Qualifications: Now, I'd be lying if said the witch-hunt response of the gymternet regarding bars in general at the Olympics didn't make me somewhat less sympathetic here. But honestly, it really did seem to be a bump as the subdivisions progressed. Sub 1 was super harsh, subs 2 and 3 were both scoring at the top of range but were fairly consistent with each other, sub 4 got a boost again, and then honestly there wasn't really anything in sub 5 that could stand out to me enough for me to have an opinion with the marathon day. Honestly, with the way their routines went that day, the Chinese bars workers weren't in the very top echelon, and there are a lot of gymnasts in that second echelon on bars. Looking at results other than the Chinese and the Americans on bars, Hong Un Jong's vaults were scored low compared to the rest of the scoring that day in sub 1, Tutya Yilmaz and Nina Derwael both would likely have made their potential EFs had they been in a later sub, Becky Downie got within a tenth of Fan Yilin when she hit her feet on the bar in sub 3, and Jessica Lopez has a couple noticeable form breaks in her routine that weren't reflected in her score in sub 4 as well. So while the scoring was all over the place, it didn't really seem to be targeted the way so many were claiming. To put together my thoughts regarding bars in qualifications, I decided to have some fun and score the routines of the gymnasts who made the final and the alternates using Aliya's score as the metric. Of course, the disclaimer that I'm just a couch fan trying out applying the code. Also, to make it more similar to an actual judging experience, I watched Aliya's routine once to get my standard, and then only watched each routine once.
1. Aliya Mustafina: 15.833-6.8/9.033
2. Maddie Kocian: 15.666-6.7/8.966
3. Daria Spiridonova: 15.6-6.5/9.1
3. Gabby Douglas: 15.6-6.5/9.1
5. Nina Derwael: 15.566-6.6/8.966
5. Elisabeth Seitz: 15.566-6.6/8.966
7. Fan Yilin: 15.566-6.9/8.666
8. Sophie Scheder: 15.5-6.6/8.9
9. Shang Chunsong: 15.5-6.7/8.8
10. Becky Downie: 15.266-6.8/8.466
11. Jessica Lopez: 15.066-6.4/8.666
Men's AA: So, to preface this, Oleg is my favorite MAG gymnast and I stan him shamelessly. But, to try to put on my objective pants... this is way too close to call. This would have been a perfect situation for a tie (y'know, if the IOC didn't randomly decide that ONLY GYMNASTICS needs to have Olympic tiebreakers...) But, if I am forced to make a call and not play 2015 Worlds UB judge, I do think Oleg had the slightly better day. 8.3 does seem just a bit low for that HB routine.
Women's AA: Shang was robbed. When discussing the AA bronze, Shang's BB score is usually pointed to as the issue, but personally, I don't think that was actually a problem. BB scoring for the most part that day was pretty tight all around (pun... maybe slightly intended) with the exception of Simone, which affected literally nothing, and Aliya (at least, of the gymnasts who had any influence at all on anything medal-wise). So for me, the problem- speaking in terms of how judging went that day, at least- was Aliya's BB score. Shang's FX score was a little low, too. *But the FTY!!* But Shang's 1.5 overall D score advantage! The salient point is the E scores, which weren't consistent, in my opinion.
UB: Not really all that controversial, but about 2 people disagreed and the still-salty fans from quals decided to make a huge deal out of it. Agree. Maddie had a couple little errors at the end of her routine she hadn't had in the previous rounds.
BB: In the world of "everything goes the way I want it to!!!", Simone wouldn't have the bronze. There would also have been more than two gymnasts in the final who hit their routines without major error (maybe if Shang had been in the final....) But yeah, in terms of what I want to see, I'd give the bronze to Flava Flav. In the world of "the judges are directed by the FIG how to score and can't take more than .8 if the gymnasts doesn't actually fall", I do think Simone probably had the more COP-friendly routine. I will complain about what this says about the COP. Or, at least, I would if SANNE WEVERS hadn't BECOME OLYMPIC BEAM CHAMPION IN THIS FINAL, making me completely unconcerned about anything else.
