-Romanian Andreea Munteanu stuck a very nice back-handspring to tucked-full on beam

-Heaven Latimer (CAN) did a very high back-handspring, back-handspring, layout-full on beam

It was even better here in this training video:

-my favourite floor routine was the very charming Maria Bondareva‘s (RUS) performance to music from “The Artist”…age appropriate cuteness and great presentation

-a French gymnast got no distance on her double pike bars dismount and clipped her feet on the bar…quite scary but she landed without injury (in a heap but not on her head or neck)

-Shallon Olsen‘s double-twisting Yurchenko was by far the best vault of the competition. Most gymnasts competed a Yurchenko-full and if they did a second vault, it was often a layout Yurchenko.

-prior to marching in for event finals, Russians Maria Bondareva and Anastasia Dmitrieva seemed to be chatting with Canadians Shallon Olsen and Aleeza Yu…I’m not sure how well they could communicate, but there were smiles and laughs aplenty!

-after the medal ceremonies, all gymnasts participated in a Flash Mob (some were more enthusiastic than others, but all seemed to know the choreography)

-Laura Jurca (ROM) and Marine Boyer (FRA) both suffered injuries on floor…Jurca hurt her ankle and had to stop her routine, while Boyer gave herself some major rugburn on her final tumbling pass

-Toni-Ann Williams from Jamaica showed some very difficult tumbling passes (double layout, full-twisting double back, two whips to double back) as well as a running double front dismount from beam. She will be a great addition to NCAA gymnastics next year!

-the three Romanians sported some very snazzy black leg warmers throughout the weekend

-2004 Olympian and former Gymnix competitor Amélie Plante was on hand to present awards, including one named after her

-the Japanese team displayed their trademark elegance and lovely presentation, and were hugely popular with fans, who rushed down to high five them whenever they walked by the bleachers

-the young team from Belgium showed very nice routines on all events and have tons of potential (remember, Belgium just missed out on full team qualification to the 2012 Olympics)

-the three Romanians (including the injured Laura Jurca) and the four Russians posed happily for photos after the competition

FINAL RESULTS:

Team

1. Russia (Maria Bondareva, Anastasia Dmitrieva, Ekaterina Sokova, Polina Spirina)

2. Canada (Brianna Clark, Heaven Latimer, Shallon Olsen, Aleeza Yu)

3. Japan (Yuna Hiraiwa, Marina Kawasaki, Sae Miyakama, Yuki Uchiyama)

All-Around

1(t). Maria Bondareva (RUS) and Anastasia Dmitrieva (RUS)

3. Yuki Uchiyama (JPN)

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Take Sandra Izbasa (ROM), for example. Unless Bellu and Bitang can lure her back, it looks as though she is finished with international competition. I feel like she’s been on the scene forever, but she’s really only 22 years old. She won floor at the 2008 Olympics with near-perfect tumbling runs and overcame serious injuries before grabbing gold on vault and placing 5th all around at the 2012 Olympics. Her floor routine was one of the most captivating in London, and it made me realize just how much I appreciate her presence.

Sandra Izbasa (ROM), 2012 Olympic Games, Floor Exercise Apparatus Final

Aw man, if only she hadn’t fallen on the last skill of her career!

Other stars are continuing on in the sport, and it remains to be seen how they will fare against the new crop of gymnasts. Viktoria Komova (RUS) displays what I think is the best combination of grace, form, difficulty and power the world has ever seen. I hope she’ll be able to maintain the same level of magic in the coming years.

Viktoria Komova (RUS), 2010 Youth Olympic Games, Floor Exercise

Kohei Uchimura (JPN) was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders and didn’t seem to be in peak form at the 2012 Olympic Games. Of course, despite putting his hands down on floor, he still managed to win the all around by a whopping 1.659, the same margin that separated gymnasts 2 through 13. Usually I find myself rooting for the underdog, but I know I’ll always hope for King Kohei to maintain his throne. Looks like there are some new tricks up his sleeve:

Kohei Uchimura (JPN), Kovacs-Kolman-Kolman Combo

Kohei Uchimura (JPN), Upgraded Vaults

Now that Nikolai Kuksenkov has left the Ukrainian team in favour of Team Russia, it will be interesting to see how that shakes up standings on the international scene. Coach Igor Korobchinsky may deny it, but that is quite a blow to Ukraine.

