Brody Malone, who came back from a leg injury to win his third U.S. championship in June, fell twice on high bar and once on pommel horse to scuttle his chances of returning to the all-around finals as the United States finished behind Great Britain in men's gymnastics qualifying.
Great Britain posted a team total 256.561 in the first of three subdivisions Saturday. The Americans, who finished third at the 2023 world championships ahead of Great Britain, were at 253.229.
The U.S. arrived in Paris believing it had a legitimate chance to medal in the team competition for the first time since earning a bronze in Beijing 16 years ago.
There is work to be done after the British put on a largely mistake-free clinic across six rotations. Jake Jarman (84.897) and Joe Fraser (84.666) posted the top all-around scores, and six-time Olympic medalist Max Whitlock, 31, provided a jolt with an electric pommel horse routine -- his signature event -- that left him looking relieved.
"A lot of people have asked me that question in terms of 'How's it feel to be above the U.S.?'" said Whitlock, who is competing in his fourth and final Games. "To be honest, you take it with a pinch of salt. I think it's really important to kind of just think about our job."
Whitlock's 15.133 trailed only American Stephen Nedoroscik, a 25-year-old specialist whose 15.200 likely earned him a spot in the event finals and gave his teammates early momentum.
"It went really well today. I handled the nerves very well," Nedoroscik said. "I worked my whole life up to those 45 seconds.
"Sure it's the biggest stage in the world. It only happens once every four years, but at the same time I'm putting chalk on my hands and doing the horse for the team, it's nothing different."
Malone's second miscue on high bar -- a high-risk, high-reward event in which he won gold at the 2022 world championships -- forced the Americans to use Asher Hong's 12.600, one of the reasons the U.S. ended up 3.322 behind Britain.
"It was definitely not perfect," U.S. high performance director Brett McClure said. "And it was a few too many mistakes. I feel leading into team finals we need to clean some things up."
Frederick Richard and Paul Juda will represent the Americans in the all-around final.
Richard scored a 13.833 on floor exercise, a bit below what he knows he will need to medal in the all-around finals next week.
While Richard, who earned bronze in the all-around at the 2023 world championships, was expected to advance, Juda's performance is a bit of a surprise.
Juda, 23, who unabashedly broke down in tears after being named to the five-man Olympic squad, thrust his arms into the air after his dismount on floor exercise. His all-around total of 82.865 was fourth among early qualifiers, trailing only Richard (83.498), Jarman and Fraser.
"I think today would have been one of those things where I got to say I did all-around at the Olympics, but then to hopefully be making an all-around final, I think that's the cooler thing," Juda said. "And you know, the coolest thing is yet to come."
Nedoroscik will also feature in the team final, when three men per country compete on each apparatus and all three scores count.
Qualifying continues later Saturday, with longtime rivals and gold medal favorites Japan and China competing in the second of three subdivisions. The top eight team finishers advance to the team finals Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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