Showing posts with label Maddie Kocian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maddie Kocian. Show all posts
Monday, October 24, 2016
Monday, July 11, 2016
Based on what is the selection committee actually selectioning?
Well, the whole "My team has stayed the same this entire time" thing actually happened. And I must sound extremely fickle after just Saturday saying I could see the advantages of a team with Gabby, but it left an extremely bad taste in my mouth that she was named.
I do still think she makes sense as a team member. But it bothers me that her inclusion was such a forgone conclusion this whole time. If it seemed that there had been any legitimate debate, that the gymnasts who actually delivered in the Trials process were being given the consideration they deserved, I would have felt more along the lines of "It's not the team I would have picked, and it was definitely a controversial decision with a bunch of options that all had pros and cons, but I get why they did what they did," whereas Gabby's position being unquestionable despite all the errors she's made makes me feel along the lines of, "What a slap in the face to Mykayla, who did precisely what Martha said she wanted to see- hitting everywhere, getting better as the Games get closer- but was shafted, to Maggie, who didn't even get thrown the alternate bone, and even to Ragan, who really gave it her best effort and placed higher than Gabby but didn't stand a chance when the team had already been chosen." Honestly, you know shenanigans are afoot when Tim is saying they're taking so much time to come up with how they're going to rationalize the team. If you're not expecting the ignorant masses who only tune in every four years to get why you put the reigning Olympic AA champ on the team, I think that says more than anything.
Like I said, I do think Gabby makes sense for the team based on Martha's priorities, specifically "Rest Simone on UB and have an AAer". But this Trials process was just kind of shady.
But anyway, this team is still super strong and should do very, very well. The biggest problem now remaining is who the heck is NOT going to do AA in quals. Laurie and Aly have earned it, full stop. But are they really not going to have Gabby do UB in quals? If they put her up, Aly makes the most sense to take out of the lineup in terms of just her ability on that event. And she will have had two Olympics of injustices. As the buzz has been, Laurie is the media-minded choice to remove- and again, enter my accepted conspiracy theory that she was scored generously to make her case for the AA.
Individually, they should rack up quite a haul.
AA: They are definitely favored to have two AA medalists. Simone is, of course, favored, and then whoever the second AAer is will be the favorite for silver.
VT: Favored for the gold
UB: People tend to be way too far to either end of the spectrum here. The US doesn't suck on bars, their lineup will be very strong. But Maddie Kocian is not a near-lock for a medal either. Potential for a medal.
BB: Suddenly beam has gotten a super deep field. There should be two Americans, though Simone's stranglehold on her spot is looking to be slackening. They could leave with two medals or none depending on the day, because beam is beam.
FX: Favored to go 1-2, but this could also potentially have some competition really making a push. Still should be fairly safe if they go clean.
And just for funsies, to prove Nastia at least semi-right, a B team that would be favored to medal:
Mykayla, Ragan, Ashton, Maggie, Amelia
VT: Maggie, Meals, Mykayla
UB: Maggie, Meals, Ashton
BB: Meals, Maggie, Ragan
FX: Maggie, Ragan, Mykayla
Other thoughts on night 2:
I do still think she makes sense as a team member. But it bothers me that her inclusion was such a forgone conclusion this whole time. If it seemed that there had been any legitimate debate, that the gymnasts who actually delivered in the Trials process were being given the consideration they deserved, I would have felt more along the lines of "It's not the team I would have picked, and it was definitely a controversial decision with a bunch of options that all had pros and cons, but I get why they did what they did," whereas Gabby's position being unquestionable despite all the errors she's made makes me feel along the lines of, "What a slap in the face to Mykayla, who did precisely what Martha said she wanted to see- hitting everywhere, getting better as the Games get closer- but was shafted, to Maggie, who didn't even get thrown the alternate bone, and even to Ragan, who really gave it her best effort and placed higher than Gabby but didn't stand a chance when the team had already been chosen." Honestly, you know shenanigans are afoot when Tim is saying they're taking so much time to come up with how they're going to rationalize the team. If you're not expecting the ignorant masses who only tune in every four years to get why you put the reigning Olympic AA champ on the team, I think that says more than anything.
