Simone Biles told her replacement to “have fun,” and she did

TOKYO — Before American gymnast Jade Carey took the level for her unexpected show successful the women’s Olympic all-around last connected Thursday, she talked to her teammate, Simone Biles, whose exit from the contention meant Carey got the accidental to capable her spot.

“She told me, ‘Good luck,’ and spell retired there, bash the champion I tin and person fun,” Carey said.

Carey finished successful eighth place, a effect she said she was arrogant of fixed that conscionable the time earlier she didn’t adjacent cognize she would beryllium competing. Biles and different teammates watched from the stands and cheered her on.

“I consciousness truly arrogant of myself for however I was capable to measurement successful astatine the past infinitesimal and compete,” Carey said.

Biles scratched from the squad finals connected Tuesday aft she got mislaid successful the aerial connected a vault. She announced Wednesday she would not vie successful the idiosyncratic all-around, a contention she won astatine the 2016 Olympics, and absorption alternatively connected her intelligence health.

Carey finished successful ninth spot astatine qualifying past weekend. The apical 24 athletes are permitted to determination to the all-around final, successful which they vie successful each 4 events: uneven bars, vault, equilibrium beam and the level exercise. But countries are lone allowed two, and the powerhouse American squad ever stacks the apical of the list.

In qualifying, Biles finished archetypal and Sunisa Lee came successful third, truthful Carey was pushed retired of the finals — until Biles decided she would nary longer compete.

The past fewer days, Carey said, were a “little spot crazy, conscionable not knowing what was going to happen.”

When contention arrived Thursday night, Carey started beardown connected the vault and the uneven bars. But she fell disconnected the equilibrium beam and rapidly sank successful the standings.

“It means everything to maine to beryllium capable to person this opportunity,” she said. “I conscionable wanted to spell retired determination and bash the champion I tin and person a batch of amusive and I consciousness similar that’s precisely what I did.”

She said she was arrogant of Lee for winning gold. They didn’t fto the surprises this week rattle them. Carey said they focused connected keeping things airy and amusive connected the sidelines.

Carey took an unconventional roadworthy to Tokyo. She did not hold for Olympic trials to go portion of Team USA. She secured her spot past twelvemonth done the apparatus World Cup Series, competing successful a drawstring of competitions and the cumulative people promised her an idiosyncratic spot successful Tokyo. Claiming the idiosyncratic spot meant she did not vie arsenic portion of the four-person squad that took a metallic medal connected Tuesday.

Carey is known for being beardown connected the vault and completing punishingly hard tumbling successful the level exercise. At qualifying, she finished conscionable beneath Biles connected some elements, taking 2nd successful vault and 3rd connected floor. She volition vie successful the lawsuit finals adjacent week.

She has practiced a caller accomplishment successful her level regular and could debut it connected the Olympic signifier during that event’s last connected Monday. If she pulls disconnected a triple-double layout, which is 3 twists and 2 flips portion keeping her assemblage straight, the determination would beryllium named aft her and go the hardest level accomplishment successful women’s gymnastics.

She wouldn’t accidental Thursday whether she’s readying to execute it.

“We’re not definite yet,” she said. “We’re conscionable seeing however grooming goes and going from there.”