The Olympic year has just announced its beginning for the US gymnastics and the excitement is greater than anyone ever expected. Starting on the 23rd of February, the 2024 Winter Cup will kick off the domestic season and three names float visibly in the industry: Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas, and Suni Lee. The three gymnastics icons have each won the Olympic all-around title, sparking speculations on the best for the path ahead.

Come Winter Cup later this week, Suni Lee and Gabby Douglas are set to leap ahead for the season with their participation. Now, with Simone Biles’ decision to stay back, an inevitable question about the former two racing ahead lingers around in the gymnastics industry.

Gabby Douglas’ determined path forward

It took Gabby Douglas seven years to focus on well-being and fetch the domain that brings along happiness for her. When she did, the Olympian ground through to the T to get back into form and ultimately make her way to the elite stages, eight years after her last step. “I didn’t want to end this sport how I did in 2016… Wanted to take a step back and work on my mental state,” she reveals. “I love gymnastics and love pushing myself… I never wanted to walk away on a bad day.” 

On the 24th of Feb, Gabby Douglas will be the oldest gymnast as she returns, trained in all four apparatuses. However, her performance on ‘uneven bars,’ the element that gave her the ‘flying squirrel’ tag, will be the one to look out for. As per the US Gymnastics website, the 2012 Olympic gold medal, is training under Nastia Liukin’s father and former coach, Valeri Liukin, who is an Olympic gold medalist himself.

With the required help, the gymnastics fame is back to conquer the element specifically weaker to the US Gymnastics: Uneven Bars. Douglas has repeatedly attained gold on the bars, inclusive of the Pacific Rim and Pan AM Championships. The industry enthusiasts thus speculate her to be a stronger contender for the team going into the Olympics in 2024., offering a tougher uphill battle to Suni Lee.

Suni Lee and the resilient mindset

The past year has been grueling and unkind for the 20-year-old gymnast, Suni Lee. Diagnosed with ‘an incurable kidney disease,’ Lee was obliged to stay off the elite mats and otherwise quite frequently. However, raising back up, the 2020 Olympic all-arounder is back for the Winter Cup with a list stretching further below. The kick off the comeback, Suni Lee will start at the Winter Cup getting her hands on the beam and the bars.

According to reports, Suni Lee is expecting to debut a new skill on bars. Following with the same, the Olympian is trying to get herself to the World Cup in Baku, 7-10 March. Participation there will allow Suni a chance to submit a new element to the gymnastics rule book. The skill known as full-twisting, layout Jaeger on the uneven bars will hold a chance to be named ‘The Lee’ if she were to execute it flawlessly.

“The whole reason we’re doing Winter Cup is so that we can go to Baku and get the skill named because Suni really wants to get that out of the way,” Coach Jess Graba states. Suni Lee reports to be working on the element for the past 2 years and feels ready as she heads into the next phase. If all were to fall in place, Olympic qualification doesn’t seem too far for Suni Lee. However, while the two have presented visible progress, Simone Biles seems to walk her own path of progress.

A possible threat to Simone Biles

Much like Suni Lee and Gabby Douglas, Simone Biles has been on a break herself for 2 years following the 2020 Olympics. Though the 7-time Olympic medalist made a triumphant return, Biles seems to be taking it slow, including her withdrawal from the Winter Cup. However, that wouldn’t mean the most decorated gymnast has given up just yet.

Also Read: No Simone Biles in The 2024 Winter Cup: Could It Be A Big Setback For Team USA?

During the national camp earlier this month, Simone Biles presented solid routines on various apparatuses. The Olympian reportedly started on Vault with Amanar that had earlier been a part of Biles’ twisties in the 2020 routine. Further along, the gymnast’s routine also included uneven bars execution and Biles I on the floor. While the icon has been well on a path of progress, her well-being-centric, slow-paced path on elite mats may immediately prove a setback, with Gabby Douglas and Suni Lee visibly moving ahead. But the future holds the truth of its own.

Watch This Story: “Beat You”: Gymnastics’ Emerging Sensation Challenges Simone Biles for the Lead