U.S. Gymnastics Medal Favorites For 2025 World Championships

After striking gold in Paris, the top U.S. gymnasts return to the international stage to vie for medals at the 2025 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia. Competition begins Sunday, October 19, with the men’s qualification round, followed by the women’s round on October 20.

Though Team USA often strikes gold at the world championships, this year’s team differs significantly from those that made headlines last summer in Paris. For the women, Olympic alternates Leanne Wong and Joscelyn Roberson headline the four-woman group, and are joined by two-time World team gold medalist Skye Blakely and rising star Dulcy Caylor.

The U.S. men feature two returning Olympians – Brody Malone and Asher Hong – who look in top form heading into this year’s worlds. World championship veteran Donnell Whittenburg brings extensive experience to Jakarta and is accompanied by a trio of newcomers: Kameron Nelson, Patrick Hoopes, and Brandon Dang.

This year’s world championships are an individual event, meaning no team competitions will be held. However, Team USA athletes still have their sights set on gold. Get to know the nation’s top contenders for medals in Jakarta.

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U.S. Women’s Medal Prospects

All-Around: Leanne Wong, Dulcy Caylor/Joscelyn Roberson

The U.S. women have long dominated the all-around competition on the world championship stage, winning 10 of the last 13 titles. The Americans bring three all-around contenders to Jakarta, led by 2021 World All-Around silver medalist and Olympic alternate Leanne Wong.

Wong was the U.S. National runner-up in August and will rely on her massive vault score to catapult her name in the standings. Though likely to contend for the medals, the Florida gymnastics graduate competes with lower difficulty on beam and floor. In order to contend for the top spot, Wong must deliver her cleanest routines.

Due to the two-per-country rule, the U.S. can only send two individuals to the all-around (and to all event finals). 2025 U.S. All-Around bronze medalist Joscelyn Roberson and 2025 U.S. Selection Event Champion Dulcy Caylor will likely battle for the second all-around spot in the U.S. training sessions.

Though Dulcy defeated Roberson in the recent selection event, Roberson—a World team champion and Olympic alternate—competes more difficultly and retains more experience on the international stage. Ultimately, the U.S. coordinators will select the athlete with the highest potential for medal contention.

Vault: Leanne Wong, Joscelyn Roberson

Vault stands alone as the U.S. women’s best shot at a gold medal in Jakarta, with Wong again coming in as the favorite among American women. A former World finalist on the event, Wong finished 7th in 2023, but brings more difficulty to Jakarta.

Wong vaults the difficult ‘Cheng’ vault, a skill named after former Chinese gymnast Cheng Fei. Though her Cheng separates Wong from the field, execution is key.

Joscelyn Roberson, also a World vault finalist (but withdrew due to injury), could contend for the medals in Jakarta. Roberson vaults the same two vaults as Wong (a Cheng and double-twisting Yurchenko), but often struggles with her landings and form errors while twisting.

Ultimately, a medal is within reach if Roberson can clean up her vaults in Jakarta.

Uneven Bars: Skye Blakely

2022 and 2023 World team champion Skye Blakely is the American’s top contender on the uneven bars. Blakely tied with Hezly Rivera for the U.S. title on the event in August, and brought increased difficulty to the World Team Selection Event a few weeks prior.

With excellent execution and swing on the bars, Blakely’s only vice is inconsistency. Though widely renowned for her talent, the 20-year-old has often faltered on the world stage. Ultimately, Blakely is in contention for the bronze or silver medal if she hits her fully slated difficulty.

Balance Beam: Skye Blakely, Joscelyn Roberson

Though Blakely is a contender for a potential medal on bars, her best shot at gold comes on balance beam. Blakely is a world beam finalist – and would have likely won world gold in 2022 without a fluke hair-ribbon malfunction.

With massive difficulty and beautiful execution, Blakely’s best work can compete for gold. Blakely was the U.S. silver medalist on beam, even while counting a fall. She was also the only U.S. gymnast to score above 14.0 at the World Team Selection Event. However, once again, Blakely’s consistency will be her biggest challenge.

Roberson also packs a punch with considerable difficulty on beam. Sporting a standing full-twist and dynamic triple series, the Shawn Johnson-esque powerhouse brings massive difficulty to the beam. As with all four events, Roberson must hone in on her execution to contend for a spot on the podium.

Floor Exercise: Joscelyn Roberson, Dulcy Caylor

Roberson also brings her power to the floor. The U.S. silver medalist on the event posted the highest worldwide difficulty on floor in 2025, opening her routine with a massive double-twisting double-layout (Moors).

With dynamic tumbling and high-energy dance, Roberson will look to harness her power to contend for a spot on the podium. If she can deliver her cleanest gymnastics, the Olympic alternate could snag a medal of any color.

