Was Bars in Beijing the greatest Olympic Gymnastics Final ever?
So says Andrew Thornton:
… far and away the best bars final of any competition in history – maybe the best final of any event in history! I know that’s a big statement, but I believe it to be absolutely true – and I’m not talking about the results, I’m talking about the gymnastics. No two routines were even alike – every single routine was completely different than the one before. We had the unique opportunity here to see many of the best bar workers to ever walk the planet all competing in the same final, and all hitting their routines. The only thing missing was a few stuck landings. …
If you watched NBC TV in the States, you’d know the biggest controversy in America was whether Nastia or Ke Hexin should have won the apparatus — after the tie break.
Andrew the Analyst reviewed all the Bars routines and concluded … that the Bronze medalist Yang Yilin actually should have taken home the Gold.
… Yang Yilin had the exact same A-score as Liukin and He Kexin (7.7), and there is simply no way you can convince me that she had the most deductions of the three. In fact, I felt she should have won by a few tenths. …
read the entire article – Cracking the Controversy – Gymnast.com
Normally I defer to Andrew. But, in this case, the greatest Bars final in history, I think the judges got it right.
Gold – He Kexin
Silver – Nastia Liukin
Bronze – Yang Yilin
Andrew’s analysis counts a 0.5 deduction for both Nastia and He on a pirouette. That’s too severe, in my opinion. But watch all the final routines and decide for yourself.
Of the 10 Olympic gymnastics apparatus, the new code has worked best on Bars. It’s astonishing what these gymnasts have been capable of doing.
Leave a comment with your own ranking of that Final. Certainly Beth Tweddle had the most “difficult” routine.
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