Jordan Chiles and Emma Malabuyo of UCLA gymnastics are both set to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics for the United States and the Philippines, respectively. The event marks Chiles’ second straight Olympic Games and Malabuyo’s first.

As the pair prepare to compete on the world’s biggest sporting stage, expectations are high. Will Chiles live up to the standard she’s set with her consistency this year? What can Malabuyo achieve at her first Games? The Daily Bruin Sports gymnastics beat has the answers in a 2024 Olympics gymnastics preview.

Aaron Doyle
Assistant Sports editor

Team USA
Prediction: Gold

Without a doubt, Team USA should depart Paris as gold medalists.

It has been the most dominant force in gymnastics since the Soviet era ended in 1991.

The United States women have won the last seven team titles at the World Championships – often by a margin of multiple points. In 2023, the U.S. edged out Brazil by more than two points to place first in the team final.

Led by Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast of all time, Team USA looks unstoppable. Joining Biles is the reigning Olympic all-around champion, Sunisa Lee. With Biles and Lee both returning to the Games, it marks the first time that two Olympic all-around champions are on the same team at the Olympics.

Other top contenders include Brazil and China, but neither are on the same level as the U.S. Despite winning the team silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the Americans should cruise their way to the gold in Paris.

Jordan Chiles
Prediction: Floor qualification 

Chiles reached perfection on floor in the NCAA four times.

But elite gymnastics is different. Since the introduction of the open-ended scoring system in 2006, perfection has been elusive.

With her Beyoncé-inspired floor routine, Chiles notched three straight 14.100 performances this year. She competes one of the most difficult floor routines in the world, starting with a sky-high full twisting double layout, an H-rated skill in the code of points. Her 6.0 difficulty score ranks in the top five internationally but only the top four within the U.S.

Only two gymnasts from each country can qualify for each event final. With Olympic floor champions Biles and Jade Carey on the U.S. team, qualifying for the event’s final will be difficult. While Chiles is strong on all four events, her best chance of qualifying for an individual event final lies on the floor.

Biles is a presumed lock for the floor final with six world titles and the 2016 Olympic title. Carey is the reigning Olympic champion in the event, but Chiles has beat her former Pac-12 competitor since their last Olympics.

At the 2022 World Championships, Chiles bested Carey in the floor final to take silver. Carey shows high difficulty, but she struggles with the artistic components of her exercise.

Chiles’ expressive personality is on display during her floor routine. With her high-difficulty performances and clean execution, she will be a favorite for the final.

Emma Malabuyo
Prediction: All-around qualification 

Malabuyo has competed in the all-around at international competitions one time since 2019.

In her first all-around appearance in five years, Malabuyo became the first Filipina gymnast to win a medal in the event at the Asian Championships. Two days later, she became the first Filipina gymnast to win the floor title at the same tournament.

While her all-around experience has been slim since her days on the U.S. national team, her abilities still hold up internationally. Malabuyo’s 50.398 at the Asian Championships would have placed her 43rd at last year’s World Championships – 19 places short of an all-around final berth. Prior to the competition, Malabuyo spent just two weeks preparing – yet still managed to punch her ticket to Paris.

Three months later, Malabuyo has had time to put some serious training behind her. The NCAA All-American teased upgrades to her beam routine on social media, bringing back her old skills such as a standing Arabian and a double tuck dismount on beam.

Malabuyo will also include a double layout in her floor routine – another upgrade breaking down the barrier between her and the all-around final.

If she continues to pack in the difficulty, Malabuyo will qualify for the all-around final.

Samantha Garcia
Daily Bruin staff

Team USA
Prediction: Gold 

The Olympic gold medal is Team USA’s to lose.

The U.S. will seek to reclaim the title for the first time since 2016 after earning silver behind the Russian Olympic Committee in 2021 – now with Biles back in action after she pulled out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics because of a gymnastics mental block known as the “twisties.” Her absence was a major loss that forced Team USA to quickly recuperate, resulting in an unexpected all-around performance from Chiles.

In addition to Biles’ experience and talent, Team USA’s roster boasts three other Olympic veterans. Reigning Olympic all-around champion Lee, reigning Olympic floor champion Carey and two-time Olympian Chiles will join Biles and newcomer Hezly Rivera in Paris. With a combined total of 12 Olympic medals, the squad’s experience will be advantageous for Team USA.

A nearly identical team from the Tokyo Olympics has a chance to seek redemption from the last Games and bring home the gold medal.

Jordan Chiles
Prediction: Vault qualification 

It is going to be a tight race to make it out of the qualifications rounds.

Biles headlines as the favorite to take a spot in every final. Assuming she meets those expectations, only one spot remains for an American to make the all-around final. Lee, the reigning Olympic all-around champion, sits as one of the top contenders, but Chiles has proven to be more consistent across all four events this year. At the 2024 Olympic Trials, Chiles outscored Lee on both vault and floor, but Lee won the all-around race by more than two-tenths of a point.

Chiles would need to have her best performance on all four events to beat Lee. Given the slim probability that this will happen, Chiles has a better chance at qualifying for the vault or floor finals.

In this case, Chiles would compete against reigning Olympic floor champion Carey – who beat Chiles on the event by just .0250 at the Olympic trials. On vault, Carey beat Chiles by .224.

The pair tied for first place on floor in their last two collegiate competitions against each other, but Chiles beat Carey by a slim margin on vault at the national semifinals in 2023. A year removed from the competition, this proves that Chiles is capable of a victory against Carey.

With Carey at her heels, Chiles’ best chance at a spot in the finals will be on vault.

Emma Malabuyo
Prediction: No event finals 

Although Emma Malabuyo is one of the strongest gymnasts on the Philippines’ national team, making it out of the qualification rounds will be difficult.

Qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics seemed elusive for Malabuyo after she fell short of a qualifying spot through the World Cup series. She finally punched her ticket at the Asian Championships in May after winning bronze in the all-around final. In the floor final, Malabuyo picked up the gold medal after scoring a 13.300.

Her best shot at a spot in the finals is on beam or the all-around, where she will have to place in the top eight and top 24, respectively. Unlike Chiles, her fellow Bruin, Malabuyo should not be affected by the two-per-country rule, boosting her chances at making a final.

Considering her lack of experience on the Olympic stage and nearly missing an Olympic qualification entirely, Malabuyo’s chances of making an event finals are low.