Pictured: The moment even the JUDGES' jaws dropped as U.S. gymnastics team vaulted to gold medal victory
- Team USA won first gold medal in women's gymnastics since the 1996 team at the Olympics in Atlanta
- Women's team reigns over the competition with five-point win over Russia
- Team members reveal that they revelled in the pressure of the Olympics stage
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One of the highlights was McKayla Maroney, who did a back flip onto and then over the pommel horse and completed two daring twists in the air before landing securely on her feet.
As Miss Maroney completed the landing, two female judges watching the performance behind her appeared so impressed that their mouths gape open.
Jaw-dropping: McKayla Maroney's seemingly flawless vault left the judges in complete shock
Close-up: The two judges looked on in awe as McKayla Maroney's completed her vault
The golden girls: (left to right) Jordyn Wieber, Gabrielle Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Alexandra Raisman, Kyla Ross
Making it look easy: U.S. gymnast Jordyn Wieber, second left, lifts up the hand of teammate Alexandra Raisman, as they celebrate along with McKayla Maroney and Kyla Ross after being declared gold medal winners
The incredible routine was so flawless that some have argued that she should have earned a perfect 10.
The Americans lived up to the hype and then some, winning their first Olympic gold medal in women's gymnastics since 1996.
Not only did Miss Maroney, Alexandra Raisman, Gabrielle Douglas, Jordyn Wieber and Kyla Ross win, but they won big.
Their score of 183.596 Tuesday night was a whopping five points ahead of Russia. Romania took the bronze.
While some teenagers might have found the pressure tough to bear on the world stage, the Americans revelled in it.
'We knew we could do it. We just had to pull out all the stops,' said Miss Raisman, the team captain.
Pride: Team USA stands at the centre of the Olympic podium with silver medallists Russia, left, and bronze medallists Romania, right
Victory: The U.S. gymnasts huddle together after their performance during the Artistic Gymnastics women's team final in London
Miss Maroney added: 'There were a lot of rumors that we couldn't do this because we won worlds, and there were a lot of doubts,' We went out there to prove something and that's what we did.'
When they saw the Russians and Romanians peeking in the doorway during training sessions, they would add some extra zest to their routines, the better to intimidate the competition.
Miss Douglas said: 'It's crazy to think the U.S. hasn't won a gold medal since '96 . I was feeling so confident, though. You have to feel confident and believe in yourself and trust. If you can do that, everything's going to be OK.'
And when the gold was on the line, the Americans were simply spectacular.
Coach John Geddert, who is also Miss Wieber's personal coach, went a step farther.
He said: 'This is the best team all-time. Others might disagree. The '96 team might disagree. But this is the best team. Difficulty-wise, consistency wise, this is USA's finest.'
The team essentially won the gold medal with their first event, vault, putting on a fireworks show right in front of the Russians.
Too scared to misplace their gold medals, the U.S women's gymnasts carefully planned their hiding places.
Miss Wieber slept with hers under her pillow. That wouldn't work for Miss Raisman, her best friend, because 'she sleeps with her arms under her pillows.
She was too nervous to push it out while she slept,' Miss Wieber said.
Beaming: U.S. gymnast Gabrielle Douglas does a back flip on the balance beam during the Artistic Gymnastics women's team final
So Miss Raisman stuck hers in a dresser drawer full of clothes.
'I checked for it the minute I woke up. It was the first thing I did,' she said.
President Obama congratulated the five members of the U.S. women's gymnastics team Wednesday on their Olympic victory - and he had some questions about just how they managed to pull off their gold medal performances.
'I told these young ladies as I was congratulating them, how do you not bust your head every time you're on that little balance beam?' Obama said. 'I couldn't walk across that balance beam.'
Obama telephoned the gymnastics team from Air Force One as he traveled from Washington to Ohio for campaign events.
The president’s official Twitter account also posted a message to the girls, saying: 'Congratulations! You’ve made us all proud. #TeamUSA'.
Showing their excitement, each of the girls re-tweeted Obama's message, and thanked other celebrities for their kind wishes, including Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian and Taylor Swift.
Flying triumph: Jordyn Wieber's stellar performance came after a crushing disappointment on Sunday, when she missed a shot at Olympic gold due to international rules that allow only two competitors per country in the finals
Shock: Russian gymnasts and team officials react as teammate Kseniia Afanaseva falls while performing on the floor during the floor exercise
All of the Americans do Amanars, one of the toughest vaults in the world - a roundoff onto the takeoff board, back handspring onto the table and 2.5 twisting somersaults before landing.
It's got a start value - the measure of difficulty - of 6.5, a whopping 0.7 above the vault most other gymnasts do, and they ripped off one massive one after another.
Miss Wieber, a world champion, went first and did perhaps the best one she's ever done, getting great height in the air with her legs locked together.
When her feet slammed into the mat on landing, she threw up her arms and smiled broadly.
Miss Wieber's triumph followed a crushing disappointment on Sunday, when she missed a shot at Olympic gold due to international rules that allow only two competitors per country in the finals.
She finished fourth in Sunday's qualifying round, but will miss a shot at Olympic gold because international rules allow only two competitors per country in the finals.
