Rebecca Andrade expresses her decision to cease participating in floor routines for health reasons
Brazilian Gymnast Rebeca Andrade Announces Retirement from Floor Exercise
Rebeca Andrade, Brazil's most decorated Olympian, has made a significant decision in her career. The 26-year-old athlete, who has undergone five knee surgeries between 2015 and 2019, has announced that she will no longer compete in the floor exercise. This decision comes as part of her preparation and recovery before the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Andrade, who hails from Guarulhos, São Paulo, made her Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Since then, she has amassed an impressive collection of medals, including two gold, three silver, and one bronze. Her definitive consecration came at the 2024 Paris Games, where she won gold in the floor exercise, silver in the uneven bars, all-around, and a bronze in the team competition. She also won gold in the vault and silver in the all-around at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (postponed until 2021).
The decision to retire from floor exercise was not taken lightly. Andrade expressed that this event causes the most impact on her body and she experiences pain and tiredness during her performances. She wants to perform at her best, not merely participate, and feels she cannot continue to do so on the floor.
This decision is supported by her coaching team and reflects a priority on her long-term health and career longevity toward LA 2028. Andrade is taking a break after her success at Paris 2024 and is resting through 2025, missing the 2025 World Championships. She plans to resume competition and training in 2026, aiming for Olympic qualification and continuing in uneven bars, balance beam, and vault.
Despite retiring from the floor exercise, Andrade is anticipated to compete in the other three disciplines of women's artistic gymnastics at the 2028 Olympics. She is currently preparing for the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia.
With this decision, Andrade surpasses sailors Robert Scheidt and Torben Grael as the Brazilian athletes with the most Olympic medals. Her legacy in gymnastics is undeniable, and she will continue to be a force to reckon with in the sport.
In her pursuit of career longevity and optimal health before the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Rebeca Andrade, the decorated Brazilian gymnast, has decided to retire from the floor exercise, acknowledging its toll on her body. Despite this, Andrade intends to compete in the other disciplines of health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and sports, such as women's artistic gymnastics, aiming for Olympic qualification and maintaining her status as a formidable presence in the arena of science and sports.
