. This would have been devastating for the gymnast, especially considering his injury at the 2024 DTB Cup in Germany also occurred on the high bar.

For the 20-year-old Fred Richard, winning a medal in the Paris Olympics was quite personal. Having grown up watching the countries fawn over women’s gymnastics while overlooking the men who are just as good as the women’s team, Fred entered the Paris Olympics with multiple goals. One of which was to make men’s gymnastics as popular as women’s. Bringing a team bronze home is a good way to do that. However, if this wasn’t enough, the Michigan University gymnast is backed by around a million followers on his socials, a number which might see a steep rise after today’s event.

Helping end the curse were the hands of three other very important people. Paul Juda, who was not able to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, broke down when he heard his name being called in the final five for Team USA. His happiness turned into tears and was visible to the entire country as they rooted for him in Paris. As a gymnast, Juda would have gotten the chance of getting in the Olympics had he chosen to compete for Poland. But since everything happens for a reason, Juda chose to stay in America and fight his way into the Olympics, not just that, but to the podium spot as well.
Stephen Nedoroscik, the pommel horse specialist, and probably the only gymnast who has his glasses on the entire time, except for when he competes. Nedoroscik often makes the gymnastics community wonder how he can do the pommel horse so flawlessly when he needs glasses to see everything else. Seems like the gymnast’s body is very well equipped with the events now that once he gets onto it, his body knows how to twist and turn. Much similar to Simone Biles, who stays conscious of what’s happening when she’s in the air. Stephen did not compete in all the events in the qualifiers, or in the trials, but he was chosen for one reason to be in the Paris Olympics, and he proved that the judges made the right choice in picking him by helping his team clinch the bronze.
Another important person who made this possible was another 20-year-old in Team USA, Asher Hong. Debuting in the Paris Olympics with such an iconic team, he may not have competed in the all-around, but he played a crucial role in helping the team reach the top of the podium. Another star from Stanford University, Asher Hong gave his all to help Team USA bring back bronze.

America’s winning medal since Beijing 2008 was due for a long time. It’s time for men’s gymnastics to turn around and continue bringing medals home!