Twenty minutes till start time. Here’s a more detailed look at the 24 women in today’s competition:
First group
• Sunisa Lee (USA)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 8th at 2019 WCh, silver in floor, bronze in uneven bars and 12th in beam. Won team event at 2019 WCh and at 2018 Pacific Rim Ch.
• Rebeca Andrade (BRA)
Finished 11th at 2016 OG. Gold at 2021 PanAm Ch, 63rd in 2018. In other events – gold in team event at 2021 PanAm Ch, silver in 2018. In 2019/20 season, gold in uneven bars and bronze in beam in Doha. She performed her individual floor exercise at the 2016 OG to a mix of songs from Beyonce, and has since become known as ‘Rebeyonce’ in Brazil.
• Jade Carey (USA)
Making Olympics debut. Finished 62nd at 2018 PanAm Ch. In other events – gold in team at 2019 WCh, silver in vault. Silver in vault and floor exercise at 2017 WCh. Gold in team, vault and floor exercise at 2018 PanAm Ch.
• Nina Derwael (BEL)
Finished 19th at 2016 OG. Finished 5th at 2019 WCh, 4th in 2018, 8th in 2017. Finished 7th at 2017 European Ch. In other events – finished 8th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in uneven bars at 2019 and 2018 WCh, bronze in 2017. Gold in uneven bars and silver in beam at 2018 European Ch. In October 2019, a gymnastics training hall was named after her in her birthplace of Sint-Truiden, Belgium.
• Vladislava Urazova (ROC)
Finished 25th at 2021 European Ch. Silver at 2019 Junior WCh. Placed 20th at 2018 Junior European Ch. In other events – gold in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in uneven bars at 2021 European Ch. Gold in uneven bars and team event at 2019 Junior WCh, bronze in vault. She took up the sport at age four. ‘Create a dream and it will create you.’
• Angelina Melnikova (ROC)
Finished 28th at 2016 OG. Bronze at 2019 WCh, 5th in 2018, 16th in 2017. Silver at 2021 European Ch, bronze in 2019, 27th in 2017. Gold at 2019 European Games. In other events – gold in team event at 2020 OG, silver in 2016. In 2018, she started her own leotard business. ‘It is still at an early stage. For now, it’s more of a brand new project than a real business.’
Second group
• Jessica Gadirova (GBR)
Bronze at 2021 European Ch. In other events – bronze in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in floor exercise at 2021 European Ch, silver in vault. Her twin sister Jennifer also competes for GBR at the 2020 OG. Her sporting idol is USA gymnast Simone Biles.
• Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos (FRA)
Finished 20th at 2019 WCh, 6th in 2018, 5th in 2017. Gold at 2019 European Ch, bronze in 2017. In other events – 6th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in beam at 2021 European Ch, silver in 2019. Gold in floor exercise at 2019 and 2018 European Ch. She left her birthplace of Martinique to move to continental France in 2013 and join the national training programme.
• Tang Xijing (CHN)
Silver at 2019 WCh. Finished 4th at 2018 YOG. In other events – finished 7th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in beam and bronze in uneven bars at 2018 YOG. She began to train in gymnastics at age four and her goal is to win a medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
• Jennifer Gadirova (GBR)
Finished 4th at 2020 American Cup. Finished 7th at 2019 Junior WCh. In other events – bronze in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in vault at 2019 Junior WCh. Her twin sister Jessica was selected alongside her to compete at the Olympics in Tokyo. Her mother introduced her and her twin sister to gymnastics because she felt they needed an outlet for their energy.
• Zsófia Kovács (HUN)
Finished 33rd at 2016 OG. Finished 30th at 2019 WCh, 20th (final) in 2018, 29th in 2017. Silver at 2017 European Ch. In other events – gold in vault and uneven bars at 2020 European Ch. Won beam and uneven bars at Koper in 2019. Won beam at Szombathely in 2018. Won beam and uneven bars at Turnier der Meister World Cup event in 2016.
• Lu Yufei (CHN)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 2nd at 2019 Asian Ch, winning uneven bars and finishing 6th in beam and 11th in floor. Also won team event at 2019 Asian Ch.
