‘Very Close’: Rebeca Andrade Confesses True Feelings on Almost Having Paris Olympics Vault Skill Named After Her

Simone Biles had the Yurchenko Double Pike vault in her quiver! The scenic vault mesmerized the gymnastics fans. The ultimate body throw in the air and the consecutive gravity-defying twists were bound to put a test on the gymnast. Well, only Simone could pull such a vault move. She even perfected it to a level that she didn’t need her coach’s assistance while attempting this move! Furthermore, per the International Gymnastics Federation’s Code of Points, the vault move had a difficulty score of 6.4. Conclusion? If Simone could successfully pull off YDP in the Paris Olympics, she could have threatened Rebeca Andrade’s chances. Would the Brazilian maestro let that happen? 

Certainly, not! Rebeca had to defend her Olympic vault title in Paris. So naturally, she had to go beyond Simone’s or any other opponent’s score in the final. That need made her add something new to her arsenal. That’s how Triple-Twisting Yurchenko (TTY) came into being. Before the Paris Olympics, updates revealed that the former world champion submitted her eponymous vault skill to the FIG to make it in her name. Rated 6.0 in difficulty, her vault could have been the best answer to Simone Biles’s celebrated Yurchenko double pike (YDP) in their battle for vault supremacy. 

But to make the move on her name, Andrade had to perform it on the Olympic mat in Paris. Did she pull that off? Well, before the Olympics, several videos came on social media, showing her practicing the otherworldly skill. She took it to a different level by mixing her finesse with it. But on the Olympic night of the vault final, TTY was missing. Rebeca ultimately lost the battle to Simone Biles in the vault final. She could claim 14.966 in the reply to Biles’s 15.300. 

Almost four months later, Rebeca Andrade opened up on the entire issue. She still feels pained over her missing the staging of TTY in the Paris Olympics. In a conversation with FIG, she said, “It was very close to happening [in Paris].” Yet so far from her! But what stopped her from unveiling it on July 28 or August 3? On the final night in Bercy Arena, she had a difficulty score of 5.4. Simone was just inches ahead, 5.6. Remember, in the vault final in the Paris Olympics, Biles staged her YDP to topple Andrade? Then why didn’t she brandish her best weapon? The safety measure! 

As per the Brazilian gymnast, her chief mentor, Francisco Porath, preferred her safety over attempting the move. He wanted to ensure that Rebeca wouldn’t have to deal with any doubts regarding her fitness after the vault final. Therefore, he recommended that she choose a safer option. And indeed, everything unfolded as he suggested! His mentee came out of the event unscratched. Nonetheless, she had to accept her defeat and miss out on a juicy chance to own TTY. Ultimately, on the evening of August 3, Simone Biles was seen waving her gold medal on the podium, while Rebeca smiled proudly with her silver medal hanging around her neck.

Yet, did that decision cost everything? With TTY on her side, Rebeca Andrade could have a better shot at defending her Olympic vault title. She could have sat well beside Simone, who already had the YDP move named after her. So does the absence of such things hurt her? Just like a true champion, Rebeca appears to reconcile with the circumstances.

In the conversation with FIG, the 25-year-old mentioned, “I’m very proud of that decision.” In the next instance, Rebeca took another step. She revealed, “I’m very happy with my medal. And I think that if I had to go back, I would have made the same decision and done the same thing again.” Standing in December, things like this don’t make her grieve. Instead, she counts on her side as being a motivational entity. Yes, Rebeca Andrade has a different lens to see things. 

Rebeca Andrade notes the other side of her achievements

After the Paris Olympics, Rebeca Andrade might get a few more chances to take TTY to her name. The World Artistic Gymnastics Championships are on the cards. It is scheduled for October next year. Andrade, on the other hand, lacks any certainty about participating in the match. She has yet to clear her mindset on that. But that may not mean that the most decorated Brazilian gymnast has stopped watching her gymnastics achievements. She eventually takes pride in what she has done on the gymnastics mat till now. 

In the interaction with FIG, Rebeca conceded, “I feel very proud that today I can be a reference, that today I can be a symbol of inspiration for so many young people who are coming up now.” Coming from the favela of Sao Paulo and winning the world surely stands bigger than anything to her. The reason? She knows what she has paid to reach her current position. That feeling led her to say, “It was something very difficult to achieve, and it’s very difficult to be in this place, but I carry it with great pride, I hope I have a lot of wisdom to continue dealing with things the way I’m dealing with them, to continue being this good example, you know, of an athlete, of a human being, and hope that things keep going like this.” She may have missed the Olympic title in Paris, but here is her achievement, and Rebeca Andrade seems happy in taking that.