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Team USA's Suni Lee wins Olympic gold in gymnastics all-around

Team USA's Suni Lee performs her floor routine in the women's all-around individual final at the 2020 Summer Games on Thursday at Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo. Photo by Mike Theiler/UPI
1 of 8 | Team USA's Suni Lee performs her floor routine in the women's all-around individual final at the 2020 Summer Games on Thursday at Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo. Photo by Mike Theiler/UPI | License Photo

July 29 (UPI) -- Team USA's Suni Lee claimed the title of world's best all-around women's gymnast with a victory in the individual competition at the 2020 Summer Games on Thursday at Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo.

With star teammate Simone Biles watching on from the sideline, Lee posted the top score in uneven bars, second-best in balance beam and floor, and fourth-best on vault to win gold.

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Rebeca Andrade placed second in the competition to claim the first Olympic medal ever for Brazil in women's gymnastics. Angelina Melnikova of the Russian Olympic Committee claimed the bronze.

Team USA's Jade Carey tied the best score on floor and was second-best on vault, but finished eighth in the competition.

Lee ended the night with a total score of 57.433. Andrade posted a 57.298, but missed her chance to overtake Lee late in the competition. Andrade landed two tumbling passes out of bounds on her final rotation on floor, a deduction of -0.4 points.

With Thursday's win, Lee continued Team USA's streak of five-consecutive Olympics with a gold medal in the women's all-around individual final. Biles won the event at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro. Gabby Douglas won gold for Team USA in the same event at the 2012 Summer Games in London.

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Nastia Liukin claimed gold in the all-around in 2008. Carly Patterson won the event in 2004.

Lee also helped Team USA win silver in the women's all-around team final Tuesday in Tokyo, despite Biles' early withdrawal from the competition.

She teamed up with Grace McCallum and Jordan Chiles to finish second in that event, behind the Russian Olympic Committee. Great Britain finished third. Lee tied for the best score on bars and was second on beam in the team final.

Biles, who withdrew from two events to focus on her mental health, told reporters Tuesday that she hopes to return and "compete in a couple more events."

The women's gymnastics competition continues with the women's vault final Sunday in Tokyo. That event airs at 4:45 a.m. EDT Sunday on Peacock.

Team USA's men's gymnastics team did not medal through its first two competitions. The men placed fifth in Mondays' all-around team final.

Americans Brody Malone and Sam Mikulak placed 10th and 12th, respectively, in Wednesday's men's all-around individual final.

Tokyo Olympics: Moments from women's gymnastics

From left to right, China's silver medalist Xijing Tang, China's gold medalist Chenchen Guan and the United States' bronze medalist Simone Biles pose during the awards ceremony for the balance beam individual apparatus final on August 3. Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI | License Photo

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