Graceful: In this multiple exposure photo, U.S. gymnast Kyla Ross performs on the balance beam
Her longtime coach, John Geddert, slammed the 'stupid' rule, saying it penalised countries like the United States.
'In this system it's a shame that the all-around champion doesn't get to compete in the finals at the Olympics because of a stupid rule,' Mr Geddert said.
But speaking today, Miss Wieber called her team's gold medal-winning performance 'redemption.'
The two-per-country rule has been in place in each of the last two games, designed to give gymnasts from other countries a chance to make it to finals.
Emotions: Americans finished five points ahead of silver medallist Russia, who were in tears at the conclusion of the event
Second place: Team Russia, which took home the silver medal, was left stunned by the U.S. performance
Ms Wieber has only lost two all-around competitions in the last three years, both of them to teammates.
Following Wieber's performance today, Gabby Douglas went next and her vault was even better.
And then came Miss Maroney, who let everyone know why she's a heavy favorite to add the Olympic gold to her world title in vault.
She hit the mat with tremendous force yet didn't so much as wiggle, triumphantly thrusting her arms in the air as she saluted the judges.
The Americans strutted out of the event with a 1.7-point lead, and never looked back.
With the Russians on the sidelines crying, the Americans stood at the center of the flow, clapping, cheering and basking in a golden glow.
Feat: U.S. gymnast Alexandra Raisman wows the crowd as she performs on the balance beam
When the score for Miss Raisman flashed, the Americans screamed and a chant of 'U-S-A! U-S-A!' rang out around the arena.
The Americans had come into the last two Olympics as world champions, only to leave without a gold.
But this team is the strongest, top to bottom, the USA has ever had, and the rest of the world never stood a chance.
After the U.S. opened with a barrage of booming vaults, everyone else was playing for silver.
Russia erased all but four-tenths of the deficit on uneven bars, where Viktoria Komova and Aliya Mustafina defy the laws of gravity, but the team began falling apart on balance beam.
Mustafina swayed and wobbled so badly on the landing of a leap it's a wonder she didn't fall off; Komova almost stepped on the judges on her dismount.
'We did everything we could,' Komova said.
Victory: Team USA raise their hands after coming out of the gymnastics final with the gold medal
Making history: The win was Team USA's first gymnastics gold medal since the 1996 Summer games in Atlanta
The Americans, meanwhile, made the 4-inch slab that stands 4 feet in the air look like child's play.
Kyla Ross, the only American who wasn't on that world team last year (she was too young), looked like a ballerina with her long legs and gorgeous lines. She landed one somersault with her left foot curled over the edge of the beam, yet never flinched.
Miss Douglas has struggled on balance beam all summer, with a fall the second day of the U.S. championships costing her the title. But she has been clutch in London, delivering the highest score in qualifying and again Tuesday night.
She whipped off a series of backflips as if she was still on the ground, a look of intense concentration on her face.
She had a small balance check on a leap, swaying slightly and waving her arms to steady herself, but it was a minor error. Her score of 15.233 would all but seal the gold for the Americans, and they strutted over to floor exercise eager to close out the night with a big show.
Victory dance: Team U.S. celebrates with their coaches after being declared winners of the gold medal
While the Russians struggled - Anastasia Grishina stumbled forward on one pass and botched another when she all but came to a dead stop in the middle of the floor, and world champion Ksenia Afanaseva landed her dismount on her knees - the Americans kicked off their victory party.
Miss Wieber's bright smile grew as she danced and tumbled, the crowd clapping in time to her techno pop music.
Fans the world over are going to have the 'Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo' from the start of Douglas' music in their heads, and little girls are sure to be bouncing in their backyards trying to get as high as she does on her leaps.
Miss Raisman closed it out with a rollicking routine to 'Hava Nagila.' While her teammates cheered, Raisman soared high on her tumbling passes yet she landed so securely she may as well have been stepping into a bucket of cement.
Coach Mihai Brestyan was jumping up and down as Miss Raisman finished, the tears already starting to fall. But as she fell into her teammates arms, the tears turned to shrieks of joy.
MEET TEAM USA'S 'FAB FIVE'
Aly Raisman (captain)
Alexandra Raisman, 18, of Needham, Massachusetts, has made her Olympics debut in London, but has captured nearly two dozen championships in national and international competition since 2009. She appeared in U.S. Vogue's June issue (right), which was dedicated to Team USA athletes.
Kyla Ross
Kyla Ross, a 15-year-old from Aliso Viejo, California, is the team's youngest star. She was placed in her first gymnastics program at age three due to her intense energy.
Jordyn Wieber
Jordyn Wieber, 17, of DeWitt, Michigan, got involved in gymnastics in 1999 because her parents thought she 'looked like a gymnast.'
Gabby Douglas
The 16-year-old Gabby Douglas, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, has spent the last decade in the sport.
She came on the scene in 2002 after her sister convinced her mother to let her try it.
McKayla Maroney
McKayla Maroney, 16, of Long Beach, California, got into the sport in 1997, and says she most enjoys the floor exercise because it's the only event where she's free to express herself. She appeared in Glamour magazine's August issue as one of seven 'Female 2012 Summer Olympians Who Blow Our Minds'.
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