How long will Uncle Sam's reign last

EVER since the fall of the Berlin Wall ended communist Europe's dominance of women's artistic gymnastics, the United States has been one of the sport's most formidable competitors. During the past three summer Olympics before Rio de Janeiro, its athletes won the all-around individual gold medal each time, and finished no worse than silver in the team event. But never before had America dominated the discipline as it did this week. In a performance that recalled the unquestioned supremacy of the old Soviet Union'which won every Olympic team competition it entered from 1952-92'the United States' 'final five', whose nickname stems both from 2016 being the last Olympics for their coach and the last one where teams will have five members, scored a whopping 184.897, beating the Russian runners-up by a massive 8.2 points. For comparison, America's 2012 margin of victory was 5.1 points, and China's in 2008 was 2.4. The United States also cleaned up in the individual all-around field: not only did the diminutive Simone Biles (pictured, right) cruise to a gold in performances widely hailed as the greatest gymnastics display ever, but her...Continue reading
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