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The landing of the front layout was her biggest error in the AA.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Brilliant routine for Vika in the preliminary competition. Though competing 3rd in the Russian line-up, she scored an astonishing 15.733.

… Expected, actually.

Russians seem to compete far, far better than they train.

This is what we’ve been seeing in the training gym all week. Click PLAY or watch it on Gymnastike.

http://www.gymnastike.org/embed/NTg0NTA4MzI3?related=1

Watch more video of World Gymnastics Championships Tokyo 2011 on gymnastike.org

This must drive the coaches crazy.

Yesterday Yamilet Peña of the Dominican Republic competed a Prudnova (Roche for men) … the most difficult vault ever performed by a woman. (VIDEO from podium training)

She has the highest qualifying score, so far, half way through the preliminary competition.

FIG sends the message that extremely difficult and dangerous skills are to be rewarded. Coaches in gyms around the world will continue pushing in this direction.

Yet almost everyone in Tokyo right now will tell you that our greatest worry is safety of the athlete under the current Code of Points. Especially on the women’s side.

Consider this discussion paper by William A. Sands, Jeni R. McNeal, Monem Jemni and Gabriella Penitente:

Abstract

In spite of considerable media, educational, conference, and medical attention, gymnastics’ most serious problem remains – injury.

Programs for injury prevention, recovery, and treatment have been proposed often, implemented haphazardly and have shown little merit with respect to actually reducing injury incidence and rate. The countermeasures involved in injury prevention include a variety of tools ranging from apparatus specifications to the attitudes of administrators, coaches and athletes.

Sadly, if any one of the countermeasures is inadequate an injury is a likely result.

The relative risks of poorly constructed and implemented safety programs, poor training and a lack of imagination, and simple denial of risk are among the most serious threats to attaining and maintaining reduction of injury incidence and rate. …

read the full article – THINKING SENSIBLY ABOUT INJURY PREVENTION AND SAFETY (PDF)

Bruno Grandi was translated recently as saying “the code has mutated into a time bomb.”

This is it. This vault is the best example of a “time bomb” in our sport today.

Rewarding this vault cannot end well.

Judges in Tokyo are rewarding difficulty far more than quality. That means gymnasts must increase their start score in order to win. This means more difficulty.

Gymnastics was already a dangerous sport. The current rules have made it more dangerous.

The Code of Points and those in charge of the rules are partly responsible.

If over-split on leaps was winning, coaches would be recruiting Rhythmic gymnasts for their club teams. It’s time for the WAG rules to pendulum back to rewarding form, body position, flexibility, rhythm and grace.

I’d ban or devalue the most dangerous skills — multiple forward somersaults landing forwards (as Trampoline did decades ago) for both Men and Women. The big risk on those is scorpion landing.

But I wouldn’t ban skills like triple back. Those are safer.

related – Amy Van Deusen just posted a good historical summary of this issue – Is the scoring system hurting the athletes?

Please leave a comment if you have an opinion on this.

It’s only prelims.

Team USA will obviously finish top 8 to qualify a team directly to the London Olympics.

So the bigger question is … What American gymnasts will qualify to the Apparatus and All-around Finals?

That image is free “wallpaper” distributed by USAG.

I think they just might. They have excellent Bars and Beam. They compete first session day 2 prelims alongside China.

If you use Twitter, that’s the best way to follow the action LIVE. If not, try the QUICK LINKS atop the home page.

Click PLAY or watch one of their Bar routines on Gymnastike.

http://www.gymnastike.org/embed/OTMxNTA5NDI4?related=1

Watch more video of World Gymnastics Championships Tokyo 2011 on gymnastike.org

As I post, the competition is just starting:

… First up, we have China, with their new, re-arranged team line-up. For those of you who have been asleep, Sports Sina announced this week that Wu Liufang would be replaced with Huang Qiushuang, because China need her vault. There have been mixed reactions, some saying this is wise. Many, however, are ruing the loss of the lovely Wu from the China line-up, particularly after her being reserve last year. There are some who think Jiang Yuyuan should be the one to sit out. The problem? She also has that DTY. Other think He Kexin, who still looks laboured on bars should be pulled. Can she win an event gold here, anyway? Despite the sadness at Wu being once again left behind, there is a sense of joy that the lovely fan favorite Huang will return to the team fold once more. …

Couch Gymnast – Day Two Qualifications: Hold Onto Your Hats

This is the team most likely to upset the USA, in my opinion.

At prelims of the Odense World Cup:

… Ludvigson, who set a new world record for degree of difficulty in today’s qualification round, advanced to the finals in third position, recording a 72.400, behind China’s Yang Song (75.700) and Zhang Lou (74.400). …

USAG

I think this is the pass …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Thanks Brett.

Recall that Kalon, from Idaho, competed Men’s Artistic Floor at the 2010 Winter Cup. (VIDEO)

Another Power Tumbler, Steve Elliot, was first to compete triple twisting double back in an NCAA competition.

MostepanovaFan montage from Sept. 25th still including the injured Alicia Sacramone. (She’ll be on a flight home for Achilles surgery, not cheering on the team.)

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Romania took the early lead during the first day of Gymnastics Worlds prelims. But most of the top teams compete today — starting in a couple of hours.

Andy Thornton thinks Romania needs to be better in the Team Final to medal.

It will be an interesting test to see if the American girls can still win prelims without Alicia’s big scores. I think they can.

More of the big stories from day one from Blythe Lawrence – Surprise/no surprise: 2011 World Championships, women’s prelims day one

With 243 female gymnasts in Tokyo, the preliminary competition is split over two days. Half way through, here are the best links:

• Couch Gymnast – Talking Teams

• Gymnastike – World Championships Recap: Midway Through Women’s Qualifications

Here’s one of Anne’s highlight routines, Dominque Pegg on Floor.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

For more detail on the day, go back to the Examiner LIVE blog for the specific Team you want information on.

One of my favourite routines today. Old school. Interesting choreography. And some emotion.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Mikaela Gerber – Canada