Nikolai Kuksenkov (UKR), 2011 World Championships, High Bar

One gymnast I’ve been excited to see on the senior international stage is Katelyn Ohashi (USA) and she’s finally old enough!

Katelyn Ohashi (USA), 2011 National Championships, Balance Beam

Mykayla Skinner (USA) recently busted out a laid out double-double on floor. It’s been over a quarter of a century since a woman first showcased a full-twisting double layout, so this was a long time coming. Skinner may be selected for the 2013 Worlds team based on her floor tumbling alone!

Mykayla Skinner (USA), 2013 Fiesta Bowl, Floor Exercise

Should be another great quadrennium. I hope it’s as exciting as the last!

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- There’s something about Enrique Tomas Gonzalez Sepulveda (CHI) that reminds me of a Soviet gymnast from the 1980s. It’s either the moustache or his stylish choreography on floor. He displayed a tremendous degree of difficulty and execution on that event and on vault, but was unlucky to end up in 4th place both times.

- As expected, Kohei Uchimura (JPN) had the highest execution score (9.100) amongst all the floor finalists, but Zou Kai (CHN) outdid him in difficulty. I love how fitting the name Kohei is for this gymnast: “peaceful flight”.

- The biggest shock was McKayla Maroney (USA) not winning vault, especially after that fabulous Amanar in Team Finals. She’s lucky to still have the silver after bottoming out on her Cheng. She didn’t look thrilled on the victory podium and hid her silver medal with her arms. Aren’t the internet memes hilarious?!

- Poor Elsabeth Black (CAN) scored a 0.000 on her first vault, injuring her ankle. She tried to prepare for her second vault, but wisely ran past the springboard when she realized she could be putting herself in a dangerous situation. She’ll have many more chances for apparatus finals in the future!

- There’s something really scary about Yamilet Pena Abreu’s Roche vault. When Yelena Produnova (RUS) performed it a decade ago, there was never any doubt she’d land on her feet. But I wait with baited breath when the gymnast from the Dominican Republic prepares to vault. There’s something wrong with the system when a gymnast either gets the highest score of the meet, falls to her bottom, or gets a zero, with nothing between. Hmm….

Yamilet Pena Abreu (DOM), 2011 World Championships, Vault Final

Hopefully the new Code of Points for the next cycle will discourage gymnasts from performing vaults that are not consistent and not safe. The last thing we want are injuries.

- Poor Louis Smith (GBR) earned the same winning score as Krisztian Berki (HUN) but was reduced to silver after the tie was broken (highest execution score). This must have been especially disappointing after qualifying in first place and receiving a Standing O from the hometown crowd. I was thrilled that Berki won it, however, after the nightmare of not qualifying to Beijing.

- Major props to Chen Yibing (CHN), who showed what he’s made of during the rings final. He looked as pleased as punch with his silver medal as he usually does with gold, despite the fact he has been dominant on this event since 2006 and is the defending Olympic Champion. He was a great sport toward all the other finalists and looked happy on the medal stand. It’s not easy to be a runner-up when your country places such an emphasis on gold. “To be honest, my heart hurts, but I’ve learned more than winning and losing in these four years. I can accept wins and I can accept losses. I have no regrets today. I’ve done everything I can.”

- Uneven bars was a stacked final! Thrilled for Beth Tweddle (GBR) to finally win an Olympic medal. Her combos are unreal! She probably would have won gold if it weren’t for her steps on the dismount, but she has got to be pleased with the results after a disappointing 4th place in Beijing.

Beth Tweddle (GBR), 2012 Olympic Games, Uneven Bars Final

- Viktoria Komova (RUS) didn’t look too happy after clipping her toes on the low bar and taking a step on the landing. Other than that, it was a perfect routine with gorgeous lines and great difficulty. Aliya Mustafina (RUS) performed a fantastic bars routine topped with a stuck 1.5-twisting double back to clinch the gold medal.

- Yang Hak Seon (KOR) stuck an exquisite Tsukahara triple twist, and even had time to open up a bit and spot the landing. The lone Yang on a team of Kims demonstrated a high level of difficulty on his vaults: a front layout triple twist, which proved insurmountable for the rest of the finalists, followed by the Tsukahara triple. Fellow competitor Sam Mikulak (USA) was so impressed he exclaimed, “Give me a hug, man. That was ridiculous!”

