By Karen Braun
NAPERVILLE, Illinois (Reuters) – Four-times Olympic gold medallist Simone Biles is usually the favourite for any vault competition she enters but Brazilian Rebeca Andrade looks to be pulling out all the stops for the chance to retain her title in Paris.
Andrade was victorious in the Tokyo vault final, which Biles missed, and has been training vaults ahead of the Paris Games that could get her past the American, who is seeking her own redemption after battling a mental block three years ago.
Video surfaced this week of Andrade training a triple-twisting Yurchenko vault, which has a round-off, back-handspring entry. Many top women at the international elite level compete the double-twisting Yurchenko, which carries a 5.0 difficulty score.
A triple-twisting Yurchenko could offer Andrade 5.8 in difficulty, well below the 6.4 that 27-year-old Biles earns for her Yurchenko double pike, which she got named the Biles II at last year’s World Championships.
No woman has successfully competed the triple Yurchenko in international competition, though North Korean gymnast Hong Un-jong was the first to attempt it at the 2016 Games.
The difficulty levels Biles brings to competition on vault and floor exercise typically offer her a cushion against other gymnasts, allowing for the occasional error.
Andrade’s upgrades could set up a nail-biting vault final in Paris, especially if the 25-year-old brings out another skill she is rumoured to be trying.
Although gymnasts try to prepare for big tournaments away from prying eyes, there are suggestions the twice world vault champion may also be training a Cheng vault with an extra full twist that would likely match the Biles II difficulty of 6.4.
The Cheng incorporates a round-off, half-on entry with a one-and-a-half twisting flip to finish.
An Andrade vault gold with Biles in second would not be unprecedented.
At last year’s Worlds, Biles fell on her Yurchenko double pike in the final, losing to Andrade by two-tenths of a point. A fall is a one-point deduction.
However, Biles would have edged Andrade despite the fall had she not incurred a mandatory half-point deduction for her coach standing on the podium as a safety measure. Lately, Biles has been performing this vault without her coach present.
This year, Biles has been competing the 5.6-valued Cheng and the Biles II while Andrade has been performing the Cheng and double Yurchenko, a combined difficulty 1.4 points lower than Biles.
Difficulty aside, Andrade’s strength is execution, and she often earns higher marks here versus her competitors, including Biles. Regardless of the outcome in Paris, Andrade has always made clear her respect for Biles, the most decorated gymnast in history.
“We maintain this relationship of admiration,” Andrade said of Biles in an interview with Brazilian Marie Claire earlier this year.
(Reporting by Karen Braun, editing by Peter Rutherford)