Third group
• Alice D’Amato (ITA)
Finished 31st at 2021 European Ch, 4th in 2019. In other events – finished 4th in team event at 2020 OG. Bronze in team event at 2019 WCh. Bronze in uneven bars at 2019 European Ch. Her twin sister Asia is competing for ITA at the 2020 OG. She was part of the team that ended Italy’s 69-year wait for a medal in the team event at the World Championships by taking bronze in 2019.
• Elisabeth Seitz (GER)
Finished 17th at 2016 OG, 10th in 2012. Finished 6th at 2019 WCh, 21st in 2018, 9th in 2017, 10th in 2015, 15th in 2013, 11th in 2011. Finished 5th at 2021 European Ch, silver in 2011. In other events – finished 9th in team event at 2020 OG. Silver in team event at 2015 European Games. She is a non-commissioned officer in the German Armed Forces.
• Carolann Héduit (FRA)
Making Olympic Games debut. Finished 12th (final) at 2021 European Ch. Was 19th at 2019 European Games. Finished 4th at 2019 Birmingham World Cup event. In other events – finished 3rd in uneven bars at 2018 Junior European Ch, 5th in team event.
• Mai Murakami (JPN)
Finished 14th at 2016 OG. Silver at 2018 WCh, 4th in 2017. Finished 4th at 2019 American Cup World Cup event, 1st in 2018 Tokyo WCup event. In other events – bronze in floor at 2018 WCh, gold in floor at 2017 WCh. Won Asian Ch team event in 2010.
• Brooklyn Moors (CAN)
Making OG debut. Finished 14th at 2019 WCh, 24th in 2018, 15th in 2017. In other events – gold in floor at 2019 PanAm Games and 2017 PanAm Championships. Won floor at Szombathely World Challenge Cup event in 2017, 3rd in vault.
• Roxana Popa (ESP)
Finished 42nd at 2019 WCh, 13th in 2014, 12th in 2013. Finished 6th at 2013 European Ch. In other events – finished 12th in team event at 2020 OG. Bronze in uneven bars at 2019 World Cup event in Szombathely. She missed nearly four years of competition from 2015-19 after undergoing three operations on her right knee. She was born in Romania and moved with her mother to Spain at age six.
Fourth group
• Martina Maggio (ITA)
Finished 6th at European Ch in 2021 and 2017. Placed 13th at 2015 European Youth Olympic Festival. In other events – finished 4th in team event at 2020 OG. Gold in vault at 2016 Junior European Ch. Her parents tried to sign her up for gymnastics classes at age three but she was so hyperactive the coaches asked her parents to wait another year.
• Jutta Verkest (BEL)
Finished 10th at 2021 European Ch. Placed 14th at 2019 European Youth Olympic Festival. In other events – finished 8th in team event at 2020 OG. She would have been too young to compete at the Olympics in Tokyo had they been scheduled in 2020. ‘The postponement of the games was positive for me.’
• Lieke Wevers (NED)
Placed 20th at 2016 OG. Bronze at 2015 European Games. Placed 8th at 2021 European Ch. In other events – 11th in team at 2020 OG. Twin sister Sanne won gold in beam at 2016 OG. Father Vincent is her coach. Took a four-month break to travel in 2017 but only returned to international competition in 2019. ‘I could no longer press a button to do what I wanted again. I just lost control of my body.’
• Kim Bui (GER)
Finished 31st at 2014 WCh, 41st in 2011. Finished 7th at 2021 European Ch and 5th at American Cup in 2019. Mother is from Vietnam and father is from Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Named German Female Gymnast of the Year in 2014.
• Giulia Steingruber (SUI)
Finished 10th at 2016 OG, 14th in 2012. Finished 18th at 2019 WCh, 7th in 2017, 5th in 2015. Gold at 2015 European Ch, 4th in 2013, 9th in 2011. Silver at 2015 European Games. In other events – gold in vault at 2021 and 2016 European Ch. She was presented with the Prize for Elegance at the 2015 WCh in Glasgow, Scotland. ‘On the big occasions I wear the earrings I got from my grandparents.’
• Lee Yun-seo (KOR)
Making OG debut. Finished 28th at 2019 WCh. In 2019 World Cup events – finished 7th in Tokyo, 9th In American Cup. Finished 13th at 2018 YOG. In other events – finished 5th in uneven bars at 2018 YOG.