Yang Hak Seon (KOR), 2012 Olympic Games, Vault Final

- Igor Radivilov (UKR) earned his country their first gymnastics medal of the Games after booming two enormous vaults. Hopefully this will help make up for the upsetting turn of events in Team Finals.

- Isaac Botella Perez (ESP) held up a message of thanks written on the back of his towel after competing on the vault.

- Aw, I thought it would be really cool to see the two Tanaka brothers (JPN) 1-2 on the victory podium, but it wasn’t to be. Feng Zhe (CHN) performed with fluid motion and panache to earn the gold, ahead of Marcel Nguyen (GER) and Hamilton Sabot (FRA). Nguyen dismounted with a stuck full-twisting double tuck. Sabot couldn’t have been more delighted, and the smile never left his face from the time he realized he’d won a medal to the time he exited the arena after the awards ceremony. How wonderful to see three happy gymnasts receive their medals! Daniel Corral Barron displayed excellent form on parallel bars, and did well to represent his country, thus raising the profile of Mexican gymnastics.

- Parallel bars finals included 9 gymnasts, since there was a tie for 8th place in prelims between Zhang Chenglong (CHN) and Sabot. First reserve was Samuel Piasecky (SVK), a specialist on this event who must have been disappointed not to squeak into the apparatus final.

- Balance beam finals didn’t live up to their potential, with falls from Larisa Iordache (ROM), Gabby Douglas (USA) and Komova (twice). Then there was some drama when Alexandra Raisman (USA) filed an inquiry which raised her start value by 0.1, thus tying Catalina Ponor (ROM). This time it was Raisman who stayed in bronze medal position with her higher execution score, bumping Ponor from the medals.

- Sui Lu (CHN) was first up, and scored a fantastic 15.500, only to be outdone by 0.1 by her own teammate, Deng Linlin. She spent the rest of the final crying, and removed her medal before the photographers were even finished taking the official photos. Bad sportsmanship, or was there more to it than meets the eye?

- Epke Zonderland (NED) wins high bar in high-flying fashion! He may not have the most tidy form out there (German Fabian Hambüchen’s was the best of the medallists), but I literally shouted “Are you kidding me?!” after his Cassina-Kovacs-Kolman combination. Wow! It was a fabulous way to end the men’s competition, with all the gymnasts performing well under pressure.

Epke Zonderland (NED), 2012 Olympic Games, High Bar Final

- The fact that Ponor won the silver medal two Olympiads after capturing the gold in Athens is astounding. She looks to be in the same shape she was back when she was only 16 years old. I can’t believe she threw the full-in off beam in apparatus finals!

- I really wanted Ksenia Afansyeva (RUS) and Sandra Izbasa (ROM) on the podium – two experienced gymnasts with style, presentation and mature choreography. It wasn’t to be after Afanasyeva went out of bounds twice and Izbasa crashed her 2-5-twist punch barani dismount. At least Izbasa will go home with an unexpected vault gold.

Ksenia Afanasyeva (RUS), 2012 Olympic Games, Floor Exercise Apparatus Final

Sandra Izbasa (ROM), 2012 Olympic Games, Floor Exercise Apparatus Final

- Poor Jordyn Wieber (USA) had to wait a week to perform this one routine, and her floor exercise didn’t go according to plan. It was a successful Olympics by most gymnasts’ standards (Team Gold!) but I’m sure Wieber was expecting more.

- Lauren Mitchell (AUS) had some…interesting…music with really cool dance. She looked really pretty in that pink leotard! It’s a pity that Tweddle’s tumbling didn’t make it to finals (she was first reserve), but I think we can do without that dance!

Lauren Mitchell (AUS), 2012 Olympic Games, Floor Exercise Apparatus Final

What do you think of the music?

- Ugh. Vanessa Ferrari (ITA) was yet another victim of the tie-break system in place for the Olympic Games. She missed out on bronze even though she scored the same as Mustafina in floor finals. Ties are fine at World Championships, and it’s unfair that they aren’t allowed at the Olympics.

