by Daniel Johnson
June 30, 2024
Frederick Richard became the first American man to medal at the World Championships in 2023.
The Men’s United States gymnastics team appears for the first time in nearly two decades to be poised to return from an Olympic competition with a medal. Led by Frederick Richard, who became the first American man to medal at the World Championships in 2023, the team is brimming with confidence ahead of the Paris Olympic Games.
As The Athletic reports, Richard, in particular, capped a brilliant performance at the U.S. Gymnastics Olympic Trials with a declaration post-performance. Richard told the crowd, “What can you expect to see from me and the team in Paris?” Richard asked the crowd after securing his spot, before providing an answer to his rhetorical question: “Medals. You can expect to see some medals in Paris.”
Richard, as People Magazine reported, also told reporters that he believes aiming for gold medals will ensure that the team leaves with medals, rather than just aiming for bronze or silver. “I knew whatever team was chosen is a deadly team, and I stand to say that now that I actually see it — this medal, it’s like, we shouldn’t be aiming for just a medal. We should be aiming for gold,“ Richard said. “And we’re going to land on something. That’s how I feel.”
Unlike the selection process on the women’s side and in other Olympic sports like basketball, men’s gymnastics is more similar to track and field, where the numbers ultimately determine who gets the slots on the team. However, unlike track and field, the math governing men’s gymnastics is a little more complicated. The top three scores from each day of competition in the U.S. Championships and Olympic trials are run, and then the top four scores from those competitions are run, which resulted in Richard, Brody Malone, Paul Juda, Asher Hong, and Stephen Nedoroscik getting the invitations to join the national team, with Khoi Young and Shane Wiskus named as traveling alternates.
The math may be cold and mathematically impartial, but the decisions still have to be delivered by a human, the Men’s Gymnastics program director, Brett McClure. McClure told The Athletic, “You’re not human if you don’t have those types of emotions for these incredible athletes. Every athlete put it all on the line, have been training their entire lives for this. It’s absolutely gut-wrenching. It’s horrible for the ones who don’t quite make it, and it’s great for the ones that do.”
McClure continued, “The math locked it. That’s why the team is what it is.” When the outlet pressed him on if it was the best team, McClure said, “This is a great team. Based on the results from two competitions, these are the guys that are the best. For this process, absolutely.”
RELATED CONTENT: Eat Like an Olympian: Simone Biles
