Amy Van Deusen has updated her top 8 controversies to top 9, adding the Chinese age falsification scandal:
Any sport that’s judged is bound to have its results debated ad nauseam. And gymnastics certainly has had its share of dubious wins. But it’s not just the scores that have caused disagreement over the years: equipment errors, seemingly arbitrary rules, and even a doping scandal have all given gym fans plenty to talk about.
Check out my list of the top 8 controversies in Olympic gymnastics — and weigh in on your thoughts on each. Maybe we can settle these disputes once and for all.
You can review and vote on each controversy. Great fun!
There are others, of course. Amy could put together another list. Include Marian Dragalescu in the Vault final at the Athens Olympics.
9.35 / 9.9 on this vault. That’s an impossible score. Fall plus alignment deductions, in addition to execution deductions. (I seem to recall 4 of the vault judges were later reprimanded. But Marian, from Romania, kept the Bronze medal.)
To see the video of Dragalescu and the eventual Olympic Vault Champion Deferr, click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
In fact, Amy could do a top 8 controversies of the Men’s 2004 Olympics including the Paul Hamm fiasco. 2004 was by far the worst gymnastics finals in the history of our sport.
5 comments ↓
If one thing is obvious from perusing the examples posted is that the athletes themselves hardly ever get the benefit of the doubt and usually get screwed in the end.
Funny how the “cheating” chinese athletes get stripped of their medals but when judges cheat outright the results are unchallenge-able.
Good on you FIG…
Ha. Good point, George.
The American girls who will be getting Bronze medals from the 2000 Olympics are happy. But what about all the other athletes ripped off.
It’s unfair.
I’d NEVER go back in history to change medals, if it was up to me. Instead, the nation would be penalized into the future. Unfair, too, but less unfair.
How come penalize a nation into the future is less unfair then penalize that team? I dont get it… Do you have anything in mind as of how exactely to punish China?
Why not go back and penalize those coaches and officials who actually faked papers?? Some of them might still be in charge, somewhere… This instead of athletes who have little or nothing to do with it at their young ages.
Going back in time to “correct” a violation is problematic. Unfair. And, ultimately, ineffective.
Let’s say we throw a couple of Chinese officials in jail for 2000. They will be SCAPEGOATS for higher up politicians who have the power to make those kinds of decisions, ordering fake passports, for example.
IF we, instead, ban the Chinese team from World Championships in October (as one alternative) we’ll see REAL change in that regime. That’s a REAL and immediate penalty.
This happened with North Korea, the first time age fakery was punished. It worked.
Downside? … The current gymnasts, innocent, do not get to go to World’s.
Sad. But the best alternative, I think.
Even better, eliminate the age rules completely.
Thanks for the answer, I see what you mean. But for me it’s heartbreaking that, either way, the gymnasts ultimately take the punishment. This reminded me of Andreea Raducan case, how fair can one be in these cases? Very tricky.
I, too, am more and more for the elimination of the age rules.
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