- I was pleased to see how Mustafina has matured into a great team player. She supported Komova in the All Around when they were waiting for Komova’s score to come up, and she looked genuinely happy with each of the four medals she won in London (gold on bars, silver with the team, and bronzes in the All Around and on floor). When she fell on beam in the All Around, I was expecting her to be more angry but she calmly sat down and prepared for floor. Bravo to Aliya for being the most decorated gymnast in London – yes, she even surpassed Uchimura’s total!

Interview with Aliya Mustafina (RUS)

- The level of gymnastics has been steadily increasing around the world. This time around, gymnasts representing 25 countries qualified to apparatus finals: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Ukraine and USA.

- Balance beam featured two Chinese, two Americans, two Romanians and two Russians. It was the least diverse final, whereas men’s floor and men’s vault were the most diverse with 8 countries represented amongst the 8 gymnasts.

- The women’s apparatus finals featured a gold medallist from each of the four superpowers: Romania on vault, Russia on bars, China on beam, and USA on floor.

- This was the best Olympic Games in a long time, in terms of the number of contenders vying for medals. I also though the judging was very accurate and they should be commended for placing the gymnasts in the correct order throughout the 9 days of competition.

And lets end with some awesome FIG photos from London 2012:

Women’s Artistic Gymnastics at London Olympics

Men’s Artistic Gymnastics at London Olympics

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Gabby Douglas (USA), 2012 Olympic Games, Team Final Balance Beam

Douglas and Komova each started the meet with an Amanar, with Komova suffering a wonky landing that ended up off the landing mat. When all was said and done, this error could have been enough to cost her the gold medal. Even the floor routine of her life (15.100) was not enough to catch up with Douglas, who had 4 fantastic performances to clinch the top prize.

Viktoria Komova (RUS), 2012 Olympic Games, All Around Floor Exercise

I really wanted these two on the podium along with Aliya Mustafina (RUS), so it was a major bummer when Mustafina fell from the beam after her Arabian landed a little crooked (my sister said she nailed it in the one-touch warm-up). After the fall, it seemed that the rest of the routine wasn’t quite a crisp as usual. It really was an uphill battle for Mustafina right from the beginning, since she started 0.7 behind the top contenders on vault; she performed a Baitova, as opposed to the Amanar she used to compete before her untimely knee injury at the 2011 European Championships. But in the end, the fall didn’t cost her a spot on the podium, as she would have been in the bronze medal position either way!

Aliya Mustafina (RUS), 2012 Olympic Games, Uneven Bars Apparatus Finals

I do feel very sorry for Alexandra Raisman (USA) who tied for 3rd but lost the bronze medal due to the tie-breaking procedure. That has got to be disappointing, especially after her uncharacteristically wobbly balance beam routine and after leaving out her punch layout front on floor. Sandra Izbasa (ROM), on the other hand, was fabulous on her 3 best events and probably would have been Olympic Champion if her bars had been on par. Dominique Pegg (CAN) rounded out a superb competition by hitting 4-for-4 (with some small wobbles on beam) for 17th, with a floor performance that started with a high-flying double layout. Poor Hannah Whelan (GBR) lost all hope of a Top 10 finish after crashing her Yurchenko-double-full for 0.000.

In the end, the results were as they should be. Congrats to Gabby Douglas! Over the past year, she has improved not only her gymnastics, but especially her consistency and her mental game. Congratulations are also in order for Viktoria Komova, who showed that she can fight right to the end, and to Aliya Mustafina, who displayed excellent sportsmanship with a positive attitude throughout the competition and in her support for her younger teammate.

The post 2012 Olympic Games – Women’s All Around appeared first on Gymbits.

I woke up this morning like a kid on Christmas Day, and boy, did Santa deliver! Kohei Uchimura (JPN) had the gold medal wrapped up heading into floor. With pommel horse under his belt, it was smooth sailing through rings, vault (perfect 2.5-twisting Yurchenko for a 16.266) and parallel bars. He wisely removed the Kovacs from his high bar routine, staying on the apparatus for a 15.600. The only glitch of the day came on floor, where Uchimura put his hands down on the difficult 1.5-twist punch layout Randi. But after landing his final triple twist, he knew he would once again stand on the highest step of the podium. Some might complain that no one should win the All Around with a fall, but the fact of the matter is that he is just so superior across all six events that losing one point for a fall is not going to dethrone King Kohei from the top of the leader board.