Like I said, I do think Gabby makes sense for the team based on Martha's priorities, specifically "Rest Simone on UB and have an AAer". But this Trials process was just kind of shady.
But anyway, this team is still super strong and should do very, very well. The biggest problem now remaining is who the heck is NOT going to do AA in quals. Laurie and Aly have earned it, full stop. But are they really not going to have Gabby do UB in quals? If they put her up, Aly makes the most sense to take out of the lineup in terms of just her ability on that event. And she will have had two Olympics of injustices. As the buzz has been, Laurie is the media-minded choice to remove- and again, enter my accepted conspiracy theory that she was scored generously to make her case for the AA.
Individually, they should rack up quite a haul.
AA: They are definitely favored to have two AA medalists. Simone is, of course, favored, and then whoever the second AAer is will be the favorite for silver.
VT: Favored for the gold
UB: People tend to be way too far to either end of the spectrum here. The US doesn't suck on bars, their lineup will be very strong. But Maddie Kocian is not a near-lock for a medal either. Potential for a medal.
BB: Suddenly beam has gotten a super deep field. There should be two Americans, though Simone's stranglehold on her spot is looking to be slackening. They could leave with two medals or none depending on the day, because beam is beam.
FX: Favored to go 1-2, but this could also potentially have some competition really making a push. Still should be fairly safe if they go clean.
And just for funsies, to prove Nastia at least semi-right, a B team that would be favored to medal:
Mykayla, Ragan, Ashton, Maggie, Amelia
VT: Maggie, Meals, Mykayla
UB: Maggie, Meals, Ashton
BB: Meals, Maggie, Ragan
FX: Maggie, Ragan, Mykayla
Other thoughts on night 2:
- I LOVE that MLT and Meals designated themselves the universal cheering section
- Scoring actually got somewhat reasonable for the most part, which was a bit surprising (and where Laurie's concerned, again, conspiracy theory)
- NBC was actually helpful in their commentary because I had been wondering which tribe Ashton... is a member of? belongs to? I don't know the PC terminology.
- Mykayla Skinner's floor where she just had a ball was life-giving! Especially that moment after her full-in where she just started mugging!
- Why can't the USAG YouTube channel at least upload the routines that weren't broadcast? Would it really hurt NBC's revenues for me to be able to watch Brenna's hit bars and Meals being the queen of Trials and Christina BEING THERE? (First-world problems, entitlement, throw whatever you got at me, I will still be disappointed that these videos won't exist- maybe some helpful soul will have illegally filmed those routines and will upload them?)
- That moment after the final routine when all the gymnasts were just celebrating their accomplishment was absolutely magical
Saturday, July 9, 2016
...Into the Fire
We are halfway done with the US Trials, and in keeping with the 2012 go round, day 1 looked nervy. Martha is still saying she has the same team in mind she always has... I saw someone else saying why bother with a Trials process and just go ahead and pull a Russia and name the team in February if nothing that happens during that process actually affects anything? Because there should definitely have been some change in outlook during this process. Is this legitimate, or is she just trying to keep drama to a minimum?
The Core
Simone had one of her more "meh" nights. Honestly, I was a bit scared when they showed her Cheng- her block was way off to the side and it looked like her hand was close to missing the table. Hope she fixes that tomorrow, I'm more concerned from a safety standpoint there than anything else. Otherwise, her biggest error was of course beam, where she had the wonky wolf turn. Still held it, which is better than she's done in some bad beam situations domestically before, and what Martha would want were that in the team final. And the dismount!!!! Has it always been that high and floaty or have I just been too wrapped up in myself to notice? (I will love you if you get that reference.) She covered well otherwise, and it overall wasn't her best night, but I'd say it was about on par with her title-winning performance in the Worlds AA last year. She still had no falls and the best routines in the country on two events, so even if she wasn't Simone, her place should have been safe.
