Simone Biles

This afternoon, USA Gymnastics released the finalized roster for this year’s U.S. Classic meet, which will be held on July 28 in Columbus, Ohio.

One of the headliners on the list is 2016 Olympic champion Simone Biles, who will be making her return to competition for the first time in almost exactly two years with the goal of earning spots at nationals, on the national team, and on this year’s world championships team.

While Biles initially stated that she’ll only compete bars and beam at the U.S. Classic, she took to Twitter today letting fans know that she’ll actually be doing the all-around, a sign that her comeback is much further along than even she and her coaches thought. With former WOGA coaches Laurent and Cecile Landi now leading Biles and the rest of the team at World Champions Centre, the gym owned by Biles’ family outside of Houston, this will also be the first time we get to see Biles compete without longtime coach Aimee Boorman by her side, which will add to the excitement and intrigue of her comeback.

Technically, Biles has not qualified to nationals, and had she competed only a couple of events at classics, she would’ve only qualified on those two events, though I’m almost positive based on her speedy addition back onto the national team this year, she probably could have easily worked out a petition allowing her a ‘free pass’ to nationals based on how she looked at the most recent training camp.

I doubt the national program would hinder anyone with her talent and ability from being able to contend for the all-around title at nationals if they’re not fully ready a few weeks earlier at classics, especially with the national team camp situation this year taking away all of the opportunities to verify. This year, there were only two verification camps, one held in the lead-up to the world cups and the other held in April to choose the Pac Rims and Pan Ams teams.

In a normal year, there would be two additional opportunities held much closer to the summer season, including a camp in May and then a final verification in early July, held in conjunction with the American Classic. Most of the country’s top gymnasts with previous high-level elite experience who were unable to contend for international team spots earlier in the year would hold off until this point to attempt to qualify, and would then use the U.S. Classic a couple of weeks later as a practice meet before the big event.

But this year, with no verification camps held in the three months leading up to the U.S. Classic, those who have been dealing with injuries, like Riley McCusker, or who opted out of the earlier verification camps to focus on upgrading and staying healthy for the latter half of the year, like Emma Malabuyo, only had the two classic meets this month to qualify.

Malabuyo is already qualified to nationals as an all-arounder but McCusker only earned her two-event score at the American Classic this year, and I can guarantee that if something goes wrong or otherwise limits her from being at her full potential in Columbus, we’re absolutely going to see her petition for an all-around spot at nationals, and I guarantee she or anyone in her shoes with a history of being a high-level contender would absolutely have that petition granted, especially given the circumstances.

But while I think Biles would’ve been allowed to compete the all-around at nationals no matter what, I’m glad she’s playing by the rules and making it legit without taking any special favors. Competing for the first time in two years under the pressure that comes with having a goal for that meet — even if the goal of earning a 52.000 in the all-around is the easiest goal she’ll ever face in her senior career — will only serve to further validate what has already been an impressive return, based on training videos. If there is anyone still questioning whether she is going to pull this off, this is a real statement about just how ready she is.

In addition to Biles, 2017 world all-around champion Morgan Hurd is also set to compete, as are 2016 Olympic alternate and reigning national champion Ragan Smith and 2017 world silver vault and floor medalist Jade Carey. All three have been back in some shape or form this year, with Hurd winning the American Cup before going on to win the silver all-around medal at Pac Rims, Smith winning the silver at the meet in Jesolo, which she attended with her club, and Carey returning to competition at last weekend’s American Classic, where she debuted her elite bars set in addition to also showing off beam.

Emma Malabuyo, Smith’s club teammate who won the all-around, beam, and floor gold in her senior debut at Jesolo, will also compete here in her first U.S. appearance at the senior level. Both Smith and Malabuyo are pre-qualified to nationals — Smith thanks to her participation at worlds and Malabuyo from her score earned at the Junior Japan meet last autumn — so neither will need to use the U.S. Classic to qualify to nationals, but It’s important to note that others who competed internationally with their clubs this year, like Olivia Dunne at Jesolo and several WOGA gymnasts at Gymnix, won’t be able to use these meets to obtain their national qualifying scores.

Other senior national team members competing here who are already qualified for nationals include Jordan Chiles, this year’s vault and floor champion at Pac Rims, and Grace McCallum, the Pac Rims all-around champion. Not competing in Columbus are Margzetta Frazier, Maile O’Keefe, Trinity Thomas, and Ashton Locklear, with Locklear out due to injury this season, while the other three all qualified to nationals through world cup performances earlier in the season.

Like Malabuyo, there are also several current members of the junior national team who will be competing domestically for the first time as seniors, including Audrey Davis, Kara Eaker, and Adeline Kenlin. Eaker qualified to nationals at the American Classic, where Davis also competed in the all-around though fell short of reaching the required score, and instead qualified on two events, so she’ll need to improve on that performance in Columbus. Kenlin, meanwhile, got her nationals score at the April verification camp, which is also where Gabby Perea — who will miss this meet — qualified in her first all-around performance in over a year after suffering an ankle injury last spring.

