“We were saying, first of all, LA, baby, let’s go, run it back!” said Rhys McClenaghan, after claiming gold alongside Olympic rival Stephen Nedoroscik in Paris. The two had just claimed the gold and bronze, respectively, in the finals of men’s gymnastics, and they were already laying the bases for their next face-off. During the qualifying round, both Rhys McClenaghan and Nedoroscik scored exactly 15.200, but McClenaghan edged ahead due to a higher execution score, earning the top seed in the final. The finale gave Nedoroscik another chance to respond. So, did he take it?

Well, he could not. In the final, McClenaghan delivered a breathtaking routine worth 15.533, winning Ireland’s first-ever Olympic gymnastics medal and gold on the pommel horse. Nedoroscik performed solidly, scoring 15.300, earning the bronze, and becoming a breakout star for Team USA. He took a break thereafter, and now, when he gears up to return, a chance to redeem the loss, the rival won’t even be there… 

Rhys McClenaghan will be staying off the mat for some time now. And his latest announcement will answer your whys. Today, the Olympic gold medalist uploaded a picture from a hospital. He is sitting in a hospital bed, wearing a medical gown that is pulled down from one shoulder because he has a medical arm sling on his right arm, and his shoulder? Well, it was bandaged and supported. All of it meant one thing: Rhys had undergone surgery. He wrote in the caption, “Day 1 of recovery from shoulder surgery. I’ve been struggling with this injury for a while now, so I’m delighted that everything went to plan with the operation and I can make my way back to maintaining my spot as the best in the world at what I do.”

He also said, “This is the reality of sport, and I love all of the challenges it throws my way. Champion Mindset. ☘️🥇.” The gymnast is a fighter in every sense of that word, and this is not his first surgery. He had his shoulder under the knife in November 2018, shortly after the 2018 World Championships in Doha, Qatar, to repair a labral tear that had caused fluid leakage and formed a painful cyst inside the joint. This was on his left side, while this one is on the right.

While Rhys might be out of any meet for the whole 2025 season, Nedoroscik is coming back. The Dancing with the Stars contender missed the 2025 Pan American Games selection but has since returned to full training.

Inside Stephen Nedoroscik’s return to gymnastics

He just woke up and chose to end the drought for the USA in men’s gymnastics. Moments after taking a nap during the men’s gymnastics final of the Paris Olympics, Stephen Nedoroscik removed his glasses and landed a near‑perfect 14.866 routine in the final rotation on pommel horse, which vaulted the U.S. men’s team onto the podium for the first time in 16 years. After Paris, he went on a break from the sport. He became the first male gymnast to join Dancing with the Stars (Season 33), where he incorporated gymnastics flair into his routines, including backflips and handstands. He and partner Rylee Arnold made it to the finals, ultimately finishing in 4th place. As Paris Games mark their one-year anniversary, the Olympian is getting back to business.

He returned to the apparatus at EVO Gymnastics. In mid‑2025, he shared a video of a near-perfect pommel‑horse routine in training. “Finally got all my EVO gear. Can’t believe I compete in 2 weeks,” he wrote in his Instagram story on July 23. The 2024 Olympics bronze medal winner would once again be the Superman of gymnastics at the Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships. The competition is scheduled for August 7–10, 2025, at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA, and will include men’s and women’s senior and junior divisions. Any predictions? Let’s discuss in the comments!