Aly had a pretty standard day, which puts her toward the top of the mental game tally. She had errors on vault and beam, but put up some of her best work on bars and killed floor. I think her vault was probably her worst of the domestic season so far, so it would be nice to see that back where it was tomorrow. Her scoring was pretty much what can be expected internationally, and she did precisely what she needed to do to keep herself a lock, which is just keep chugging along.
Laurie, on the other hand, was a bit gifted in scoring. Her vault was definitely not the best DTY of the night... I'd say the other ones that were broadcast were pretty much all better. So on that front... I'll be getting to that later. While she had some hiccups, she definitely acquitted herself well on the grit front- she made it through the rest of her bars routine calmly after her major break, and covered fabulously on her LOSO series on beam. I love the way she pulled a Chellsie Memmel 2006 TF and was all, "What error? No wobble, see!" As for her scoring, I saw a conspiracy theory that actually seems rather plausible... there's been a lot of talk going around about how the business side and marketability might affect who goes up for the AA, and maybe Laurie's scores are being inflated so the results override the commercial issue and she gets to be one of the three AAers.
On the #Mashton front, Martha's basically confirmed that Maddie pretty much sealed the deal last night. She's been more than just throwing but slamming down the gauntlet on bars the last couple go-rounds. She's always had the upper hand because we all know Martha is against true specialists on 5-person teams. The thing Ashton had going for her in the full team picture was the better beam hit record, which was erased last night (and then NBC decided to Hollie Vise it, great). It would take something unforeseen tomorrow to get Maddie off.
The Professor and Mary Ann
All that leaves one spot for the team, and the remaining gymnasts are in a bit of an odd position as they are pretty much all only big standouts on one event, which is in part due to the ridiculous strength of the 4-person core and in part due to the depth on each event.
So, where to make a splash? The preferable routines to replace would be Laurie's vault and Simone's bars, and I also think it would be nice to put someone else up for Laurie's floor, because again, that score is a little fantastical, but that doesn't really seem to be what USAG is going for and it's definitely a lower priority. As for whether vault or bars is more important, I think Simone's across-the-board strength make vault the more important from a score standpoint, but Martha will probably want to rest Simone on bars, so that I think will be higher from a Martha standpoint.
Gabby continues not to bring her best to the table. She had wonky turns on floor and a bunch of weird D-score happenings and a fall on beam, which are slightly less important events for her but still doesn't look very good. People (Martha, specifically) keep pulling the "she peaks later in the season" card, but at what point does that not make up for lackluster performances all season? This point in the process last quad, Gabby was consistently top 2, not outside the top 5. She was on an upward trajectory during the domestic season, and that hasn't been the case this year. And if we're letting gymnasts on the team based on how they might improve in the next month, doesn't it make at least as much sense to give that benefit of the doubt to Maggie since she was injured? But the good news for Gabby is that the preferably replaced spots are on her strong events. I think she had the stronger DTY last night when compared to Laurie, and her bars are good for a TF spot to give Simone a rest.
Maggie is looking good post-injury, but she's still racing the clock in terms of being back in time. She and Gabby had fairly even nights, I think, though Gabby is in the lead by 3 tenths. I disagree with them having the same score on beam, because Maggie had the more solid routine once you take into account their falls but only 1 tenth higher in E, but that's not the event that's going to make or break this puzzle. Her vault also tied with Gabby, with Gabby having a bit tighter form and Maggie having a bit better dynamics. Again, I think she had a stronger vault then Laurie. Her bars were okay, not great, sub-in-for-Simone-able, but there would be a deficit. All we know about her floor is that it was a hit, so without having anything to look at, there's no possible discussion of how realistic her scoring was there and how she compared to others, but we do know she has the fourth-highest floor D score. It's just such a shame that she got injured, because she would 90% likely have made herself a lock for the fifth spot by now otherwise.
