LONDON (AP) — All Jordyn Wieber needed to bounce back from the biggest disappointment of her career was a little pep talk.
Teammate McKayla Maroney was only too happy to provide one.
Thanks to a few kind words from her best friend, Wieber returned to her world championship form in the women’s gymnastics team finals on Tuesday, helping the U.S. to its first gold medal since Atlanta in 1996.
Wieber missed out on the all-around finals after finishing as the third American during qualifying. Coach John Geddert said Wieber was given five minutes to regroup.
She certainly looked rejuvenated in the team finals. Wieber drilled her meet-opening vault and the U.S. rolled. The 17-year-old called her performance “redemption.”
Wieber can add a second medal next week in the floor exercise finals.