The second U.S. contender on floor will likely be a toss-up between Wong and Caylor. While Caylor delivers much higher difficulty than Wong (a nearly four-tenths advantage), the latter is widely regarded for her execution on the international stage. Caylor, comparatively, is unknown to international judges. The two are unlikely to contend for silver or gold but could sneak in for bronze if top competitors falter.

U.S. Men’s Medal Prospects

All-Around: Asher Hong

Asher Hong heads to Jakarta as the U.S. National All-Around Champion and the obvious American favorite to contend in the all-around. Hong brings a breadth of experience to Jakarta, including Olympic and World team bronze medals.

The Stanford star has already appeared twice in world all-around finals, finishing 6th in 2022 and 19th in 2023. He enters the competition boasting the 9th-best score of the year, trailing six Japanese athletes, one Ukrainian, and one from the Philippines (The Gymternet). While unlikely to challenge for gold or silver, Hong could sneak in for a podium finish with a stellar day across the six events.

Floor Exercise: Asher Hong, Kameron Nelson

Expect world championship newcomer Kameron Nelson to impress on floor in Jakarta. Nelson is the first athlete to compete two triple-back elements in one routine, an unprecedented display of difficulty in men’s gymnastics.

If Nelson can dial in on his landings and hit the two triples, the former Ohio State gymnast could contend for a medal of any color.

Asher Hong is also a contender on floor, an event where he is the reigning U.S. and NCAA National Champion. With consistent tumbling and clean execution, Hong currently claims the second-highest score in the world on floor.

Pommel Horse: Patrick Hoopes, Brandon Dang

The U.S. men bring two major contenders to the Pommel Horse in Jakarta: Patrick ‘Patty’ Hoopes and Brandon Dang. The two currently own the third and sixth-highest scores internationally and finished 1-2 on the podium at the 2025 U.S. Championships.

Hoopes, the current U.S. Champion, is also the back-to-back NCAA National Champion on Pommel Horse. With an explicit goal of medaling in Jakarta, Hoopes told Inside Gymnastics that he plans to upgrade his routine this week in Indonesia. If he can hit, a medal of any color is within reach.

Still Rings: Donnell Whittenburg, Asher Hong

Donnell Whittenburg is in Jakarta primarily to compete on rings. The 31-year-old fan favorite is a two-time world championship finalist on the event and a six-time world team member. With a massive triple-back dismount and unparalleled strength in his elements, could this be the year Whittenberg clinches his third world medal? It’s entirely possible.

Though Whittenberg ultimately lost the U.S. title on rings due to a fluke fall, the eventual winner—Asher Hong—could also challenge on the event. Hong was one spot away from making the 2024 Olympic final on rings and remains world-class on the event in 2025.

Vault: Asher Hong

Don’t get tired of Asher Hong’s name yet – he’s also in contention on vault. In addition to being the current U.S. Champion on vault, Hong was the first reserve for vault finals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Hong competes the second most difficult vault in the world: the Ri Se Gwang. Named after North Korean Olympic Champion Ri Se Gwang, the vault includes nearly three complete rotations with a full twist. If Hong can land cleanly, he’s in contention for a spot on the podium.

Parallel Bars: Brody Malone, Asher Hong

Former U.S. National Champion Brody Malone is opting to compete in just four events in 2025, including parallel bars. Malone is the reigning U.S. champion and one of the Americans’ best hopes on the event.

He joins Asher Hong, the U.S. silver medalist on p-bars. While Malone edged Hong at nationals, Hong is a former world finalist on the event, finishing sixth in 2022. Though the two could challenge for a finals spot, with a stacked lineup expected to compete in Jakarta, the Americans are unlikely to contend for the medals.

High Bar: Brody Malone

The men’s team’s best hope for a gold medal could come on one of the most thrilling events: men’s high bar. Malone was the 2022 World Champion on the high bar and has shown increased difficulty (including an upgraded dismount) in training.

Despite having a sub-par showing thus far in 2025, Malone boasts the world’s second-best score behind Olympic bronze medalist Tang Chia-Hung (Taiwan). If the two-time Olympian can deliver in Jakarta, he could strike gold once again.

How To Watch Team USA

The 2025 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships will be held from October 19 through October 25 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Eurovision Sport plans to stream every session of the championships, and NBC/Peacock will stream all finals.

All Times converted to Eastern Time Zone.

U.S. Men’s Qualifying: Sunday, October 19 at 5:05 a.m. ET on Eurovision Sport

U.S. Women’s Qualifying: Monday, October 20 at 11 p.m. ET on Eurovision Sport

Men’s All-Around Finals: Wednesday, October 22 at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBC/Peacock

Women’s All-Around Finals: Thursday, October 23 at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBC/Peacock

Event Finals Day One: Friday, October 24 at 3 a.m. ET on NBC/Peacock

Event Finals Day Two: Saturday, October 25 at 3 a.m. ET on NBC/Peacock