Skye Blakely to miss U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials 2024 after sustaining right Achilles injury during podium training

American artistic gymnast Skye Blakely will miss the 2024 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials being held at the Target Center in Minneapolis after sustaining a right Achilles injury during podium training on June 26, Wednesday. Blakely was originally scheduled to compete in the women’s events on June 28 and June 30 in order to book her place in the women’s five-member squad for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

During practice, the 19-year-old got injured on a double layout pass and left the podium on a wheelchair with the medical team. Although she will have the chance to appeal for a spot on the USA women’s team for the Paris Olympics with a top-two finish in the U.S. Championships, it is highly unlikely she will recover in time, considering the Olympic Games are only a month away.

USA Gymnastics, the national governing body for the sport in the United States, shared the update on Blakely’s injury via a post on X (previously Twitter), captioning it:

“During Podium Training on Wednesday, Skye Blakely sustained a right Achilles injury and will be unable to compete in Olympic Trials. We are cheering for Skye in her recovery!”

It is a significant setback for Skye Blakely, who was regarded as one of the top gymnasts expected to advance for the Quadrennial Games, especially after her terrific 2024 season.

She came second at the 2024 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships in the women’s all-around where she finished second scoring a combined 113.850 points including both prelims and finals, only behind Simone Biles.

On her season opener at the Winter Cup, Blakely placed second by securing 54.650 points in the women’s all-around and won the balance beam with 14.500 points. She also participated in the Core Hydration Classic, in which she finished fifth, obtaining a total of 54.350 points.

A look into Skye Blakely’s top accomplishments

Skye Blakely competes on Uneven Bars during Women's Qualifications on Day Two of the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at the Antwerp Sportpaleis on October 01, 2023 in Antwerp, Belgium. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

Skye Blakely was a crucial member of the United States gold-medal-winning teams at the 2023 and 2022 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships. In addition, she is a three-time Pan American Championships medalist, including a silver in the team, and two bronze medals in the all-around and floor exercise events.

Moreover, she won the Junior World Championships bronze medal in 2019 being a member of the United States women’s team where she competed on all four apparatuses.