Rebeca Andrade Returns to Competition, Leads Brazil to Silver at Pan American Gymnastics Championships

Rebeca Andrade, Brazil's most decorated Olympic gymnast, returned to competitive gymnastics after approximately 18 months away, competing at the Pan American Gymnastics Championships held in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. The Brazilian team, consisting of Andrade and five other athletes—Gabriela Barbosa, Gabriela Bouças, Julia Soares, Sophia Weisberg, and Thais Fidelis—secured a silver medal in the team event with a combined score of 157.796. The team's performance also secured Brazil's qualification to the World Championships in Rotterdam, scheduled for October 2026. The United States won the team competition with a score of 161.628.

Andrade posted strong individual results during the event, scoring 14.533 and 14.166 on vault and advancing to the apparatus final in first place. The 27-year-old had last competed in September 2024 at the Brazilian Championships. Her most recent international competition before the Pan American Championships was the Paris 2024 Olympics, where she earned one gold medal, two silver medals, and one bronze medal. Following the Olympic Games, Andrade took a sabbatical to spend time with family and prioritize her physical health and mental well-being, resuming training in the first half of 2025 but remaining absent from competitions until now.

Andrade expressed her appreciation for the live crowd atmosphere, telling CazéTV: "What I missed most was the crowd. I train every day, but there's not this public energy. Seeing the crowd supporting our team, this Brazilian way, this warmth is different." Notably, teammates Flávia Saraiva, who was not called up for the Pan American Games, and Jade Barbosa, who stepped back from competition after becoming a mother, attended the event from the stands to support their teammates. The championships continue through the week, with individual all-around finals scheduled for Friday at 9 a.m. and apparatus finals, including Andrade's vault competition, set for Sunday from 9:30 a.m. onward.