WWTBAM Bored

I came across this column by Sally Jenskins from the Washington Post, and I thought that it really summed up the battle between Shawn Johnson and the gymnastics judges.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26303543/

Interestingly, at the start of the Olympics, Bela Karolyi said that the week, especially the all-around, was going to determine the future of women's gymnastics: artistry versus athleticism. (Much like the battle raged in figure skating).

It became very clear, very fast, that they preferred "beauty" over "strength", demonstrated in the team competiion and then the continued love for Nastia over Shawn in their "B" scores. (Note: In reality, both Nastia and Shawn are strong and beautiful in their routines, but there is a perception issue because of body types.)

I loved this line: "What more valuable two things could a teenager take home from the Olympics than the gold, and the understanding that self-worth doesn't hinge on the opinions of others?"

Appa23 wrote: I loved this line: "What more valuable two things could a teenager take home from the Olympics than the gold, and the understanding that self-worth doesn't hinge on the opinions of others?"

The self-worth may not, but the gold does.

Liukin herself got robbed the night before, when the new "tiebreaker" rules broke her tie for the gold. Rules is rules, I guess, but I really don't see what's so awful about a legitimate tie that they have to keep throwing out scores until someone loses on the new average.

Just for the record, I personally liked watching "willowy Liukin"'s routine better last night. Maybe because I'm not immune to the aesthetic, whaddaya know? But I respect all the analysis that said that Johnson won basically because she aced (except for the landing; they both didn't stick it perfectly) a more difficult routine, period. I am not a gymnast. I can respect difficulty-analysis by people who have been there. Liukin is on record as saying she respects it too (I don't think she's on record at all about that tie-breaker fiasco; it wouldn't be politic to be). If she wanted to/could do as difficult a balance beam routine as Johnson's, she would have.

I'm thinking of some divers last night, & also male balance beam athletes, who threw more-difficult stuff into their routines with disasterous effects.

ghostjmf wrote:Liukin herself got robbed the night before, when the new "tiebreaker" rules broke her tie for the gold. Rules is rules, I guess, but I really don't see what's so awful about a legitimate tie that they have to keep throwing out scores until someone loses on the new average.

What really bothers me is that Liukin lost to one of the 14 year old Chinese girls. If the girl had been following the rules, she wouldn't have even been competing in the Olympics.