Rio Rundown Day 1: Men's Qualifications

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Overview


The gymnastics competition kicked off this morning at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics with the first men’s qualification subdivision.

While reigning World champs Japan were in subdivision one, Brazil was the standout team. They fed off the electric energy in the arena--and there sure was a lot of it from the home crowd. Arthur Mariano and Sergio Sasaki were the leaders of the team and Brazil finished in sixth with a 268.078. Japan didn't perform with a fire in their eyes, but were still able to come out on top after subdivision one with a 269.294 -- falling to fourth by the end of the day. Six-time reigning world champion Kohei Uchimura led the team through the meet, however it was surely not his best showing. He fell on high bar -- missing a chance at event finals for an event in which he would’ve been a top medal contender.

In the second subdivision, we got to see Team USA who had a very impressive showing. Despite a rough rotation on pommel horse, they came out on top after subdivision two with a 270.405. Each member of the team will advance to a final, with Sam Mikulak and Chris Brooks heading to the all-around final. Great Britain's pommel horse was a highlight as always with big 15s from Max Whitlock and Louis Smith. They totaled a 268.670 as a team for fifth after qualifications. Nile Wilson had a strong all-around performance, while Whitlock struggled on vault and high bar, but still qualified to all-around finals with Wilson.

Also, Samir Ait Said took a horrifying fall on vault, sustaining a compound fracture in his leg and is undergoing surgery in Rio.

In, the last subdivision, we saw China and Russia have strong team and individual performances. China was lights out on rings and parallel bars with several athletes qualifying to event finals, but had some issues on floor with rough landings. They finished the day in first as a team with a 270.461. Russia's David Belyavskiy was the team's top all-arounder, leading Russia to a 269.612 to finish third after qualifications.

TEAM FINALS QUALIFIERS
1. CHN: 270.461
2. USA 270.405
3. RUS: 269.612
4. JPN 269.294
5. GBR 268.670
6. BRA 268.078
7. UKR: 263.002
8. GER: 261.518


USA Routine Of The Day


Mikulak's stunning floor routine received a 15.800, which was the highest floor score of the day.




Lineups & Predictions


This morning, the U.S. women's qualifications lineups were confirmed. Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, and Gabby Douglas will be competing all-around.

Vault
Hernandez, Douglas, Raisman, Biles

Uneven bars
Raisman, Biles, Douglas, Kocian

Balance beam
Douglas, Raisman, Hernandez, Biles

Floor exercise
Douglas, Hernandez, Biles, Raisman

The U.S. women will compete in the second session of qualifications tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. ET.


They Said It


Chris Brooks-
"This is what it's all about. The fans and family etc are greatly appreciated of course, but your brothers who were there shoulder to shoulder with you through the grind, the highs and lows of these past 4 years doing everything we could to make team USA stronger. We will step onto the field of play this afternoon hearts full with the spirit of every young man that has pushed himself to contribute to our national team strength. We thank you."



More social media posts from today here.


Related:
U.S. Women's Rio 2016 Qualifications Line-up Confirmed
'Grandma' Raisman at Top of Her Game for American Women
Hernandez and Smith Answer the Question, 'Will the Juniors Reach Rio?'
2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games Event Hub