Rebeca Andrade

2.1. 2012-2014 seasons

Andrade made her international debut at the age of thirteen in 2012, competing at the Junior Pan American Championships. She helped the Brazilian team secure a silver medal, placing behind Canada and ahead of Mexico. Individually, she claimed gold medals in the all-around, on vault, and in the floor exercise, and a bronze medal on the balance beam. Later that year, at the Junior South American Championships in Cochabamba, she contributed to the Brazilian team's gold medal victory and also won the individual all-around title. She further demonstrated her talent at the domestic Brazil Trophy, where she won the all-around title, surpassing even seasoned Olympians like Jade Barbosa and Daniele Hypólito.

In 2013, Andrade continued her junior success. She started the season by winning the gold medal in the junior all-around at the Nadia Comăneci Invitational in Oklahoma City. In August, at her second Junior South American Championships, the Brazilian team once again won gold. Individually, Andrade earned a bronze medal in the all-around, behind teammates Lorrane Oliveira and Flávia Saraiva. She also secured gold medals on vault and uneven bars, and a silver medal on the balance beam, again behind Saraiva. In November, she competed at the Gymnasiade in Brasília, where the Brazilian team earned a silver medal behind Russia. Andrade also won an all-around bronze medal, placing behind Alla Sosnitskaya and Flávia Saraiva, and a gold medal on vault in the event finals, while finishing sixth on floor exercise.

Her 2014 season began strongly at the WOGA Classic in Plano, Texas, where she won gold in the all-around, on vault, and on uneven bars. She also secured silver medals with the team, on balance beam, and on floor exercise. Subsequently, at the Junior Pan American Championships in Aracaju, she helped Team Brazil win a silver medal, finishing behind Canada. Individually, she took silver in the all-around and on floor exercise, both behind Flávia Saraiva, and gold medals on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam. Andrade was initially slated to represent Brazil at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China, but she withdrew from the competition due to a broken toe and was replaced by her teammate Flávia Saraiva. She did not compete for the remainder of the 2014 season.

3.1. Senior debut and early injuries (2015-2017)

Andrade became eligible for senior international competitions in 2015 and quickly made her mark. After recovering from her toe injury, she debuted at the Ljubljana World Cup, where she earned a bronze medal on the uneven bars, behind Isabela Onyshko and Jonna Adlerteg. Following this, at the São Paulo World Cup, she won a silver medal on vault, finishing behind Deng Yalan, and placed seventh on the uneven bars. She also competed at the Flanders International Team Challenge in Ghent, where a mixed team of Brazilian and Italian gymnasts won a bronze medal, and Andrade herself secured a silver medal in the all-around, behind Flávia Saraiva. However, her promising debut season was cut short in June when she suffered her first ACL tear, forcing her to miss major competitions such as the Pan American Games and the World Championships.

In 2016, Andrade made a determined return to competition after her ACL injury. She competed at the City of Jesolo Trophy, participating only on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, and helped the Brazilian team win a silver medal behind the United States. She also qualified for the uneven bars event final, finishing eighth. At the Doha World Cup, she earned a silver medal on the uneven bars, again behind Jonna Adlerteg. Andrade was selected to represent Brazil at the Olympic Test Event in Rio de Janeiro alongside teammates Jade Barbosa, Daniele Hypólito, Lorrane Oliveira, Carolyne Pedro, and Flávia Saraiva, aiming to qualify a full team for the 2016 Olympic Games. She performed a double-twisting Yurchenko vault and a clean uneven bars routine, contributing to the Brazilian team's gold medal victory, which secured their full team quota for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Individually, she won a bronze medal in the uneven bars final, placing behind Germany's Elisabeth Seitz and Sophie Scheder.

Andrade then competed at the São Paulo World Cup, where she qualified for the uneven bars and balance beam finals. She tied for silver with German gymnast Kim Bùi on uneven bars and won a bronze medal on balance beam, behind teammate Daniele Hypólito and Simona Castro. At the Anadia World Cup, she earned two silver medals on balance beam and floor exercise, both behind her teammate Flávia Saraiva. In late June, Andrade was officially named to the Brazilian Olympic team. Her final preparation for the Olympics was a friendly meet in the Netherlands on July 10, where she tied with Dutch gymnast Eythora Thorsdottir for the all-around gold medal.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Andrade performed strongly in the qualification round, helping Brazil secure a fifth-place spot in the team finals. She also qualified individually to the all-around final in third place, behind American gymnasts Simone Biles and Aly Raisman. During the team finals, Andrade unfortunately fell on the floor exercise, and the Brazilian team finished eighth. In the individual all-around final, she finished eleventh.

After the Olympics, Andrade competed at the Brazilian Championships in November, winning gold with the Flamengo club team in the all-around, uneven bars, and balance beam, and a silver medal on floor exercise behind Thais Fidelis.

