Ahead of the 2024 Olympics, there aren’t many more opportunities left for gymnasts to secure their tickets to Paris. With the Core Hydration Classic also over, the upcoming US National Championships, also dubbed the Xfinity US Gymnastics Championship, will be the final pitstop before next month’s team trials. While all the top stars from the country’s gymnastics scene will bring their A-game to Fort Worth on May 30, no one has more stakes on the line than Gabby Thomas.
The Olympic gold medalist is eyeing a return to action eight long years after her last Olympic appearance. However, from how things have panned out in recent weeks, fans aren’t very hopeful about Douglas’ possibility of making it to the banks of the Seine.
Gabby Douglas’ hard time finding her feet
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A recent post on the Reddit group r/Gymnastics shared a fan’s speculation on who is likely to show up at the Team Trials in the last stretches of June in Minneapolis. “Who do you think will make US WAG Olympic Trials?” inquires the post and also lists the potential candidates for Team USA members based on their recent performance.
Unsurprisingly, the 28-year-old’s performance at the recently concluded Core Hydration has taken a toll on her claims to fly to the French capital. Douglas appears at number 14 on the list, and other fans also seem to share a similar skepticism.
While Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson keeps her eggs in Douglas’ basket, not everyone seems to share the optimism. On the other hand, Gabby missing out on the Winter Cup earlier this year didn’t exactly help her cause either, and fans aren’t holding back on their opinion on the matter.
Fans doubtful of Gabby’s spot in Team USA
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User Easy-Upstairs-8274 thinks the three-time Olympic gold medalist has become a mere mid-tier athlete who needs to up her game significantly if she wishes to make her comeback worthy of remembrance. Depending on performance, said the Redditor, “Gabby, Josc, Hezly, Trinity OR whichever mid tier athletes really step it up.” will be called upon for the national duties.
The Core Hydration Classic was the qualifying event for the upcoming US Nationals. Even in the event from earlier this month, Gabby had to bow out of the tournament after a dismal performance in the initial stages. Naturally, fans think that Gabby needs to buckle up if wants to travel to Paris with the likes of Simone Biles and Shilese Jones. “I really hope Gabby makes it but I think she will have to hit beam and bars at Nationals to go.” said another gymnastics connoisseur.
On the other hand, the names that will show up for the Xfinity Championship all have their own claims on representing the USA at the Paris Games. Considering the steep uphill climb that Gabby could be looking at, one fan had to admit with a quivering tone: “It’s going to be super competitive for those last 4 spots! Gabby might not make it.“
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chookie94 also thinks that Gabby not being called up for the All-Around event should be a clear hint that her place among the contemporary elite gymnasts is shaky. “With Gabby not being qualified for AA at Nationals and with her having zero recent AA results, why would she be a potential contender“, commented the fan about the two-time World Championships gold medalist’s claims for a national team spot.
USA Gymnastics has made it clear that the gymnasts’ track record and consistency will be one of the factors that would secure their spot on the team. Taking that into account, and the fact that Gabby missing out on the national training camp in February didn’t benefit her comeback journey, one fan said, “I can’t see a situation where she makes the team and it feels even remotely fair – especially considering consistency is listed as a criteria.” And yet, the fan had to admit that this shouldn’t be the end of the line for Douglas and she should get back into her groove by trying to look to a future beyond the Paris Olympics.
