U.S. men win first team gymnastics medal since '08; Japan gold - ESPN

They closed the gap.

Three years ago, at the Tokyo Olympics, the U.S. men walked into the Ariake Gymnastics Centre at a six-point deficit before competition even began and ultimately finished fifth. Three years later, they are Olympic bronze medalists for the first time since 2008.

Japan won gold by 0.532 points over their longtime rival, China. It was Japan's eighth team gold and first since the Rio Games in 2016. China scored 259.062 and the U.S. finished less than two points behind Japan's 259.594 with a 257.793, proof they are catching the top teams in the world.

«I just stopped crying, so I can speak,» high performance director Brett McClure, a member of the 2004 U.S. silver medal team, said after the meet. «I can't even describe it. Every single routine kept getting better and better. Everyone did their job. They absolutely earned it tonight.»

Before Monday night, it had been 16 years since the U.S. men's finished on the podium in Olympic competition. That 2008 team was similarly filled with young, first-time Olympians who struggled on day one of competition and rebounded in thrilling fashion in the team final to take bronze. Brody Malone, the only returning Olympian on this team and its de-facto leader, said the key in Monday's success was having short-term memories for what happened during Saturday's qualification, where he suffered uncharacteristic falls on pommel horse and high bar and the team qualified fifth.

«We had a meeting before the meet and told each other, 'We're just going to treat this like NCAA championships,'» Malone said, a bronze medal draped around his neck. «We all come from NCAA backgrounds and know what it's like to compete for a team, compete for a brotherhood, and it's very easy to