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Simone Biles leads star-studded cast of American gymnasts as headliner of Gold Over America Tour’s “Lap of Honor”
Washington

Simone Biles leads star-studded cast of American gymnasts as headliner of Gold Over America Tour’s “Lap of Honor”



CNN

Some of the world’s best athletes trade vault, pommel horse and uneven bars for the stage in a dramatic fusion of sport and entertainment.

Led by 11-time Olympic medalist Simone Biles, a team featuring some of the biggest names in American gymnastics has embarked on a tour of the United States to deliver a “high-energy, high-caliber spectacle where gymnastics meets pop concert.”

The Gold Over America Tour features participants demonstrating a range of incredible aerial acrobatics and the athletic prowess that has seen several members of the group achieve fame on the Olympic stage.

Biles said in a press release that she was “so excited” and described the tour as “a victory lap of the USA.”

“It’s more of a celebration tour,” Biles told CNN’s Coy Wire ahead of the tour’s upcoming fourth show in San Jose on Saturday. “Not just for us gymnasts, but for the audience as well, because we’re all celebrating our big wins in Paris. To bring us all together in one place and tour America, there’s no better way to do that.”

She added that she couldn’t wait to “share the love and passion we have for gymnastics with everyone in the audience.”

Biles' teammate Jordan Chiles is part of the star cast.

Biles added three more Olympic gold medals to her tally in Paris earlier this year: she won the team and individual all-around competitions as well as the vault and took silver in the floor exercise.

The tour consists of 32 arena shows and began Monday in Oceanside, California, and then moved on to Phoenix on Wednesday, where cast members were greeted by Phoenix Mercury basketball stars Diana Taurasi, Brittney Griner and Kahleah Copper at the city’s Footprint Arena.

Biles and Co. visited Los Angeles on Friday, the next leg of the tour is scheduled for Saturday in San Jose.

The tour stops in cities such as Denver, Chicago, Houston, Atlanta and Orlando and ends in Detroit on November 3rd.

The lineup includes many of Biles’ national teammates, including Jordan Chiles – who is currently appealing a decision that cost her a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics – Jade Carey, Hezly Rivera and Joscelyn Roberson.

“We don’t have to be judged at every event!” Chiles told CNN’s Wire when asked about the biggest difference between the tour and competition. “There are no numbers, there’s no such thing. I think we just have fun and let our personalities come out. There are a lot of different personalities on this tour.”

The male participants of the US team include Paul Juda, Brody Malone and Frederick Richard.

Richard in action on the horizontal bar in Paris.

The Canadians Peng-Peng Lee and Ellie Black, the Frenchwoman Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos and the Dutchman Casimir Schmidt make up the international cast.

This is the second Gold Over America Tour that Biles has led. The first edition of the event took place in 2021 and was an all-women’s tour designed to inspire the next generation of female athletes. However, this year’s tour will include male athletes for the first time.

Biles described the camaraderie between the athletes as a “brotherhood and sisterhood,” adding that she was looking forward to working with gymnasts whose paths she might not normally cross.

The tour was dubbed by the acronym “GOAT,” most likely a nod to Biles’ legendary reputation in professional gymnastics. Warm-ups for a recent tour included a round of “goat yoga,” in which Biles and Chiles balanced a live goat on their backs.

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