Why is Laurie Hernandez not competing in the Tokyo Olympics?
THE 2020 Tokyo Olympics are less than 24 hours away from commencing.
Athletes worldwide begin their descent into Tokyo as they prepare to showcase their talent at the world's biggest sporting event.
Why is Laurie Hernandez not competing in the Tokyo Olympics?
However, one star USA athlete who won't compete in this year's Olympic Games is Laurie Hernandez.
The 21-year-old American gymnast from Old Bridge, New Jersey, overstretched her right knee during a warm-up at the 2021 US Gymnastics Championships in June.
Hernandez spoke out about her injuries to USA Today, saying: "Things like this happen, unfortunately, to a lot of people, and it's not just in the gymnastics world.
"It's many sports; it's many jobs and hobbies. Sometimes things just happen, and it's really, really irritating.
"So it was a reminder that this second time around was purely just for me."
In 2016, she competed in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where she won a gold in the team event and silver medal.
Hernandez had returned to competition this year after a four-and-a-half-year break following Rio.
Who will represent Team USA in gymnastics at the Olympics?
In Hernandez's absence, Simone Biles made the four-athlete team with Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles and Grace McCallum.
Mykayla Skinner and Jade Carey were also picked to compete individually in Tokyo.
Olympic sports will be available to stream on various NBC platforms, and the gymnastics event will likely be taped and repackaged to air that evening in primetime.
- Women's Qualifying: Sunday, July 25, at 2:10am ET. The top eight teams will go on to compete in the Team Finals. Next, the top 24 gymnasts will advance to the individual all-around finals. Then, the top eight gymnasts on each apparatus will advance to the apparatus finals.
- Women's Team Finals: Tuesday, July 27, at 6:45am ET. As a collective whole, Team USA will be looking to clinch their third straight Olympic gold.
- Women's Individual All-Around Finals: Thursday, July 29, at 6:50am ET.
- Women's Vault and Uneven Bars Finals: Sunday, August 1, at 4am ET.
- Women's Floor Exercise Finals: Monday, August 2, at 4am ET.
- Women's Balance Beam Finals: Tuesday, August 3, at 4am ET.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics officially starts on July 23, 2021.
You can find the full schedule for Olympics Games here, but note all times are BST.