I had sympathies for Mykayla in the last spot, and a lot of people who didn't previously have joined me in them after last night as she really made a push for herself and was one of only a few athletes to put out her best stuff. She would bring another 6.0+ vault to both the literal and proverbial table as well as a second vault final spot, though it would definitely be harder for her to medal there this time around than it was in Nanning, even if her Amanar returns, especially if Steingruber brings the front double. But even then, let's not forget she has a nice history of scoring better abroad than at home on vault. Her floor scored about what it did in Nanning last night, and I think it was slightly better executed, so I think she's right about in range with maybe a tenth that could be added. And once again, after wondering what her choreographer was smoking the first time I watched it, I now kinda like her floor. Really, in terms of how well the gymnasts performed, Mykayla should have rocketed herself to Rio, but there remains the issue of Simone having to do bars in TF, and doing AA in QF, TF, AA and then 3 EFs would be quite a load. She has definitely made herself a lock for at least alternate, though. But I just love how after not even making Trials in 2012 she came back and busted her butt and is really gunning for this Olympic team.
As for Ragan... I really just don't think it's in the cards for her this year, which is sad, because she's probably my favorite of the ones who had a legitimate chance. She just doesn't really fit into this puzzle- she's sort of this quad's Sarah Finnegan in as much as she'd most likely be on the team if Aly didn't exist. Beam is just pretty well covered, and floor (which she totally should not have been half a point behind Laurie on... but again, I buy that conspiracy theory) is less important this year than vault and bars. She's not committed to Oklahoma until the 2019-2020 season, so I really hope she doesn't follow Sarah Finnegan's footsteps in dropping down to level 10 and not continuing elite, because I think she could totally have success next quad.
So, who for that final spot?
VT: I think all 3 still in the running should be able to outscore Laurie here
UB: Mykayla's not usable. Maggie is sub-in-able while not necessary to put up in quals, making that picture much easier. Gabby is definitely the best here of the 3.
FX: Laurie would outscore Gabby. Maggie and Mykayla I think could both go either way in a scoring battle with Laurie.
Ironically enough, because I was saying I didn't think Gabby fit the whole time coming into Trials, while everybody else is less pro-Gabby after last night, I'm actually more pro-Gabby. I think she could very well outscore Laurie on vault and fits in the bars picture, making her the easiest to slot in on the money events. The problem then becomes UB in quals, which would get messy. She could potentially make the EF, but under all likely circumstances wouldn't medal, and then Simone, Aly, or Laurie couldn't do AA, or Maddie couldn't qualify to the EF, which would be rather pointless, and she has a much more legitimate chance at a medal than Gabby.
Mykayla compliments Maddie well, making quals easy, and would really add to the vault lineup, but then Simone would have to do all 4 in the TF, which, in addition to all the individual finals, would be quite a load.
Maggie would also be a good compliment to Maddie in quals, and could definitely be subbed in for bars in the TF, addressing both problems. I think she should also be able to outscore Laurie on vault and has potential on floor, making her good as a team player spot. In terms of the gymnast who fits the puzzle the best, I still think Maggie takes that role, but her lack of a standout event drags her down.
Gabby slots in the most easily, Mykayla brings a good scoring advantage as well as making the quals puzzle simpler, and Maggie is the most versatile. At this point, I'd still prefer Mykayla or Maggie in the fifth spot, but I can see the advantages of all the potential teams.
Miscellaneous
The Core
Simone had one of her more "meh" nights. Honestly, I was a bit scared when they showed her Cheng- her block was way off to the side and it looked like her hand was close to missing the table. Hope she fixes that tomorrow, I'm more concerned from a safety standpoint there than anything else. Otherwise, her biggest error was of course beam, where she had the wonky wolf turn. Still held it, which is better than she's done in some bad beam situations domestically before, and what Martha would want were that in the team final. And the dismount!!!! Has it always been that high and floaty or have I just been too wrapped up in myself to notice? (I will love you if you get that reference.) She covered well otherwise, and it overall wasn't her best night, but I'd say it was about on par with her title-winning performance in the Worlds AA last year. She still had no falls and the best routines in the country on two events, so even if she wasn't Simone, her place should have been safe.
