for both sexes, you get stronger and have better technique as you get older, but lose flexibility and enthusiasm, and that seems to be true in all sports.
In today’s all around, you got to see superior technique and strength by the US women beat the flexibility and carefree attitude of the Chinese.
In Tues. team finals, what you saw was the US team act like choking dogs and there is no other way to put it.
Sometimes, you hate to see someone lose. This year Federer/Nadal at Wimbledon and Tiger/Rocco at the US open come to mind.
In the team finals on Tues., I am not sure I want either team to get the gold. The US performances were terrible and if the Chinese have underage performers, I would not want them to win either.
“for both sexes, you get stronger and have better technique as you get older, but lose flexibility and enthusiasm, and that seems to be true in all sports.”
You are talking to someone who lived and breathed this for many years - and I’m telling you it is different in gymnastics.
I was once the 11 yr. old kid swinging bars and beating much older girls.
Then I became an older girl who hated bars and was getting my a$$ handed to me by the little tykes.
Everyone who has participated in the sport knows this.
“In today’s all around, you got to see superior technique and strength by the US women beat the flexibility and carefree attitude of the Chinese.”
What you saw tonight was a different format where 2 top gymnasts from each team HAD to perform on all four events.
The team competition format favored the Chinese because they put underage tiny girls up on bars.
That is the event that blew everyone away.
They put their older girl up on the other events, because often it does not pay to be little on vaulting and tumbling.
The little ones do not dance as well either.
Our girls are better all-arounders.
“In Tues. team finals, what you saw was the US team act like choking dogs and there is no other way to put it.”
You saw one girl make 2 mistakes. The Chinese also made mistakes.
You also saw screwy scoring - and there was screwy scoring again tonight - but our girls hung tough, and something was up with the head judge (Nelli Kim)
Can’t wait to see if that story manages to leak out somehow.