2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships

Biles Shows Highest Difficulty & Execution At U.S. Gymnastics Championships

Biles Shows Highest Difficulty & Execution At U.S. Gymnastics Championships

Simone Biles showed the world last weekend that she is still the best in the field at the 2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships.

Aug 22, 2018 by Justine Kelly
Bars | Simone Biles

Simone Biles showed the world last weekend that she is still the best in the field, winning the all-around and every individual event title at the 2018 U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Over the two days of competition, Biles showed off her incredible power and execution, and she not only has her skills back from Rio, but she’s even upgraded on bars, beam, and floor. 

We took a look at the top difficulty and execution scores from the two days of competition, and it’s no surprise that Biles takes the top spot on both on nearly every event. She had top difficulty on every event, and the only events where she didn’t have the top execution were bars and floor.

Take a look at the full breakdown below, where we list the top three gymnasts for difficulty and execution on each event, looking at the two days of competition individually and taking top scores from both.

Vault 

On vault, Biles had the two most difficult vaults — a Cheng (6.0 D-score) and an Amanar (5.8 D-score). Fellow competitor Jordan Chiles also competed an Amanar to tie Biles for the second most difficult vault. 

When it comes to execution, Biles swept the top three E-scores. She hit a massive 9.800 for her Amanar on the second day of competition, a 9.650 on the same vault on the first day of competition, and a 9.600 on her Cheng on both days. 

Check out her incredible Cheng from Day 1:

Video via USA Gymnastics

Difficulty Rankings:

1. Biles - 6.0
2T. Biles - 5.8
2T. Chiles - 5.8

Execution Rankings:

1. Biles - 9.800 (Day 2 Amanar)
2. Biles - 9.650 (Day 1 Amanar)
3. Biles - 9.600 (Day 1 & 2 Cheng)

Uneven Bars

On bars, Biles tied with Alyona Shchennikova for the highest D-score, having upgraded her routine significantly since the 2016 Olympics. She added in a Van Leeuwen, a new connection of Maloney to Tkatchev, and a huge double double dismount. Shchennikova’s routine also has a lot going on, especially in connections, such as her inbar 1/1 to Komova to Tkatchev, and her Ricna to Pak to stalder shaposh half. Following closely behind Biles and Shchennikova’s 6.2 D-score is Morgan Hurd and junior Sunisa Lee, both of whom compete with a 6.1.

On the execution side, the crown goes to Riley McCusker, who hit a big 8.800 E-score on the second day of competition. She has beautiful form on this event, hitting every handstand and keeping her toes pointed, even during her many difficult release moves. 

Check out her routine below: 

Video via USA Gymnastics

Following McCusker was Sloane Blakely, who also has great form on the event, although her D-score is a little low at 3.900. She hit an 8.750 E-score on the first day of competition. Trinity Thomas and juniors Lee, Kayla DiCello, and Konnor McClain all tie for third with an 8.700.

Difficulty Rankings: 

1T. Biles - 6.2
1T. Shchennikova - 6.2
3T. Hurd - 6.1
3T. Lee - 6.1

Execution Rankings:

1. McCusker - 8.8
2. Blakely - 8.75
3T. Thomas - 8.700
3T. Lee - 8.700 (Day 1)
3T. DiCello - 8.700 (Day 1&2)
3T. McClain - 8.700 (Day 1)

Balance Beam 

Once again, Biles tops the rankings for difficulty on beam with a 6.5 D-score. She is followed by Kara Eaker, who hit a 6.4 D-score on Day 1, and Sophia Butler, who hit a 6.0 D-score on Day 2. Eaker’s routine has some great connections and unique skills, starting from her switch leap mount which she connects into a ring leap. We also love her switch ring to back handspring to switch half to Korbut. Her difficulty score has potential to be even higher if she connects everything that she intends to. 

Check out her routine below:

Video via USA Gymnastics

Butler also has some high difficulty in her routine, including her series which consists of a piked full. She nailed this skill every time, including in warmups and during podium training. 

On the execution side, Biles also takes the top mark after she hit an 8.700 E-score on the first day of competition. That E-score is followed by a tie between McCusker and Thomas, who both scored 8.650 during the competition. 

Difficulty Rankings:

1. Biles - 6.5
2. Eaker - 6.4 (Day 1)
3. Butler - 6.0 (Day 2)

Execution Rankings:

1. Biles - 8.7 (Day 1)
2T. McCusker - 8.65 (Day 2)
2T. Thomas - 8.65 (Day 1)

Floor Exercise

Unsurprisingly, Biles had the most difficult floor routine, totaling a 6.7 D-score. Her routine included upgraded tumbling since her time in Rio — opening with a Moors (an I skill), followed by a front full through to full twisting double back, a Biles to stag jump, and ending with a double double. Her D-score far surpassed her competitors’, with Carey in second with a 6.3, and Thomas in third with a 5.9. 

In execution, Biles also did well, tying for second for the highest E-score achieved in the competition — an 8.350, not counting the neutral deductions she incurred for going out of bounds. She tied Hurd, who also achieved the same E-score for her floor routine on Day 2. 

Junior National Champion, Leanne Wong, had the highest E-score on floor during the competition, totaling an 8.550 on the first day of competition. Wong has incredible from, which you can see from the moment she even steps on to the apparatus. 

Check out her routine below:

Video via USA Gymnastics

Difficulty Rankings:

1. Biles - 6.7 (Day 1)
2. Carey - 6.3
3. Thomas - 5.9 (Day 1)

Execution Rankings:

1. Wong - 8.550 (Day 1)
2T. Biles - 8.35 (Day 1 - 0.6 ND)
2T. Hurd - 8.35 (Day 2)