Aly had a pretty standard day, which puts her toward the top of the mental game tally. She had errors on vault and beam, but put up some of her best work on bars and killed floor. I think her vault was probably her worst of the domestic season so far, so it would be nice to see that back where it was tomorrow. Her scoring was pretty much what can be expected internationally, and she did precisely what she needed to do to keep herself a lock, which is just keep chugging along.
Laurie, on the other hand, was a bit gifted in scoring. Her vault was definitely not the best DTY of the night... I'd say the other ones that were broadcast were pretty much all better. So on that front... I'll be getting to that later. While she had some hiccups, she definitely acquitted herself well on the grit front- she made it through the rest of her bars routine calmly after her major break, and covered fabulously on her LOSO series on beam. I love the way she pulled a Chellsie Memmel 2006 TF and was all, "What error? No wobble, see!" As for her scoring, I saw a conspiracy theory that actually seems rather plausible... there's been a lot of talk going around about how the business side and marketability might affect who goes up for the AA, and maybe Laurie's scores are being inflated so the results override the commercial issue and she gets to be one of the three AAers.
On the #Mashton front, Martha's basically confirmed that Maddie pretty much sealed the deal last night. She's been more than just throwing but slamming down the gauntlet on bars the last couple go-rounds. She's always had the upper hand because we all know Martha is against true specialists on 5-person teams. The thing Ashton had going for her in the full team picture was the better beam hit record, which was erased last night (and then NBC decided to Hollie Vise it, great). It would take something unforeseen tomorrow to get Maddie off.
The Professor and Mary Ann
All that leaves one spot for the team, and the remaining gymnasts are in a bit of an odd position as they are pretty much all only big standouts on one event, which is in part due to the ridiculous strength of the 4-person core and in part due to the depth on each event.
So, where to make a splash? The preferable routines to replace would be Laurie's vault and Simone's bars, and I also think it would be nice to put someone else up for Laurie's floor, because again, that score is a little fantastical, but that doesn't really seem to be what USAG is going for and it's definitely a lower priority. As for whether vault or bars is more important, I think Simone's across-the-board strength make vault the more important from a score standpoint, but Martha will probably want to rest Simone on bars, so that I think will be higher from a Martha standpoint.
Gabby continues not to bring her best to the table. She had wonky turns on floor and a bunch of weird D-score happenings and a fall on beam, which are slightly less important events for her but still doesn't look very good. People (Martha, specifically) keep pulling the "she peaks later in the season" card, but at what point does that not make up for lackluster performances all season? This point in the process last quad, Gabby was consistently top 2, not outside the top 5. She was on an upward trajectory during the domestic season, and that hasn't been the case this year. And if we're letting gymnasts on the team based on how they might improve in the next month, doesn't it make at least as much sense to give that benefit of the doubt to Maggie since she was injured? But the good news for Gabby is that the preferably replaced spots are on her strong events. I think she had the stronger DTY last night when compared to Laurie, and her bars are good for a TF spot to give Simone a rest.
Maggie is looking good post-injury, but she's still racing the clock in terms of being back in time. She and Gabby had fairly even nights, I think, though Gabby is in the lead by 3 tenths. I disagree with them having the same score on beam, because Maggie had the more solid routine once you take into account their falls but only 1 tenth higher in E, but that's not the event that's going to make or break this puzzle. Her vault also tied with Gabby, with Gabby having a bit tighter form and Maggie having a bit better dynamics. Again, I think she had a stronger vault then Laurie. Her bars were okay, not great, sub-in-for-Simone-able, but there would be a deficit. All we know about her floor is that it was a hit, so without having anything to look at, there's no possible discussion of how realistic her scoring was there and how she compared to others, but we do know she has the fourth-highest floor D score. It's just such a shame that she got injured, because she would 90% likely have made herself a lock for the fifth spot by now otherwise.
