TOKYO — On Sunday night, Jade Carey stumbled. Or tripped, or slipped. It’s all a blur now. Something happened as she approached the hurdle in her first attempt at the individual vault finals. She salvaged a simple flip to land safely. Struggled through a second attempt for the sake of not giving up. Ended a terrible day in tears with one more chance to take home a medal.
Just about 24 hours later, she finished the best floor routine of her life with gusto. She knew it instantly. Just as the fluke from the night before had come at the worst possible time, this performance came at the best.