Kohei Uchimura – Men’s All Around Final London 2012 Olympics

Halfway through the competition, I started to get excited over the idea of a Japanese 1-2. Kazuhito Tanaka, who replaced the injured Koji Yamamuro for the All Around final, was in 2nd place with a sizable lead heading into his final two events, but major errors on floor and pommels dropped him to 6th. Marcel Nguyen (GER) put up quite a fight, going 6-for-6 and ending up with a silver medal. He has been eclipsed by more famous teammates Fabian Hambüchen and Philipp Boy in the past, but today he emerged from their shadows. He should feel incredibly proud of coming in 1st of the non-Uchimuras. Danell Leyva (USA) demonstrated a fantastic high bar routine and moved from 7th to claim the bronze medal in the final rotation. I felt sorry for Mykola Kuksenkov (UKR), who once considered competing for Russia but decided against it in order to remain eligible for the Olympic Games. He finished 4th here, just as he did in the All Around at the 2010 World Championships, and just as his Ukrainian team did here in London.

David Belyavskiy (RUS) was a close 5th, starting his day with a gorgeous double-piked-full-in on floor. It was a bummer that the Brits both fell during the 4th rotation: Kristian Thomas over-rotated his Yurchenko double pike vault, while Daniel Purvis came off after a wayward element on parallel bars. Nevertheless, they fought hard and ended up in 7th and 13th place, and they will come away from the Games thrilled with their bronze team medal. John Orozco (USA) ended well with an awesome high bar routine for 8th. I really admire John and wish he could have returned to America with a little Olympic hardware. He seems like such a good guy who does all he can to help his family, and it was upsetting seeing how devastated he was after pommel horse.

So in the end Uchimura pulled it off, and all is right in the world of men’s gymnastics. Now that he has won the Olympic All Around gold medal and pretty much everything else in this quadrennium in such convincing fashion, perhaps he can officially be referred to as The Best Gymnast Of All Time.

CTV’s Rod Black: Is he the best ever?

Kyle Shewfelt (CAN), 2004 Olympic Floor Champion: He really is, and there’s a good reason for that. Everything he does is so difficult, but he doesn’t make it look difficult – it’s effortless. He does an incredible amount of skill, he’s talented, he’s gifted and it’s light and effortless and really the entire gymnastics community and everyone around the world should just bow down to him cause he’s the king.

Here’s a fun video of all the stuff Uchimura has been training. We already know he has tremendously difficult skills like the Ri Jong Song (triple twisting double back) on floor and the Fedorchenko (triple twisting double layout) off high bar under his belt, but check out these other amazing skills he’s working on:

0:41 Quadruple twisting double back

1:24 Yurchenko triple twist (yikes, careful with those knees!)

1:49 Shaham (1.5-twisting Kovacs)

1:55 Double twisting Kovacs!

2:11 Double Kovacs!!!

Kohei Uchimura – Unique Combinations and Skills

World Championships Tokyo 2011 – King Uchimura III (from FIG Channel)

Kohei Uchimura – The Life and Times of a Champion

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McKayla Maroney (USA), Team Final Vault

Jordyn Wieber put her All Around disappointment aside and showed her mettle by being a true team player, competing solidly on vault, bars and floor. Kyla Ross was steady and gorgeous on bars and beam, Gabby Douglas performed so well that she managed to score a total of 61.465 which could be good enough for gold in the All Around on Thursday, and Aly Raisman was a rock and ended the meet with a fantastic floor routine.

Alexandra Raisman (USA), 2012 Olympic Games, Floor Exercise Apparatus Final

The Canadians must have felt like they won the gold too. After placing 11th at the 2011 World Championships and having to compete at the Test Event to earn a team spot to the Olympics, they squeaked into Team Finals in the 8th and final position. Ellie Black, Victoria Moors, Dominique Pegg, Brittany Rogers and Kristina Vaculik all brought their A game and went 12-for-12 like the Americans. The highlight for me was Moors’s stellar floor routine. It’s a real shame that she will not be showcasing it once again in floor finals. Canada ended up in 5th, the best they could realistically hope for with powerhouses USA, Russia, Romania and China in front.

Victoria Moors (CAN), Team Finals Floor (gorgeous routine!)

