9th all-around at Worlds 2014, Ellie Black has one more Final.
Balance Beam.
That photo is from Nadia’s post on Couch Gymnast – In Pictures: the All Around Final
Category: Uncategorized
Huang Huidan v Yao Jinnan
The defending World Bars Champion competed first.
Click PLAY or watch Huang on YouTube.
Click PLAY or watch Yao on YouTube.
1 Yao Jinnan CHN 6.9 + 8.733 = 15.633
2 Huang Huidan CHN 6.8 + 8.766 = 15.566
Tough call. But I prefer Huang’s routine. Though you can’t see it from that angle, Yao’s dismount is a weak double layout that wouldn’t be credited in some competitions. Huang’s is very original.
In 2014, however, the Difficulty score usually decides close decisions.
Lauren of the Gymternet noticed that Yao was not wearing her competition number.
Catherine – Beautiful Gymnastics – EF Day 1: Vault and Bars:
… This was addressed after the competition in which it was stated that it fell off right before, and that it was presented to the judges and accepted. …
Update from Lauren:
Huang Huidan and Yao Jinnan were interviewed by CCTV as soon as they got off the podium after finishing their uneven bar final routines. …
When mentioned that she started crying after her routine, she explained that she was moved and it was adrenaline when the tears first came down. However, when she moved from first to second, she was sad because she felt “???” — it’s a tricky thing to translate. In short, it’s that feeling when you tried your best and did really well but fell just a little short and you can’t reconcile with it.
Yao was next, and when asked, she said she wasn’t “comfortable” with her win. She said, “Dandan performed better than me, so when I saw her cry…I don’t know.” …
Nanning bee on Yahoo news
The biggest story from World Championships 2014 is a bee chasing Simone Biles. 🙂
related – Chicago Tribune version of the same story
(via Korbut Flip)
cheering Epke
KOM OP EPKE!
Olympic Horizontal Bar Champion Epke Zonderland is the favourite, I’d say, in the Final today.
Click PLAY or meet some of his fans on YouTube.
ZHANG Chenglong is one of his strongest challengers.
Click PLAY or watch this split screen edit on YouTube.
Finalists may well change their routines to raise start scores closer to Epke. It’s going to be interesting. 🙂
related – a playful, artistic VIDEO of Epke training
Americans are good on Vault
As confirmed by the prestigious FiveThirtyEight blog.
via GymCastic
Uchimura is “not human”
… “He is not a human being,” Hiroyuki Kato said before Uchimura won his record fifth straight World all-around title in Nanning, China, on Thursday, according to Agence France-Presse.
“Other athletes fight by pushing themselves to the limit. But Kohei can fight by using a few tenths of his ability.” …
His rivals change, but one man has stayed on the top of the podium for 6 years.
Those graphics are from the excellent supermura tumblr, a site dedicated to all things Kohei.
ELIZABETH LONG has a great career retrospective, so far. Kohei has said he may continue through the 2020 Olympics.
The All Around Editorial – King Kohei: The Greatest Ever
Rings: Liu, Nabarrete, You & Abliazin
Two medals for China on Rings, well deserved.
The D-score actually went up for You Hao. To 7.0.
What was the issue?
Denis Abliazin did not hit nor stick. I disagree with his Execution score. Judges got that one wrong.
Courtney Tulloch will be on the A-team for GBR from here on in. They need that Ring routine. And he’s only going to get stronger.
Courtney added “Victorian” Cross to his Finals routine.
Bars: Yao, Huang, Spiridonova
Happy Happy for the Chinese fans in Nanning.
Their girls finish GOLD and SILVER. Well deserved, but I would have reversed the order. Yao’s dismount is not truly a double layout. Huang’s execution was better.
I felt the Execution judges “boxed” their scores, with Mustafina suffering most. Despite having the cleanest routine, she scored only 8.80 virtually tied with Spiridonova, Locklear and Huang.
LIVE blog commentary on Gymternet. Lauren notes that Yao did not wear her number but judges did not catch it.
Pommels: Berki, Ude, Tommasone
#FIGWorlds2014ART
Great Pommel Final. Berki is a legend on Pommel Horse.
I’d called Keatings to win, but he broke form on Russian between the Pommel. As he did in prelims.
Ashton Locklear to Bars Final
Ashton has really improved her execution over the past weeks.
Click PLAY or watch her Secret routine on YouTube.
Click PLAY or watch her prelims routine to qualify to today’s Final on YouTube.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 