Simone Biles fell short of winning a fourth gold medal at these Olympic Games in Monday’s balance beam competition.
The operative word being “fell.”
Half the event’s eight competitors fell including Biles on an afternoon at Bercy Arena that ranged from uninspiring to dreadful.
Biles fell off the beam late in a routine that appeared headed toward her seventh career Olympic gold medal and finished fifth with a score of 13.100. Suni Lee, also of the U.S., was sixth, also at 13.100.
Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, runner-up to Biles in the all-around event and Monday’s co-favorite with the American, managed to stay on the beam but missed several connections in a safe routine and ended up fourth at 13.933.
Italy’s Alice D’Amato won the gold medal at 14.366, followed by China’s Yaquin Zhou (14.100) and Italy’s Manila Esposito (14.000).
Biles had earned gold in the team competition, the all-around and the vault in Paris. The floor exercise remains.
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