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Simone Biles is back in action on Thursday in the Bercy Arena as the American superstar tries to win back the prestigous individual all-around title she first claimed in Rio eight years ago.
US teammate Suni Lee won gold in Tokyo after Biles bowed out suffering the twisties, and Lee may well be Biles’ stiffest competition for the crown.
Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade is another contender, having impressed earlier this week as Brazil won the first team bronze in their history. Andrade won all-around silver in Tokyo and is the reigning Olympic champion on the vault.
Biles earnt the fifth Olympic gold of her career as she helped USA to victory in the team event on Tuesday night, and is now looking to restore the biggest prize in gymnastics to her collection once more.
How does the all-around final work?
The top 24 gymnasts from qualification advanced to tonight’s final, with a maximum of two athletes per nation.
Scores start again from scratch in the final, so Biles’ impressive performance in qualifying does not give her any advantage here.
Each gymnast performs one routine on each of the four apparatuses: vault, beam, uneven bars and floor. Those scores are added together to produce a cumulative total, and the highest total wins gold.
When is Biles competing?
In Paris, the women’s gymnastics started on 28 July and concludes on 5 August. Biles has qualified for the four apparatus finals.
Thursday 1 August – Women’s all-around final:
The women’s all-around final begins at 5:15pm BST (6:15pm CET and 12:15 ET).
Saturday 3 August – Women’s vault final:
The women’s vault final begins at begins at 3:20pm BST (4:20pm CET and 10:20am ET).
Sunday 4 August – Women’s uneven bar final:
The women’s uneven bars final begins at 2:40pm BST (3:40pm CET and 9:40am ET).
Monday 5 August – Women’s balance beam finals:
The women’s balance beam finals begins at 11:38am BST (12:38pm CET and 6:38am ET).
Monday 5 August – Women’s floor exercise finals:
The women’s floor exercise final begins at 1:23am BST (2:23pm CET and 8:23am ET).
How many Olympic medals has Biles won?
After making her Olympic debut at the Rio Games in 2016, Biles had already secured four gold medals and one bronze medal by the age of 19. And she added her fifth gold with US victory in the team event on Tuesday.
She now has a combined 38 world championship and Olympic medals and, with her third appearance at the Summer Games fast approaching, there is perhaps even more to come from one of America’s greatest athletes of all time.
