Not as Good as Gold (NYT on Paul Hamm)

New York Times ^ | 08/24/04 | New York Times

[conservative in nyc]

Not as Good as Gold

Published: August 24, 2004

e were among those thrilled at the astonishing come-from-behind heroics of the American gymnast Paul Hamm in the men's gymnastics all-around competition at the Olympic Games last week. Mr. Hamm, who had been favored to win a gold medal, looked as if he had blown it when he stumbled and fell off the mat in the vaulting event, dropping him to 12th place. But in the final two events, the parallel bars and the high bar, he earned stunning marks that, when coupled with faltering performances by some leading competitors, propelled him to the head of the pack. It was an inspiring story of an athlete who had triumphed over seemingly impossible odds. The only trouble was, it now turns out that he didn't really deserve the gold.

Through no fault of Mr. Hamm's, some judges assigned a wrong start value (maximum score possible) for a South Korean gymnast's routine on the parallel bars. That value is critical because it is the number from which any mistakes by the gymnast are deducted to get his final score. Had the judges assigned the correct value, Yang Tae Young would have won the gold medal and Mr. Hamm the silver.

The International Gymnastics Federation acknowledged that a scoring mistake had been made and suspended three judges because of it. But federation officials are letting the medal awards stand. They had an easy out in that the South Korean delegation failed to protest the scoring mistake at the time, as required, and instead waited until two days later, after the medals had actually been awarded.

Still, it reeks of injustice that an athlete should lose a medal based on what amounts to a numerical error. Mr. Hamm, still juiced up with his extraordinary performance, has declared himself the real champion of that night and has resisted calls that he voluntarily yield the gold.

Our own feeling - and we speak as people who found Mr. Hamm's performance under pressure extraordinary - is that his gold is already a bit tarnished. If he won't do the magnanimous thing, then the International Olympic Committee ought to find a way to award duplicate gold medals as South Korean officials have suggested.

[conservative in nyc]

Typical liberal editorial from the typically liberal, ant-American New York Slimes.

This shows what's wrong with the liberal mindset --- perceived FAIRNESS matters. Rules are irrelevant. The South Koreans could have followed the rules and objected to the score within the time allotted. But they didn't. So the South Korean lost fair and square. But the anti-American Slimes doesn't see it that way.

Nevermind that, according to Paul Hamm's coach, the judges missed a couple other deductions they should have taken off of the South Korean's Young's score. That's not relevant to the anti-American Slimes. Once you start changing the rules to get to the so-called "FAIR" result, you only should change the rules that get you to the so-called "FAIR" result. Kind of like Algore in Florida in 2000.

Paul Hamm should voluntarily relinquish his gold when the Slimes admits that it prints all the news that's fit to print its liberal agenda.

[Jewels1091]

I felt ssssooooo sorry for Paul!! The judges should all be thrown out! I NEVER saw anything like what happened!!!

[Jewels1091]

I should add...tonight during the Oplymics...they said that the judges didn't take a deduction that they should have for the Korean, watching the tapes, so he would have finished the same!

[TFine80]

This whole thing is ridiculous. Remember how crazy the Koreans acted about that speed skater?

[fhayek]

Somewhere, Roy Jones Jr. is laughing his a$$ off.

[flashbunny]

the judges also missed a fault by the korean which, if counted, would have lowered his score by more than he would have gained.

So the only way the korean would have one would be by correcting the mistake that favored him and ignorning the mistake that cost him - all part of the same routine.

This article debunks all the feel-goodniks who think paul hamm should lose his medal:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/olympics/2004/writers/08/23/swift.gym/index.html

[flashbunny]

actually he would have had a lower score - the deduction they didn't take was greater than he would have gained for adjusting his starting score.

[TFine80]

Deja-Vu:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/olympics/2002/speed_skating/news/2002/02/21/south_korea_lawsuit_ap/

[canalabamian]

This was discussed again during tonight's competition. Daggett(sp) went back through the Korean's parallel bar routine and pointed out that he SHOULD HAVE been docked more points. Something to do with too many pauses during the routine. That would have made the scoring foul-up moot. Anyway, crappy judging all over the place AGAIN tonight. Nemov was robbed. Just goes to show that JUDGED (subjective) sports don't belong...IMO.

[Captain Peter Blood]

I just watched the finals of the gymnastics tonight and saw the controversy with the Russian. They had to go back and re score but it was still too low in my opinion.
That guy did some of the most amazing things I have ever seen on that high bar. He really was robbed.
Hamm was very good although I thought for what he did his score was a little high.
But vindication for Hamm was there when the Korean fellow Yang did his routine and faltered badly. I think that might just go a long way toward setting the record straight about who was the best of those two.
Anyone else see those finals????

[1066AD]

South Korean team managers/coaches blew it. Tough.

[DameAutour]

Paul Hamm SHOULD NOT give up the gold. I think this is atrocious, the way he is being treated. It is NOT tarnished. He earned it fair and square. The Koreans should have protested the mistake at the time, not two days later.

Mistakes happen, especially in judged sports. There were mistakes that favored the Korean competitor. If those mistakes were corrected, the Korean might not even get the bronze. So they need to LET THIS GO.

[conservative in nyc]

Like I said, the Slimes editorial board makes a typically liberal argument --- only FAIRNESS matters, not rules. And if you can't get to the FAIR result, you only change the rules that will get you to your perceived FAIR result. So that the judges screwed up in the actual judging as well as the start value isn't relevant to the anti-American Slimes.

This is one of many reasons New Yorkers don't read the Slimes for their sports.

And yes, the South Koreans have shown themselves to be cry-babies once again.

[Lijahsbubbe]

I have a hard time watching any of these gymnasts, male or female.

I don't know what they're ingesting, but they all seem to have a strange look about them; big flattened heads with almost mongoloid type features and funny sounding voices.

[dougherty]

Total BS! Tim Dagget pointed out that the Korean should have had even more points deducted than he did. He got what he deserved: the bronze.

[xzins]

In this year's Olympics, best named the "NBC Female Derrierre Olympics," we are again treated to numerous truly athletic activities that are subjectively scored, and therefore, not pure sports.

Great 400 meter dash tonight. Surprise: the fastest guy won!

[keithtoo]

I guess the NYT will now relinquish the Pulitzer's it won thru the Stalinist boot-licking of Walter Duranty??

Lead by example, lib-slime.

[kabar]

If I recall, it was a Korean boxer who benefited from a bad decision against Roy Jones. There was no talk of the Korean boxer giving up his medal.

[Numbers Guy]

In this year's Olympics, best named the "NBC Female Derrierre Olympics,"

You say that like there's something wrong with it.

Actually I prefer the term "Butt Floss Olympics".

[fhayek]

Paul Hamm should now start campaigning for John Kerry. He didn't really deserve his medals either!