The year 2017 brought more World Cup medals but also additional injury setbacks. Andrade began her season at the City of Jesolo Trophy, where the Brazilian team won silver behind the United States. Andrade herself earned a silver medal in the all-around, behind American gymnast Riley McCusker. In the event finals, she placed fifth on uneven bars, sixth on balance beam, and fourth on floor exercise. She then won a gold medal on vault at the Koper Challenge Cup. At the Osijek Challenge Cup, she competed only on uneven bars but did not qualify for the final. In May, Andrade injured her ankle during training, requiring her to wear a protective boot for two months. She returned to competition in August at the Brazilian Championships, where she won a gold medal on uneven bars. She then won gold medals on both vault and uneven bars at the Varna Challenge Cup. Despite these successes, Andrade was initially named to the World Championships team, but during warmups for podium training, she tore her ACL for a second time, forcing her withdrawal from the competition.

3.2. Return and third injury (2018-2020)

Andrade made her World Championships debut in 2018, competing for less than a year before facing her third ACL tear. She returned to competition in September 2018 at the Pan American Championships, where she competed only on vault and uneven bars, helping the Brazilian team win a silver medal behind the United States. She was then selected for the Brazilian team for the 2018 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships alongside Jade Barbosa, Thais Fidelis, Lorrane Oliveira, and Flavia Saraiva. In her World Championships debut, Andrade competed on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, helping Brazil qualify for the team final in fifth place. In the team final, the Brazilian team finished seventh after Andrade, Barbosa, and Saraiva all fell on the uneven bars.

Following the World Championships, Andrade competed at the Cottbus World Cup, where she secured gold medals on vault and balance beam, and a silver medal on uneven bars, behind Nina Derwael.

In 2019, Andrade competed only once, at the DTB Team Challenge in Stuttgart, where she helped the Brazilian team win team gold and also claimed the all-around gold medal. Tragically, at the Brazilian Championships, Andrade tore her ACL for the third time in her career. This injury ended her 2019 season and prevented her from competing at the 2019 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Her absence was significant, as the Brazilian team finished fourteenth without her, failing to qualify a team for the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Andrade's planned comeback in 2020 was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. She returned to competition at the Baku World Cup, where she finished third on uneven bars (behind Fan Yilin and Anastasia Ilyankova) and second on balance beam (behind Urara Ashikawa) during qualifications, earning spots in the event finals. However, the event finals were canceled due to the pandemic in Azerbaijan. In July, Andrade and many other Brazilian Olympic hopefuls traveled to Portugal because they were unable to resume training in Brazil due to the unstable pandemic situation and gym closures. In December 2020, she tested positive for COVID-19 but remained asymptomatic.

3.3. Olympic and World Championship breakthrough (2021-2022)

The year 2021 marked a significant breakthrough for Rebeca Andrade, as she won her first Olympic and World Championship medals, solidifying her status as a global gymnastics powerhouse. She returned to competition at the Pan American Championships, an event that provided her with a crucial opportunity to qualify for the Olympic Games as an individual. The Brazilian team, comprising Andrade, Christal Bezerra, Ana Luiza Lima, Lorrane Oliveira, and Júlia Soares, won the gold medal. Individually, Andrade secured the gold medal in the all-around with a total score of 56.700 points, which earned her and Luciana Alvarado the continental quota spots for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo (held in 2021), Andrade qualified in third place for the vault final, fourth for the floor exercise final, and second for the all-around final. Following Simone Biles' withdrawal from the all-around final, Andrade entered as the top qualifier. She led the competition through the first two rotations and ultimately won a silver medal in the all-around, despite stepping out of bounds on two of her floor exercise tumbling passes. This historic achievement marked the first-ever Olympic medal for a female Brazilian gymnast. She then set another national record by winning the gold medal in the vault final with an average score of 15.083, making her the first Olympic champion in Brazilian women's artistic gymnastics history. In the floor exercise final, Andrade placed fifth with a score of 14.033 after again stepping out of bounds on two tumbling passes. Reflecting on her success at the Games, Andrade stated that her achievements were not only for herself but "for the whole of Brazil," and that she aimed to "inspire younger kids." She was chosen as the flag bearer for Brazil at the closing ceremony of the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Andrade continued her training after the Olympic Games. She helped her club win the team gold medal at the Brazilian Championships, where she also secured the gold medal in the all-around. At the 2021 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Kitakyushu, Japan, she competed on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, strategically opting not to compete on floor exercise to preserve her health. She qualified for all three event finals, finishing first on both vault (with an average score of 14.800) and uneven bars (with a score of 15.100), and eighth on balance beam. She became the first Brazilian gymnast to ever qualify for a World uneven bars event final. In the vault final, she won the gold medal with an average score of 14.966, nearly a full point ahead of silver medalist Asia D'Amato. This marked Brazil's second women's gold medal at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, following Daiane dos Santos's gold on floor exercise in 2003. In the uneven bars final, she scored 14.633 and earned a silver medal behind Chinese gymnast Wei Xiaoyuan, becoming the first Brazilian gymnast to win a World medal on the uneven bars. On the final day of competition, she finished sixth in the balance beam event final, tying the best-ever finish for a Brazilian woman in this event, a record previously set by Flávia Saraiva in 2019.

