US Women's Gymnastics 2016 Olympic Trials: Meet Team USA's Rio Hopefuls

They called the 2012 gold medal-winning American women's gymnasts "the fierce five."

The next five will be picked this weekend to represent the United States, and the only real debate might just be what to call them.

The Americans, who are the favorites to win gold in Brazil, are led by four-time world champion Simone Biles and two members of the 2012 champs, Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman. The other two roster spots are expected to go to Laurie Hernandez and Madison Kocian.

"I think they proved themselves very well," national team coordinator Martha Karolyi told the Team USA website following the P&G championships in late June. "But we have to see them one more time."

Let's meet the squad and the ladies who will be challenging for alternate spots.

Event Info

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The women's Olympic trials will take place on Friday and Sunday in San Jose, California. The telecast on NBC will begin at 9 p.m. ET on Friday and 8:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.

The national team will be announced shortly after the conclusion of Sunday's finals.

The Favorites

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Simone Biles

Biles is already one of the most accomplished gymnasts ever, and she hasn't even competed in the Olympics yet. You could call her the Michael Jordan of gymnastics, but that wouldn't even be fair. Some people might argue that LeBron James or Wilt Chamberlain are better than Jordan. No one seems to be arguing that Biles has an equal.

Mary Lou Retton, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist, told the New Yorker that Biles is the "most talented gymnast I've seen in my life."

Biles has won three straight world championships, the first ever to do so. She also has won four straight national championships, almost as impressive as her international resume considering the strength of U.S. gymnastics. She's expected to run away with the all-around gold medal at the Olympics, and she's also the defending world champion in the balance beam and floor exercise.

Since she didn't compete in London in 2012, the 19-year-old isn't a household name outside of the gymnastics world—yet. By the end of the Olympics, you'll be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn't know who she is.

Gabby Douglas 

The gold-medal all-around champion of the 2012 Olympics is headed back to the games and will once again be a contender in the all-around. 

Biles is the clear favorite, but Douglas is one of the gymnasts who should battle for silver. She wasn't on top of her game at the recent P&G championships, finishing fourth in the all-around, but that shouldn't deter her hopes. Last year at the same championships, she finished fifth and then responded by finishing second to Biles in the all-around at the world championships. 

"Gabby, she has place for improvement, but I think she knows. I think it was good for her to see that we need to up it a tiny bit," national team coordinator Martha Karolyi told USA Today after the P&G championships. "She is the gymnast who in a fairly short time can gain much better consistency, so I trust that she will be in a better place in the trials."

Thanks to her performance in London four years ago, Douglas enters these games as the biggest celeb on the American team. Case in point: She has 811,000 Twitter followers.

Aly Raisman

Raisman is the best gymnast in the world not named Simone Biles.

Raisman is entering the Olympics on a high after struggling through 2015. She did not make the all-around final in the world championships last October, a surprise considering she finished tied for third in the all-around in the 2012 London Games, missing out on bronze due to a tiebreaker. She took two years off from competition following the last Olympics. 

At 22, Raisman is old for the sport but seems to be entering the prime of her career. She finished second in the all-around at the recent P&G championships. Her specialty is the floor exercise, where she won gold in London. 

Most memorable from her routine then might not have been her performance, but the reaction of her parents in the stands. Let's just say they really get into the routine. 

Raisman's other claim to fame is competing in Dancing with the Stars, where she made the finals of the show in 2013 and finished fourth.

Laurie Hernandez

Hernandez is the fast-charging newcomer on the U.S. team. The 16-year-old, still two years shy of graduating high school, finished third in the all-around and also won bronze in the balance beam, floor exercise and uneven bars at her first-ever P&G championships at the senior level. 

There may have been some question as to whether the young Hernandez could handle the pressure at the senior level, but she proved herself at the U.S. championships. Her versatility makes her a no-brainer to be one of the five headed to Brazil. 

"I think it’s important that the girls impress us, and if I say 'Wow,' it means I really like it. It’s a positive point for Laurie," Karolyi said after the P&G championships, referencing her "wow" response to Hernandez's floor routine. "She did a very good job. She handled the pressure very well. She is a newcomer at the senior level and competed as a model gymnast; that’s what we needed to know."

Next Woman Up

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Maggie Nichols

These six gymnasts will battle for the final spot. The team's two alternates will likely come from this group. 

Madison Kocian

Kocian is the favorite to get the fifth and final spot on the Olympic team, but her spot is the one that is at least somewhat up in the air. 

She had to prove herself in the last month after fracturing her tibia in February. She showed she's back at the P&G championships by winning silver in the uneven bars, the event in which she finished tied for first at the last world championships. Her strength in the uneven bars is one reason she could grab that final fifth spot. 

Maggie Nichols

Nichols appeared destined for a spot on the Olympic team until she tore her meniscus in April. The gymnast, from Little Canada, Minnesota, has the resume of an Olympian. She won a bronze on the floor exercise at the world championships last year and was a silver medalist in the all-around at the American Cup in March, finishing behind Gabby Douglas. Unfortunately, the untimeliness of her knee injury could end up costing her a chance to compete in Brazil. 

Ragan Smith

The 15-year-old is one of the rising stars in the sport. She finished eighth in the all-around at the P&G championships and fifth in the balance beam, her specialty. She took the place of Nichols at the Pacific Rim Championships in April and won gold in the balance beam. 

Ashton Locklear

Locklear competes in the balance beam and uneven bars. She could earn an alternate spot because of her talent on the uneven bars. She finished in first place in the uneven bars at the P&G championships and also won gold earlier this year at the Pacific Rim Championships.

MyKayla Skinner

Skinner, 19, is one of the veterans competing for a spot. Her all-around abilities make her an attractive option as an alternate. She finished 10th in the all-around at the P&G championships, where she also finished second in vault and third in the floor exercise.

Amelia Hundley

Hundley was less than a point shy of finishing fifth in the all-around at the P&G championships, which means she's just barely on the outside looking in at earning one of the five coveted spots. She finished sixth in the all-around. That speaks to her all-around strength, but unlike some of her competitors for the alternate spots, there's not one event where she's really shined. Her strength in the past has been the floor. She won a silver medal on the floor at the 2015 Pan American Games. 

Rest of the Field

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Christina Desiderio

Desiderio, 15, is one of the youngest gymnasts going to trials. She earned the bid with a solid showing at the recent P&G championships, finishing tied for sixth in the floor exercise.

Brenna Dowell

Dowell, 20, is one of the few members of the team who has already started college. She attended Oklahoma for a year, helping the team finish third at the 2015 NCAA championships and then took this past year off to try to make a run at the Olympics. Her specialty is the floor exercise, where she won a silver medal at the Pacific Rim Championships.

Rachel Gowey

Gowey had a solid showing at the P&G championships, finishing ninth in the all-around and fifth in the uneven bars. The Urbandale, Iowa, native previously won gold in the uneven bars at the 2015 Pan American Games. 

Emily Schild

Schild began competing on the national team in 2015 and helped the Americans win the team title at the 2015 Pan American Games. She finished 13th in the all-around at the recent P&G championships.