For Minneapolis, U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials, Suni Lee and Simone Biles is Perfect 10

There’s a saying in women’s gymnastics that making Team USA for the Olympics may be even harder than winning an Olympic gold medal in itself, the competition is so deep.

That remains the case this year with multiple all-around Olympic gold medalists competing for spots at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for gymnastics, which this year will be in Minneapolis with some of the biggest names in the Olympic sports world converging on “The Star of the North” for the first time.

“It’s going to be absolutely insane for the state of Minnesota,” St. Paul native Suni Lee, the defending all-around Olympic gold medalist, said at the Team USA Media Summit in mid-April. “It’s going to give a lot of spotlight on Minnesota athletes. … It’s really cool that they’re coming to Minnesota this year.”

Beginning June 22, the Minneapolis Convention Center will be the site of the USA Gymnastics Championships featuring rhythmic gymnastics, acrobatic gymnastics, and trampoline and tumbling; the USAG National Congress and Trade Show; and the USA Gymnastics All National Championships and Gymfest. In total, nearly 6,000 participants will flock to Minneapolis, which will take on the moniker of Gymnastics City USA.

The four-day Trials will follow those events from June 27–30 at the Target Center where at the conclusion of competition, USA Gymnastics will announce the 2024 Olympic Team for artistic gymnastics. The rhythmic and trampoline teams will be announced at the conclusion of the USA Gymnastics Championships.

“Being able to be with other athletes in other disciplines and all of us trying to make our way to Paris, I think it’s cool that it’s one big thing instead of just artistic gymnastics by itself,” said Kayla DiCello, who recently finished third at the U.S. championships in Fort Worth, Texas.

Activating All of Downtown

From a sporting point of view, the timing is perfect for Minneapolis to host with Lee as one of its spotlight athletes, given the journey she has been on since winning the all-around gold as part of a three-medal haul in Tokyo.

“She’s been such a champion of Minnesota and the community and Minnesota loves people that love them,” said Courtney Ries, senior vice president of destination branding and strategy at Meet Minneapolis. “To have somebody that is a part of the community and has given back to the community, grown up in the community in the local gyms — she’s approachable and there are gymnasts across the city who have been training in gyms at the same time she is.”

Lee by herself is a guaranteed draw as a hometown favorite. But from the time that Minneapolis first won the bid to host the Trials, another major storyline has been the return of Simone Biles, the generational talent who won the recent national championships by a large margin.

“That’s where we see the national media coming into play,” said Ries. “You have more of an opportunity because she has such great name recognition and people pay attention. It’s a story that so many people have followed so publicly, to have that national attention — the tickets were close to selling out long ago, there’s still a few scattered seats, but it is going to sell out. It’s amazing and incredible to have her for sure.”

“The things that she does, you can’t kind of comprehend that her body is doing that,” added Wendy Blackshaw, president and chief executive officer of Minnesota Sports and Events. “There is a lot of excitement to have her here and have her in our Trials.”

For those who will not be able to get a ticket, the Minneapolis groups are working to make sure they still feel part of the action. There will be a ‘Promenade du Nord’ as Nicollet Mall will be transformed into a Parisian street fair with more than 60 local makers, vendors, outdoor cafes, food trucks and more.

“You won’t go two feet without finding something to do, something to eat, something to watch, something to celebrate,” Blackshaw said. “We want everyone to celebrate — not just if you have a ticket but if not, come and experience it because there’s so many other things going on.”

The idea for a market is a continuation of something that Meet Minneapolis and Minnesota Sports and Events have done with other major sports attractions, including this March’s Big 10 Women’s Basketball Tournament, which featured the stardom of Caitlin Clark and Iowa.

“We know that people are coming to see gymnastics, but also want to be entertained,” Blackshaw said. “They want to have all of these other activities happen. Every time we have one of these events, we have people coming from all over the state who might not have a ticket, but they just want to be part of the excitement and part of the action.”

Big Week in Minneapolis

In and around the Trials and other events will be two nights of Morgan Wallen concerts at U.S. Bank Stadium, the U.S. Paralympic Team Trials in Swimming at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center, Major League Soccer and WNBA action, and the Twin Cities Pride Festival from June 29–30.

“We have a reputation for successfully hosting these large-scale events and this is a wonderful opportunity for us to build on that,” Ries said. “It is providing excitement to our community and exposure to the broader world and supporting our hospitality and tourism community which is an important part of our city.”

What remains to be seen is if any of the gymnasts use the same mantra that Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards said during the NBA Playoffs as Minnesota advanced to the Western Conference finals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnfnV-SLwj8

“I’ve said ass more in a professional setting (recently) that I have in my entire career,” Ries said with a laugh. “The minute it came out of his mouth, our team was like ‘OMG we have to run with this.’ I don’t think we’ll have this as part of our formal part of marketing (for Trials) but I won’t be surprised if some people won’t continue that on social media.”