US Olympian Jade Carey adds to medal haul at worlds with vault gold

LIVERPOOL, England: Jade Carey’s rebound from Olympic disappointment in her best event ended with a gold medal at the world championships.

The 22-year-old American soared to victory in the women’s vault final on Saturday, giving her a second trip to the top of the podium at M&S Bank Arena after helping the US women capture the team gold earlier in the meet.

Carey’s average score of 14.516 for her two vaults was just enough to edge teammate and fellow 2020 Olympian Jordan Chiles. Chiles’ 14.350 average was good enough for silver, just ahead of Coline Devillard of France at 14.166.

The victory helped ease the sting from a terrifying trip down the vault runway at the 2020 Olympics when a sticky patch of carpet caused her to trip and cost her a shot at a medal. Carey recovered quickly to win a surprising gold on floor exercise the next day but arrived in England eager to showcase her dynamic skills on an event where her combination of power and precision thrives.

“I ended up getting eighth (in Tokyo), so here today actually completing both vaults successfully and landing both on my feet felt like an amazing feeling,” Carey said. “I’m proud of myself for bouncing back.”

Chiles, part of the US team that claimed silver in Tokyo, earned her first individual world championship medal with two excellent vaults that would have won a lot of meets, just not one with Carey also in the field.

“This is only my second final ever as a senior so to come back with a silver is awesome,” said Chiles, who later added, “In my mind, my second is a first because Jade is a phenomenal vaulter.”

Shilese Jones of the US added a third medal at the world championships by earning a silver on uneven bars to go with the team gold and a silver in