US Women's Gymnastics 2016: Complete Analysis and Review of Team USA

The wait is finally over, and Team USA has been assembled to go to Rio and try to recapture the Olympic glory the women's gymnastics team had in 2012.

There will be some familiar faces such as Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas, as well as rising stars Simone Biles, Laurie Hernandez and Madison Kocian. The alternates are Ashton Locklear, MyKayla Skinner and Ragan Smith.

After two thrilling days of trials, Marta Karolyi and her committee deliberated and selected the five girls and the alternates who will pack their bags for Rio.

To a certain point, however, the trials were merely a formality. As Karolyi told David Barron of the Houston Chronicle earlier in the week, she had mostly made up her mind: "You never know if something could happen. But with my little guessing and provisions for the team that I am playing with, my impressions are pretty solid until this point."

There were not any major surprises in the selections. Read on as we take a look at the team and how its chances are shaping up in Rio. 

The Athletes

Gregory Bull/Associated Press

Simone Biles

Simone Biles is the best female gymnast in the world and is on her way to being known as one of the all-time greats. Mary Lou Retton, the all-around gold medalist at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, told Chros McDougall of TeamUSA.org that “she may be the most talented gymnast I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Biles was as close to a lock as possible heading into Day 2 of the Trials and cemented her spot on the team.

Aly Raisman

Aly Raisman may be the senior member of the team at age 22, but her previous Olympic experience is one of her strengths. She understands better than most the pressures associated with competing on the world’s greatest stage and was part of the gold-medal-winning overall team in London in 2012. In addition, she won the gold medal for her floor exercise that year. 

Laurie Hernandez

The youngest of the team members, Hernandez celebrated her 16h birthday in June. She finished third in the P&G Championships behind Biles and Raisman and, after an impressive showing at the Trials, has proved she has the maturity and talent to be a major part of the Olympic team.

Despite not receiving high scores in her early events on Sunday night, she pulled it together and ended on a high note with a spectacular balance beam performance. 

Gabby Douglas

Douglas proved on Sunday night that she has the heart of a champion and was able to put Friday's struggles behind her. While her performances were not flawless, she showed that she could weather the bumps in the road and is still one of the fiercest competitors in the sport.

"

After 2 events, Gabby Douglas has so far answered the Olympic question this way: Send me to Rio. 15.250 on UB pic.twitter.com/5nS1X2hWMR

— Nick McCarvel (@NickMcCarvel) July 11, 2016"

Madison Kocian

Madison Kocian cemented her spot on the team with an impressive performance on the uneven bars. After Friday night, she was quietly confident and told journalist Nick McCarvel that she was maintaining a positive attitude. 

"

I think things went really well tonight. ... I was really confident coming into this. I was trying to keep the same positive attitude that I had at nationals. I’m trying to do the same routines that I’ve been doing in training because that has been going really well. I’m trusting in my training.

"

Weaknesses

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Inconsistency

As brilliant as they have been, several members of the team have experienced bumps in the road this year. At the Olympics, there will be no room for a bad day, and each member will need to be ready to bring her best in order to live up to the lofty expectations. In particular, Gabby Douglas has been inconsistent this year, and the Douglas circa London, 2012 will have to show up in Rio.

Even the brilliant Simone Biles did not have a flawless trip at the Trials—she fell off the balance beam in a rare hiccup. 

Uneven bars

The uneven bars were a struggle for some of the best athletes at the Trials. This could be the one event where the girls do not dominate in Rio. Kocian put an exclamation point on her performance at the Trials with a 15.900 score on the uneven bars and will need to step up in a big way in Rio. Douglas also turned in a terrific performance on the uneven bars on Sunday night and may be the key to the team's overall success.

Strengths

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Experience

With returning veterans Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas, experience could give the women an advantage. The Olympic experience can be overwhelming, and their valuable (and successful) time at the 2012 London Games will make them a grounding force on the team and mentors to the younger competitors.

Sheer talent

This may be the most talented group of athletes that Team USA has ever assembled in women’s gymnastics. These ladies have proved themselves to be some of the best in the world already and will head to Rio with a diverse group of specialties that will make them a powerhouse team to watch.

How They Compare to Past USA Teams

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At London in 2012, the USA women’s team was known as the "Fab Five" and was a dominant force to be reckoned with at the Olympics. This year, the team is poised for another successful trip and has assembled a strong roster of talent to defend its gold-medal title.

The United States has continued to develop as a strong player in the gymnastics events at the Olympics and made a big splash in 2012. But, the road to gold has been a long time in the making and goes back over 20 years to the "Magnificent Seven" who put Team USA on the map in gymnastics in Atlanta in 1996.

Amanda Borden told USA Today about how they surpassed expectations: "The world of gymnastics had always been dominated by everybody but the U.S. We had been silver and bronze for years at world championships and Olympics, so I think that’s what was expected and we shocked everybody."

In addition to some fresh new talent, there are some veterans returning for another shot at Olympic glory. Those veterans, Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas, were key members of the gold-medal-winning team in 2012 and will again serve as anchors for Team USA. 

While the 2012 Team USA had an extraordinary run at the London Games and was one of the most successful teams in Olympic history, it looks like the 2016 team could be even stronger. While there was magic in 2012, there is one thing that that team did not have—Simone Biles. She is going to be one of the brightest stars in any sport in Rio.

Rio Outlook

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

In addition to being a strong contender for the overall team gold medal, the women's team has several athletes who will be favorites to take home some serious individual hardware as well.

Simone Biles, regarded as the best gymnast in the world, is a force to be reckoned with on the balance beam and in the floor exercise. Her main competition may come from her fellow teammates, especially Aly Raisman, who turned in a spectacular performance on the beam on Day 2 of the Trials. Biles figures to be an individual medal contender in all the events except potentially the uneven bars, her weakest event. 

Laurie Hernandez, a rising star in the sport, has shown brilliance on the balance beam and could be the main opposition for Biles. Despite not having the most successful time on Day 2, she had turned in such a strong performance on the first day that she had some wiggle room. There will be no such room in Rio, but she should be even sharper and more polished by then. 

In both the floor exercise and the balance beam, there is a legitimate possibility that Team USA will sweep the medals and dominate the podium.