“A few more steps towards my ultimate goal,” is how Shilese Jones continued to motivate herself to fulfill her late father’s dream of competing in the Olympics. But it was unlikely that she had realized that the dream could end with a little more prodding. That was what happened eighteen days ago when she landed awkwardly on the vault during her warm-up at Minneapolis’s Target Center for the US Olympic Gymnastics Trials. The youthful gymnast, 21, attempted a comeback later, opting for her signature uneven bars. But it was too late to defy the grueling injury her left leg suffered. Since then, there has been a deafening silence from Shilese Jones’ side, until the calendar hit July 16.

On that day, Shilese Jones shared something that attached her to the magic she had shown last year. Eventually, that glimpse ticked the emotional nerve of her fans, who found it hard to accept the hard truth that Shilese is far away from the Paris Olympics. 

Shilese Jones’ day out on the mat gives a remembrance 

On July 16, Shilese Jones shared an X-post, attaching a snippet of one of her previous year’s uneven bars schedule, tried in the practice routine last year. The snippet displays her doing the full rotations on both bars while proper handstands follow up on both bars. The schedule took place much before the World Athletics Gymnastics Championships, where she earned the bronze medal, ranking after Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade. The gymnastic fans have yet to forget those, while Shilese Jones’ post is bound to let them remember the stunning preparation she carried out, before moving to Antwerp, Belgium. Meanwhile, the caption of the X-post remains “missing it [emoji]” mirroring her present emotions, spending hours away from her sporting love. Notably, Shilese Jones came out to be one of the favorites for the Paris Olympics team. 

In the Core Hydration Classic this year, the Seattle native scored only less than Simone Biles, defeating names like Jade Carey, Jordan Chiles, and Suni Lee. Furthermore, her overture to make it big seemed to be far more settled as her coach, Sarah Korngold, planned nicely to give her soaring shoulder a rest just before the Olympic trials. This allowed the former medalist at the US Gymnastics Championships to have much-needed downtime. But nothing stood to be resistant when Shilese underwent the injury. 

It was her left leg that bent awkwardly when she landed after the vault routine. The scene showed that it would be hard for her to make a comeback during the trials. However, Shilese Jones’ endurance had not yet accepted defeat, and she relied on her prowess to persevere. Despite this, fearing further injury, her support staff preferred to withdraw her. This ended her hopes of competing in the Paris Olympics and quelled fans’ growing desire to see her compete alongside Simone Biles and others in the French capital. One of the fans’ comments, “Truly so unfair…she deserved a moment to shine in Paris so much” projects that picture. Several of such kinds filled the space. 

Fans remember that queen won’t be in Paris 

Shilese Jones’ fans echoed her sentiment in the comment box while sharing their emotions. One such X-handle, Degantte, added, “I’m devastated, Shilese you are my favorite gymnast I want you to know that”. Meanwhile, just before the US Olympic trials, a Reddit post displayed Shilese Jones enjoying much more popularity than Simone Biles. So, almost all her fans wanted to see her in the Paris Olympics gymnastics team. Eventually, that was reflected in another fan’s comment. 

“I really wanted to see her !!!! I was so happy because they were gonna eat Paris uppp” as the fan, Molly, mentioned. Shilese Jones’ overall performance was found boastful alluding as well. One of her followers asserted, “We miss watching you too. Your artistry and success has been a highlight of the quad.”  The X-handle, nick, narrated the emotion differently. 

Shilese Jones faced the injury more than two weeks ago. So, the expectation is that the audience has moved on in their life. However, nick tried to move on but Shilese’s post gave a punch in the stomach as the fan wrote, “i was having a great day until i realised i wont be seeing her in paris”. After all, it was the departure of someone who had no enemy. The X-handle, Petty Crocker touched a deep emotion by commenting, “Another reminder that my queen won’t be in Paris”. Still, Shilese Jones has given no steadfast update on her return date. Her fans would have to face a few more tests to get to know that.