Russia showed that they deserve to be back in the medals, despite costly errors on floor from Anastasia Grishina and Ksenia Afanasyeva, and no doubt Viktoria Komova and Aliya Mustafina will come out swinging in the All Around. Romania hasn’t left the Olympic podium since Nadia Comaneci first mounted it in 1976. Catalina Ponor was back to usual self on beam today, and Sandra Izbasa performed her fab floor that could be worthy of a floor medal in a few days. It was great to see 6 different team flags raised in the North Greenwich Arena: China, Japan and Great Britain for the men, and USA, Russia and Romania for the women.

The next two rounds of competition will feature the gymnasts who qualified to the All Around. My picks? Watch for King Kohei to once again be crowned with gold. The media may be giving him flack for not showing the same level of perfection we have come to expect, but even with his funky pommel horse dismount in the Team Final he managed to earn a 92.048, a score that would have put him atop the prelim leader board by almost a point. After winning 3 consecutive Worlds by massive margins, it would be lamentable to imagine anything otherwise for these Olympic Games. On the women’s side, it seems there will be a tough battle between the top 4 qualifiers: Komova, Raisman, Douglas and Mustafina. Part of me wants to go out on a limb and predict the feisty Mustafina as the winner, even though I’ve been wanting Komova to win this for the past three years. Prior to the Olympics, it seemed as though Larisa Iordache would factor in a bit more, but between the plantar fasciitis and the judges coming down hard on bars, it’s beginning to look less and less likely. But if there’s one thing we’ve learned in all this, it’s never count out the Romanians!

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The Infamous Handstand

While I was desperately hoping that the Japanese men could pull off the win, they simply made too many mistakes to challenge mighty China for the title. The worst part was Koji Yamamuro’s crashed vault, following which he hopped on one leg toward the sitting area. Kazuhito Tanaka then found himself performing on pommel horse with only the 30-second warmup under his belt. Not surprisingly, he fell early in the routine. Despite his botched pommel horse dismount, Kohei managed to score an all around total of 92.048, which would have placed him at the top of the leader board had he had this performance during prelims.

The American men must be deeply disappointed with their performance, given that they qualified in first place to the Team Final. Right off the bat, they didn’t seem to have the same confidence they exuded in prelims and they made several uncharacteristic errors. Ukraine, too, must be having a hard time sleeping tonight after the high of nailing difficult routines and celebrating an Olympic medal, followed by the low of having their placement reduced to 4th place with the change in Uchimura’s pommel horse score.

A Message from Jake Dalton and Jonathan Horton (USA)

On the bright side, China and Great Britain put together fabulous performances when it counted most and deserved their gold and bronze medals. It’s unbelievable to think that just last year Great Britain was 10th at Worlds and had to fight for an Olympic spot at the Test Event in January. Just look at them now! Kristian Thomas sure knows how to stick a landing; the crowd, which included Princes William and Harry, was going wild for the hometown boys.

Kristian Thomas (GBR), Team Final Vault – Yurchenko double pike – stuck!

One thing that really bothers me is the unacceptable size of the awards podium. For a team competition, it should be wide enough for all the team members to stand in a line. In one photo I have seen, Koji Yamamuro, Louis Smith (GBR) and Sam Oldham (GBR) are not even visible behind teammates, and Kazuhito Tanaka’s face is partially obscured. That’s not fair!

If the women’s competition tomorrow is anything like the men’s, we can expect the unexpected. Good luck to everyone!

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- Celine van Gerner (NED) helped Salma Mahmoud (EGY) chalk the bars. Here’s van Gerner’s floor routine form the All Around:

- Mixed Group coaches were friendly, chatting to each other and the gymnasts and helping each other prepare the apparatus.

- Mahmoud had finished bars and was warming up for beam on the side when she heard the crowd’s reaction and Egyptian Sherine El Zeiny’s floor music stop.  She looked up in concern and hurried over closer to the floor to see what was going on.

- El Zeiny injured what appeared to be her thigh after landing a double back on all fours.  She stopped her routine and was carried over to the FX rotation seating area. Her coach placed her on the empty podium (used for men’s events) and left her. Another coach (Lithuanian Laura Svilpaite’s, maybe?) put a jacket or towel next to her.

- Kim Bui (GER) noticed she was on camera and held up a water bottle with a message on it and grinned widely. I couldn’t read it but I saw the word ‘love’.

- After Russian Viktoria Komova’s final routine, Aliya Mustafina (RUS) whispered something to her; Komova’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped, then she giggled as she waved to the camera.

