Shilese Jones’ health might not have aided her quest to secure the ticket to Paris last weekend, but her fans aren’t keen on forfeiting their support yet. The 2023 World Championships gold medalist’s old shoulder injury made it necessary for her to pull out of the Xfinity US Gymnastics Championships at Fort Worth. While fans maintained that it was the wise decision under the circumstances, they would have done anything to see the 21-year-old donning her classic leotard while in action at the Dickies Arena too!

Leotards have become a major attraction point in the gymnastics community in recent years. From LSU’s iconic uniform commemorating their SEC win to Jordan Chiles’ Beyonce-inspired leotard at the Xfinity Championship, fans have gone ga-ga over gymnasts’ style statements, and the missed opportunity to see Shilese in her latest leotard is evoking similar exasperation among fans as well.

Shilese Jones gives a whiff of what the fans missed out on

In her recent Instagram post, which was again shared on the Reddit group r/Gymnastics, Shilese showed off the dress she had picked up with the Xfinity US Championships in mind. Jones was seen donning a skin-toned leotard as she wrote “so sad i didn’t get to wear this beauty this weekend” in the caption of the post. While she did look radiant in her picture, her inner sadness about missing out on the nationals after doing brilliantly well at the Core Hydration couldn’t be overlooked.

The neutral-colored leotard is adorned with a necklace-like part around the neck, and Shilese’s expressions make it clear just how in love she is with the uniform. While Shilese was among the top contenders to make use of the last opportunity before the team trials, her old foe made things difficult to do so. Understandably, fans had their supportive words in abundance.

The gymnast’s fans come forward with comforting words

After Shilese’s look was shared on X by Gymnastics Now, one fan noted that it would have been a great choice, considering how Jones would obviously take home the second-place medal once again. “Oooh silver AA medal woulda looked nice with this leo,” commented a user, while also subtly noting that a gold medal in one of the events was also warranted for the former Buckeye star.

In the last 10 months, Jones hasn’t ranked below the second place in all competitions. Naturally, expectations were sky-high to see her continue the impressive form in Texas as well. Taking a cue from the stellar run, Redditor Jasmine commented “I love it, she looks so etherial[sic]“, possibly reflecting the collective sentiment of many of Shilese’s other fans about why not seeing her perform last weekend was such a blow to the guts.

However, Feisty-Donkey seems to think that seeing the leotard in action would have helped to deduce a more decisive conclusion. Considering how routines also look and feel different during warm-ups and actual competitions, the opinion of the leotards could also hold true. “I think I would have had to see it in action to decide how I liked it- the angle here isn’t really doing it justice.” says the fan while not forgetting to mention that the concept does look intriguing.

“I love that she did this to show off her leo,” said another Redditor, who is obviously floored by the fact that Shilese has thought of her fans even when she is dealing with her own injuries at the moment.

Another user also said that the design of Jones’ leotard is an excellent way to add to the wide variety of uniforms that are making gymnastics look like such an adult sport in recent months. “Looove the neckline and the sunburst design at the hips” wrote user LGZ7981.

With so many leotards enthralling fans at the Xfinity US Championship, tell us which one stole your gaze the most in the comments!