Gymnast Shilese Jones withdraws from US championships with shoulder injury

FORT WORTH, Texas — Shilese Jones is out of the U.S. gymnastics championships with a shoulder injury, disrupting her Olympic preparations less than two months before the start of the Paris Games.

Jones said Friday she will petition to compete at the Olympic trials next month, and it's all but certain USA Gymnastics will accept it. She meets the criteria, both having been a member of the 2022 and 2023 world championship teams and having done at least two events at the U.S. Classic two weeks ago.

Coming into nationals, Jones has also established herself as almost as much of a lock for the Paris as Simone Biles. She was an all-around medalist at the last two world championships, and was second to Biles in the all-around at Classic.

"With Paris as my ultimate focus, it's best for me to prioritize recovery and resting my shoulder this weekend," Jones said in a statement from US Gymnastics. "Both the medical team and I are confident this is the right decision to ensure I'm at full strength for Trials."

There's no deadline for petition decisions, but USA Gymnastics said Friday afternoon "the Athlete Selection Committee will make a determination on the petition as soon as feasible." The women's competition at trials begins June 28, exactly four weeks from Friday.

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Jones tore the labrum in her right shoulder in 2022 but has been able to manage it with treatment and a deliberate approach to both her training and competition schedule. She said Wednesday, however, that it had flared up after the U.S. Classic two weeks ago and got so bad she “barely could raise my arm” last Friday.

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“It hurt. I’m not going to lie,” Jones said when asked how the shoulder felt after her training session here Tuesday. “But I’m not giving up on myself. It’s all part of the journey and after this, I can rest.”

Only the top gymnast after the two-day trials is guaranteed a spot on the Paris squad, and that’s almost certain to be Biles. A selection committee will choose the remaining four team members based on previous results this year, the values — both difficulty and execution — of their routines, their consistency and how they contribute to the team score and overall medal potential.

There is nothing in the selection procedures that states athletes have to do the all-around at trials and, indeed, taking gymnasts in all-around rank order doesn't necessarily create the best team. That means Jones, or any other athlete, could do one, two or three events and hope the rest of their resume is enough to convince the selection committee.

A gymnast also can petition for a spot on the Olympic team, but that would not be an option for Jones. According to the selection procedures, illness and extenuating circumstances are the only basis for petitions. Petitioning athletes also had to have competed at this week’s national championships and finished first or second in the all-around.

The injury is the latest challenge for Jones. After finishing 10th at the Olympic trials in 2021, she considered ending her elite career and competing at Florida. But after her father died at the end of that year, she and her family returned to their hometown of Seattle and she decided to try for Paris. She's become one of the world's best, and most reliable, gymnasts since then.