In 2022, Andrade continued her impressive performance streak. She began her season in May at the Trophy Brazil, securing a gold medal on the uneven bars and a silver on the balance beam. In July, Andrade was named to the Brazilian team for the Pan American Championships alongside Flávia Saraiva, Christal Bezerra, Lorrane Oliveira, Carolyne Pedro, and Júlia Soares. On the first day of competition, she won a gold medal on the uneven bars and a silver medal on the balance beam behind Saraiva. Her contributions helped Brazil qualify for the team final in first place. She chose not to compete on floor exercise. In the team final, Andrade contributed scores on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, leading Brazil to a first-place finish ahead of the United States and Canada - Brazil's first victory over the United States at this competition since 1997. Andrade emphasized the significance of this win for the future of Brazilian gymnastics.

In August, Andrade competed at the Brazilian Championships, where she won the all-around title ahead of Saraiva and Soares. She also achieved the highest scores on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, and the second-highest score on floor exercise, despite performing "watered-down" routines. In September, Andrade competed at the Paris World Challenge Cup, where she focused solely on uneven bars and won a silver medal behind American Shilese Jones. In October, Andrade was named to the team for the 2022 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool. In the qualification round, she qualified in first place for the all-around final, second for the floor final, third for the uneven bars final, and seventh for the beam final, while also helping Brazil qualify for the team final in third place. Although her first vault, a Cheng, scored 15.066, her hands slipped on the table during her second vault attempt, resulting in a score of 11.466 for a Yurchenko back tuck, which kept her out of the vault final. In the team final, Brazil finished fourth behind the United States, Great Britain, and Canada. In the all-around final, Andrade made history by winning the gold medal with a score of 56.899, ahead of Shilese Jones and Jessica Gadirova, becoming the first South American gymnast to win a World all-around title. She then secured a bronze medal in the floor exercise final, tying with Jade Carey, behind Jessica Gadirova and Jordan Chiles.

3.4. Continued success and historic achievements (2023-2024)

Andrade continued to build on her success in 2023. At the Brazilian national championships in August, she competed only on uneven bars and balance beam, placing first on both events. She then competed at the Paris World Challenge Cup, where she finished second on uneven bars behind Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos.

In late September, Andrade competed at the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, Belgium, alongside Flávia Saraiva, Jade Barbosa, Júlia Soares, and Lorrane Oliveira. The team achieved a historic silver medal, Brazil's first-ever team medal at a World Championships, finishing behind the United States. In the all-around final, Andrade finished second behind Simone Biles. On the first day of event finals, Andrade won gold on vault, besting Biles after the American fell on her eponymous skill. On the final day of competition, Andrade won a bronze medal on balance beam and a silver medal on floor exercise. By winning a medal on balance beam, Andrade became the eleventh gymnast in history to win a World Championships medal on every single apparatus.

Andrade concluded 2023 by competing at the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile. During the qualification round, which also served as the team final, she contributed scores on vault, uneven bars, and balance beam towards Brazil's second-place finish. She qualified for all three event finals. In the vault final, Andrade won gold after performing what many described as the "best Cheng in history." She then won a silver medal in the uneven bars final, behind Zoe Miller, and secured another gold medal on balance beam, ahead of teammate Flávia Saraiva.

The 2024 Olympic year began with Andrade competing at the Antalya World Challenge Cup in March, where she only competed on the uneven bars and earned a silver medal behind Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Andrade led the Brazilian team to a bronze medal in the team all-around final, marking the country's first-ever Olympic team medal in artistic gymnastics. She also secured a silver medal in the individual all-around final. On the first day of apparatus finals, Andrade won a silver medal on vault. She then competed on the third day of apparatus finals, placing fourth on beam and achieving a gold medal on floor exercise. Her gold medal on floor exercise surpassed Diego Hypólito's second-place finish at the 2016 Olympics, making her the first Brazilian Olympic floor champion of either gender. During the floor final medal ceremony, a moment that went viral occurred when Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles bowed to Andrade as she walked onto the podium. Andrade's remarkable haul of six medals from the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games makes her the most decorated Brazilian Olympian in any discipline, surpassing the previous record held by sailors Robert Scheidt and Torben Grael.