GUARULHOS, Brazil (AP) — As she practiced her complex moves and somersaults, aspiring gymnast 14-year-old Manuela Kriegel kept gazing at one of the walls of the Bonifácio Cardoso gym outside the Brazilian metropolis of Sao Paulo.
It featured a painting of a national hero — Olympic champion and hometown favorite Rebeca Andrade — with two medals, a gold and a silver, that Andrade won at the Tokyo Games three years ago.
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Silver medalist Simone Biles, of the United States, left, and bronze medalist Jordan Chiles, of the United States, right, bow to gold medalist Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, during the medal ceremony for the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
GUARULHOS, Brazil (AP) — As she practiced her complex moves and somersaults, aspiring gymnast 14-year-old Manuela Kriegel kept gazing at one of the walls of the Bonifácio Cardoso gym outside the Brazilian metropolis of Sao Paulo.
Silver medalist Simone Biles, of the United States, left, and bronze medalist Jordan Chiles, of the United States, right, bow to gold medalist Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, during the medal ceremony for the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Gymnasts train at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
A young gymnast trains at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, celebrates after winning the gold medal during the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Gymnasts pose for a photo at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Gymnasts chat before a training session at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
“This is outdated now,” Kriegel told The Associated Press on Tuesday after she finished her warm-up routines.
Outdated indeed. The 25-year-old Andrade won four more medals at the Paris Olympics, including gold in the floor exercise with a narrow victory over star U.S. gymnast Simone Biles. The Guarulhos native has become the most decorated Olympian in the history of the South American nation, with six medals.
Dozens of girls lined up with their parents in the early hours of Tuesday at the public gymnasium where Andrade started her career 15 years ago. Some of those hopeful athletes in Guarulhos train there every day.
Andrade's early life in Guarulhos has inspired locals who copy her audacious moves and also those who love her resilience — she used to walk about one hour to get to the gym and had three ACL surgeries in her career.
Andrade left Guarulhos for Brazil's national team in 2010, moved to Rio de Janeiro shortly after and then started her rise in the sport.
Kriegel, who took up the sport in 2019, wanted to give it up during the pandemic. But then Andrade's performances in Tokyo — a gold medal in the vault event and a silver in the all-round competition — changed her mind and convinced her that Brazilian gymnasts can win at the Olympics. She is even more convinced now after her compatriot beat Biles in the floor exercise.
“It is what Rebeca says. We have to trust the work we do here every day, get our training right and become confident in what we do when we are doing it,” said Kriegel, as 10 children aged between 5 and 10 years old entered the gym for a trial. “Before her it wasn't possible. And now it is much beyond what we expected.”
Mônica dos Anjos, a gymnastics teacher at the Bonifácio Cardoso and a referee in official competitions, was one of the first to see Andrade in action — when Andrade was 5. She said it didn't take long for all staffers to be sure she would become a star.
“I saw a little girl with that biotype. Strong, explosive, just playing,” Dos Anjos said. “Many girls started coming in 2021 because of Rebeca. Now they know it is possible. Rebeca was here, she jumped the same vault, performed on the same floor. Not all will make it, but just dreaming about it and trying hard will open many doors for them in the future.”
Kelly Mendes brought her daughter Lara Vicente to the gym five years ago, when Lara was only 7. There was no Andrade to inspire them then, but Brazil was already falling in love with gymnastics. Now, that passion is set to grow even more, she believes.
“This place is great for training. We can't say a (bad) word about their coaches." Mendes said Tuesday. “Guarulhos could have another Rebeca.”
AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
Gold medalist Rebeca Andrade, center, of Brazil, celebrates on the podium between silver medalist Simone Biles, left, and bronze medalist Jordan Chiles, both of the United States, during the medal ceremony for the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Silver medalist Simone Biles, of the United States, left, and bronze medalist Jordan Chiles, of the United States, right, bow to gold medalist Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, during the medal ceremony for the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Gymnasts train at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
A young gymnast trains at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Rebeca Andrade, of Brazil, celebrates after winning the gold medal during the women's artistic gymnastics individual floor finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Gymnasts pose for a photo at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Gymnasts chat before a training session at Bonifacio Cardoso gymnasium, where Olympic medalist Rebeca Andrade trained as a child in her hometown of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sunday was to be a day of relative rest for Donald Trump, a rare breather this deep into a presidential campaign. Aside from sounding off on social media, golf was on the agenda.
Then the Secret Service spotted the muzzle of a rifle sticking out of a fence in bushes at Trump's West Palm Beach golf club, and everything changed.