- Diana Bulimar (ROM) jogged around in her tracksuit and gloves during the rotations in which she didn’t compete.

- After marching to floor, the Romanians all kicked off their shoes by the side of the floor podium. Diana Bulimar ran over, gathered them all up, and ran back to put them by the floor rotation seating.

- Maria Paseka (RUS) had a good chuckle over simply touching the bar for a 0.000.

- Bela Karolyi was in the NBC commentary booth, usually standing.

- As usual, there were tons of Japanese delegates in the crowd; the Japanese girls waved and posed for photos for them. Also spotted: delegates from France, Great Britain, USA, and Slovenia.

- Prior to each session, there were video features and a performance by Britons Danusia Francis on beam, Marissa King on bars, and two others on vault and floor (Lisa Mason, I heard?). Check back later for notes from men’s team finals and women’s all-around!

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The Tanaka parents must be so proud! Kazuhito, Rie and Yusuke represent 30% of the Japanese gymnasts on the floor in London, and Yusuke and Kazuhito will be battling it out for the gold medal on parallel bars (the qualified in first and second place)! Rie is one to watch as well, having won the Longines Prize for Elegance at the 2010 World Championships. I really enjoyed her Pink Panther floor routine in prelims!

It’s always exciting when the TV broadcast pans to lesser known gymnasts. Shek Wai Hung (HKG), a vault finalist at last year’s Worlds, sat down his double front and I felt so sad seeing the disappointment on his face. 2011 World bronze medalist Phan Thi Ha (VIE) ended up 12th on vault after a fall and a stumble. Some of the worst moments of preliminaries were when Sherine el-Zeiny (EGY) hurt her leg during a double tuck on floor and had to be carried away by her coach and when Yao Jinnan (CHN) collapsed in pain after aggravating a leg injury on vault. Other heartbreaking moments include learning of the disqualification of Luiza Galiulina (UZB) who tested positive for furosemide (I’m sure Daria Elizarova would have loved to represent Uzbekistan in London!), the exclusion of Jordyn Wieber (USA) from the All Around final, and Kieran Behan (IRE) not competing to the best of his ability:

I’ve got to hand it to the Romanian women. Just last year it appeared their team was fizzling away having won no medals at the Worlds for the first time in 3 decades. Then Ana Porgras retired unexpectedly in January and it seemed as though they might not be able to field adequate lineups for the Olympics. I am so impressed with the improvements they have made in a short amount of time, and with the fact that their team includes the past two Olympic Floor Champions: Catalina Ponor in 2004 and Sandra Izbasa in 2008. Despite having several uncharacteristic errors in prelims, they showed they are back and will once again be in the medal hunt come Team Finals.

Oksana Chusovitina (GER) and Jordan Jovtchev (BUL) should receive some sort of special medal for longevity! At ages 37 and 39, they are both competing in their SIXTH Olympic Games! And not just participating, but competing in the vault and rings apparatus finals!

Canada just managed to squeak into Team Finals in 8th place, an accomplishment made even more impressive after losing Peng Peng Lee to injury. Brittany Rogers and Elsabeth Black also qualified to vault finals, and Dominique Pegg will compete in the All Around. Unfortunately, the top two gymnasts will not be moving on past Team Finals. Kristina Vaculik did not qualify to the All Around after falling twice on beam, and Victoria Moors just missed Floor finals despite nailing her fantastic double-double mount. This has got to be one of the best teams Canada has ever fielded, and it was sweet of the girls to wear white flowers in their hair in tribute to Honorary Captain Peng Peng.

I have very much enjoyed the television commentary by Canadian Kyle Shewfelt. He is enthusiastic, positive, knowledgeable, and is always kind toward all gymnasts while remaining realistic about their chances. It’s refreshing to hear, and he makes it even more fun to watch gymnastics!

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Photo courtesy of  Anirudh Koul.

On the eve of the 2012 Olympic Games with all the excitement of competition looming ahead, I can’t help but think of all the gymnasts around the world who fell short of achieving their goal of competing in London. Some just didn’t quite manage to qualify, some were left out due to politics, but many are at home nursing ill-timed injuries. France was by far the most unlucky country, taking a huge hit by losing so many of its top gymnasts. Here are some of the athletes who will be missed when preliminaries start this weekend in the North Greenwich Arena:

Samir Aït Saïd (FRA) hurt his right knee at the 2012 European Championships in Montpellier.