2018 Pac Rims and Pan Ams junior all-around champion Jordan Bowers will headline the junior field at the U.S. Classic alongside all of her national teammates, including Pac Rims team members Kayla DiCello (who also won the junior title in last week’s American Classic) and Sunisa Lee, and Junior Pan Ams team members Leanne Wong, Tori Tatum, and JaFree Scott. Sydney Barros, a national team member who was expected to compete at Pan Ams until she was sidelined by an injury sustained at Jesolo, rounds out the junior national team members set to compete.

A full list of seniors and juniors to expect at the U.S. Classic — held July 28 in Columbus, Ohio — is below, as is the roster for the Hopes Championships, which will be held a day earlier. An asterisk (*) after a gymnast’s name denotes someone who has already qualified to the U.S. Championships, to be held in Boston this August.

SENIORS
Shania Adams, Buckeye* Stephanie Berger, Brestyan’s Simone Biles, World Champions Sloane Blakely, WOGA Luisa Blanco, WOGA Jade Carey, Arizona Sunrays* Jordan Chiles, Naydenov* Audrey Davis, WOGA* Olivia Dunne, ENA Paramus Kara Eaker, GAGE* Jaylene Gilstrap, Metroplex Olivia Hollingsworth, World Champions Morgan Hurd, First State*	Madeleine Johnston, Hill’s* Shilese Jones, Future* Adeline Kenlin, Iowa Gym-Nest* Emily Lee, West Valley Isabel Mabanta, Denton Emma Malabuyo, Texas Dreams* Grace McCallum, Twin City Twisters* Riley McCusker, MG Elite* Alyona Shchennikova, 5280* Ragan Smith, Texas Dreams* Deanne Soza, Texas Dreams Madelyn Williams, San Mateo*
JUNIORS
Ciena Alipio, West Valley* Sydney Barros, Texas Dreams* Annie Beard, Texas Dreams Love Birt, First State Skye Blakely, WOGA* Jordan Bowers, Solid Rock* Sophia Butler, Discover Kailin Chio, Gymcats Claire Dean, Head Over Heels Kayla DiCello, Hill’s* Amari Drayton, Olympia Hills Addison Fatta, Prestige Aleah Finnegan, GAGE* Delaney Fisher, Georgia Elite eMjae Frazier, Parkettes Gabbie Gallentine, Everest Elizabeth Gantner, JPAC Karis German, World Champions* Trista Goodman, Salcianu Elite Zoe Gravier, MG Elite* Olivia Greaves, MG Elite* Hannah Hagle, Texas East Maeve Hahn, First in Flight Selena Harris, Gymcats	Alexis Jeffrey, GAGE Kaytlyn Johnson, Denton Levi Jung-Ruivivar, Paramount Elite* Alonna Kratzer, Top Notch Sunisa Lee, Midwest* Lillian Lewis, San Mateo Kaliya Lincoln, Airborne Lilly Lippeatt, Cincinnati* Lauren Little, Everest Mallory Marcheli, Stars Houston Konnor McClain, Revolution* Sydney Morris, First State* Brenna Neault, Precision Lauren Pearl, Brestyan’s Katelyn Rosen, Mavericks Lyden Saltness, Midwest Abigail Scanlon, Capital JaFree Scott, GAGE* Ava Siegfeldt, World Class Victoria Smirnov, Shooting Stars Ui Soma, San Mateo* Calvary Swaney, First in Flight Tori Tatum, Twin City Twisters* Leanne Wong, GAGE*
HOPES 12-13
Skylar Draser, Infiniti Elite Savannah Goveia, Everest Ava Harper, Georgia All-Stars Riley Harris, World Champions Sydney Jelen, Legacy Elite CJ Keuneke, TIGAR Rayna Light, Golden City Amber Lowe, Everest Lily Pederson, Flips	Joscelyn Roberson, NE Texas Elite Jamison Sears, World Class Chavala Shepard, Hopes and Dreams Lundyn Vandertoolen, Olympus Clara Wallace, Xtreme Jaelah Warner, World Class Mahleea Werline, Aftershock Mya Witte, Genie’s Ella Zirbes, Flips
HOPES 10-11
Baylie Belman, WOGA Kylee Bromley, First State Carsyn Coleman, Precision Sophia Dennis, Capital Kaitlynd Kastl, Metroplex Myli Lew, San Mateo Zoey Molomo, Metroplex Camryn Nelson, Will-Moor Rafaela O’Neill, Airborne	Ella Kate Parker, NE Texas Elite Michelle Pineda, Metroplex Autumn Reingold, Olympica Hezly Rivera, ENA Paramus Ava San Jose, Paramount Elite Tiana Sumanasekera, San Mateo Lucy Tobia, Parkettes Kaela Yee, Leyva Alicia Zhou, Love Gymnastics

Article by Lauren Hopkins