For the second time in just over two months, someone apparently tried to shoot Trump and came dangerously close to the former president in that effort — within 500 yards Sunday, law enforcement officials said. This time, the gunfire came from the Secret Service, before the suspect could get any shots off at his target.
The episode raised sharp questions about how to keep the former president safe -- not only while he is campaigning across the country, but while he spends time at his own clubs and properties.
Trump has had stepped-up security since the assassination attempt on him in July, when he was wounded in the ear during an attack that laid bare a series of Secret Service failures. When he has been at Trump Tower in New York, parked dump trucks have formed a wall outside the building. And at outdoor rallies, he now speaks from behind bulletproof glass.
But unlike typical VIPs, who live in private residences with tall fences, Trump, while in Florida, resides at a club open to dues-paying members, and often spends his down time at his golf courses. And this a toxic era in the nation's politics.
“The threat level is high," Rafael Barros, special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Miami field office, told reporters Sunday. “We live in danger times."
Sunday in the political world opened with Trump assailing a pop star on social media who had endorsed Kamala Harris — “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT” — complaining about the post office and hitting the links. Running mate JD Vance riffed on TV about that thoroughly debunked conspiracy theory concerning immigrants and pets, refusing to disown it. Democrats were apoplectic.
All that was standard fare for the most tumultuous presidential campaign in anyone’s memory. But shortly before 2 p.m., the subject abruptly changed and this election was thrust ever deeper into unprecedented territory.
Trump and golf partner Steve Witkoff were on the fifth hole of the course and about to putt when they heard the “pop, pop, pop, pop," said Fox News host Sean Hannity, a close friend of the former president who spoke with him several times afterward as well as with Witkoff.
Moments later, Hannity said, a "fast cart” with steel reinforcement and other protection whisked Trump away.
After the Secret Service noticed the rifle and then the suspect, an agent fired on him but apparently missed.
Secret Service agents immediately used their bodies to shield Trump and moved him to the golf course’s clubhouse, where he remained until he went back to Mar-a-Lago about 15 minutes away, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and described it on condition of anonymity.
About an hour later, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the agency and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office were investigating an unspecified “protective incident involving former President Donald Trump," adding he was safe.
The meaning was highly unclear. It could have been an unrelated shooting or disturbance near Trump, for all the country knew at first. "There were about 20 or more cop cars flying from nearby streets,” said Max Egusquiza, of Palm Beach, describing the emergency response he witnessed.
The Trump campaign issued a statement saying “President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity." Again, no word whether he was the intended target.
But it soon became known that the Secret Service had fired shots. And about an hour after that happened, Donald J. Trump Jr. posted on X that an AK-style rifle was discovered in the bushes, “per local law enforcement."
All of that was finally followed by an FBI statement saying it is investigating "what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump.”
The suspect quickly vanished but law enforcement had managed to identify his vehicle.
Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder said his deputies “immediately flooded” northbound I-95, deploying to every exit between the Palm Beach County line to the south and St. Lucie County line to the north.
The suspect was apprehended within minutes of the FBI, Secret Service and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office putting out a “very urgent BOLO” — or be-on-the-lookout alert — detailing the specific vehicle sought, license plate number and description of the driver.
“One of my road patrol units saw the vehicle, matched the tag and we set up on the vehicle,” Snyder said, “We pinched in on the car, got it safely stopped and got the driver in custody."
Snyder added: "He never asked, ‘What is this about?’ Obviously, law enforcement with long rifles, blue lights — a lot going on. He never questioned it.”
With that, police arrested Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Kaaawa, Hawaii, three law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. The officials identified the suspect to AP but spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.
The suspect had left behind an AK-style rifle with a scope, two backpacks hanging on a fence with ceramic tile inside and a GoPro camera, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said.
The sheriff said the suspect was 400 to 500 yards away from Trump hidden in shrubbery, while the former president played golf on a nearby hole.
“It was certainly an interesting day! ” Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday night. He effusively thanked law enforcement for keeping him “SAFE.”
Associated Press writers Jill Colvin, Colleen Long, Eric Tucker, Alanna Durkin Richer, Mike Balsamo and Michael R. Sisak contributed to this report.
Police crime scene vehicles are seen at Trump International Golf Club after police closed off the area following the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump in West Palm Beach, Fla., Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
Laura Loomer uses her cell phone near Trump International Golf Club after police closed off the area following the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump in West Palm Beach, Fla., Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
Trump was on the links taking a breather from the campaign. Then the Secret Service saw a rifle
Trump was on the links taking a breather from the campaign. Then the Secret Service saw a rifle
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Harry Reid International Airport to board a plane after a campaign trip, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