Thomas Bouhail (FRA) fractured his tibia and fibula in a fall from high bar, an injury which quickly led to necrosis of his leg tissue. Thank goodness his leg was saved.

Marine Brevet (FRA) dislocated her elbow while tumbling on floor.

Benoît Caranobe (FRA) suffered an ankle injury hampered his training in the lead-up to these Olympic Games.

Cheng Fei (CHN) ruptured her Achilles tendon after making a successful comeback.

Talia Chiarelli (CAN) withdrew from contention for the Olympic team with a sore back.

Nikki Chung (AUS) was unable to move forward to the Olympic Selection Camp due to an ankle and knee injury.

Julie Croket (BEL) tore her left ACL in the run-up to the Olympic Games.

Clara Della Vedova (FRA) helped her team qualify to the Games, only to hurt her Achilles tendon three months before the main event.

Anton Fokin (UZB) tore a ligament in his left knee during the London Test Event and was unable to secure a berth to the Games.

Adrian Gomes (BRA) hurt her back while in London and had to withdraw from competition.

Shawn Johnson (USA) ended her bid to participate in a second Olympic Games when it became evident that her knee would not heal in time.

Daniel Keatings (GBR), one of his country’s best gymnasts ever, must be devastated by his ill-timed ankle injury earlier this year.

Peng Peng Lee (CAN) tore her ACL on vault at the National Championships. Peng Peng could have helped Canada to one of its highest finishes ever, with a possibility of making beam and floor finals as well. If only the world could see this fantastic floor routine.

Mariya Livchikova (UKR) injured her knee on the eve of the 2011 World Championships, and as a result was unable to compete in the Test Event to earn a spot to London.

Zoe Lorenzin (AUS) was unable to move forward to the Olympic Selection Camp due to a stress fracture in her foot.

Tatiana Nabieva (RUS) managed to rise to Olympic contention, only to injure her knee before team selection.

Marine Petit (FRA) suffered a painful knee problem that kept her from trying for the Games.

Danny Rodrigues (FRA), a star on rings, hurt his biceps a month before he was to compete in the Games.

Valentine Sabatou (FRA) was to replace Marine Brevet, until she herself required a cast for her ankle.

Anastasia Sidorova (RUS) was unable to make a final push for London with her recurring back problem.

Georgia Simpson (AUS) had a severe ankle injury in the spring that prevented her from making a serious run for the Olympics.

Bridget Sloan (USA) injured her elbow on uneven bars just as she was about to embark on Night 1 of the Olympic Trials.

Lais Souza (BRA) hurt her hand while training on bars.

Eugen Spiridonov (GER) had to give up his chance for selection after injuring his shoulder.

Teng Haibin (CHN) tore muscles in his forearm just days before prelims were to begin. It’s a shame, since he was surely hoping to redeem himself after a disappointing outing in 2004.

Jeffrey Wammes (NED) gave up his fight to challenge Epke Zonderland for the lone Dutch spot after hurting his knee on floor exercise.

There are many gymnasts in London who will tough it out with less severe injuries. Larisa Iordache (ROM) has a case of plantar fasciitis that may prevent her from competing all events, McKayla Maroney (USA) has a broken big toe, Beth Tweddle (GBR) is still recovering from knee surgery, Yao Jinnan (CHN) has a torn leg muscle, and alternate Anna Li (USA) hurt herself after a fall from uneven bars and was spotted wearing a neck brace.

Let us also remember the North Korean contingent who will not display their talents in London after being banned for fudging ages. It’s such as shame, as many of the gymnasts could have been in contention for various apparatus medals.

Ri Se Gwang, Vault, 2008 World Cup Maribor

Jade Barbosa (BRA) didn’t sign the contract agreeing to wear the leotards with the logos of sponsors and is therefore ineligible for the Olympic Games. Jordan Rae (NZL), on the other hand, met the criteria for inclusion in the Olympic Games but she was not confirmed for participation by her country’s Olympic Committee (similar to the situation Veronica Wagner of Sweden found herself in 4 years ago).

Preliminary rounds of competition start tomorrow. I wish all the gymnasts of these Olympic Games a happy, healthy and fair competition…with no more injuries!!!

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