I had sympathies for Mykayla in the last spot, and a lot of people who didn't previously have joined me in them after last night as she really made a push for herself and was one of only a few athletes to put out her best stuff. She would bring another 6.0+ vault to both the literal and proverbial table as well as a second vault final spot, though it would definitely be harder for her to medal there this time around than it was in Nanning, even if her Amanar returns, especially if Steingruber brings the front double. But even then, let's not forget she has a nice history of scoring better abroad than at home on vault. Her floor scored about what it did in Nanning last night, and I think it was slightly better executed, so I think she's right about in range with maybe a tenth that could be added. And once again, after wondering what her choreographer was smoking the first time I watched it, I now kinda like her floor. Really, in terms of how well the gymnasts performed, Mykayla should have rocketed herself to Rio, but there remains the issue of Simone having to do bars in TF, and doing AA in QF, TF, AA and then 3 EFs would be quite a load. She has definitely made herself a lock for at least alternate, though. But I just love how after not even making Trials in 2012 she came back and busted her butt and is really gunning for this Olympic team.
As for Ragan... I really just don't think it's in the cards for her this year, which is sad, because she's probably my favorite of the ones who had a legitimate chance. She just doesn't really fit into this puzzle- she's sort of this quad's Sarah Finnegan in as much as she'd most likely be on the team if Aly didn't exist. Beam is just pretty well covered, and floor (which she totally should not have been half a point behind Laurie on... but again, I buy that conspiracy theory) is less important this year than vault and bars. She's not committed to Oklahoma until the 2019-2020 season, so I really hope she doesn't follow Sarah Finnegan's footsteps in dropping down to level 10 and not continuing elite, because I think she could totally have success next quad.
So, who for that final spot?
VT: I think all 3 still in the running should be able to outscore Laurie here
UB: Mykayla's not usable. Maggie is sub-in-able while not necessary to put up in quals, making that picture much easier. Gabby is definitely the best here of the 3.
FX: Laurie would outscore Gabby. Maggie and Mykayla I think could both go either way in a scoring battle with Laurie.
Ironically enough, because I was saying I didn't think Gabby fit the whole time coming into Trials, while everybody else is less pro-Gabby after last night, I'm actually more pro-Gabby. I think she could very well outscore Laurie on vault and fits in the bars picture, making her the easiest to slot in on the money events. The problem then becomes UB in quals, which would get messy. She could potentially make the EF, but under all likely circumstances wouldn't medal, and then Simone, Aly, or Laurie couldn't do AA, or Maddie couldn't qualify to the EF, which would be rather pointless, and she has a much more legitimate chance at a medal than Gabby.
Mykayla compliments Maddie well, making quals easy, and would really add to the vault lineup, but then Simone would have to do all 4 in the TF, which, in addition to all the individual finals, would be quite a load.
Maggie would also be a good compliment to Maddie in quals, and could definitely be subbed in for bars in the TF, addressing both problems. I think she should also be able to outscore Laurie on vault and has potential on floor, making her good as a team player spot. In terms of the gymnast who fits the puzzle the best, I still think Maggie takes that role, but her lack of a standout event drags her down.
Gabby slots in the most easily, Mykayla brings a good scoring advantage as well as making the quals puzzle simpler, and Maggie is the most versatile. At this point, I'd still prefer Mykayla or Maggie in the fifth spot, but I can see the advantages of all the potential teams.
Miscellaneous
- Brenna hit bars and THERE IS NO WAY TO SEE IT
- I am just in general feeling twitchy at the lack of videos of every routine I've come to expect from US domestic meets. I hate NBC!
- On the subject of hating NBC, AL CALLED SIMONE GABBY. Can that please do him in?
- I'm so happy Meals is hitting! Can she please be an alternate? Pretty please? Another most any other team would love.
- Christina is competing and was in the background of the broadcast a ton so I got to see her even if none of her routines were shown and she's beating Gowey and Schild in the AA and she's hitting!!!
- MLT just casually popping up all the time. (Even though they never show Meals. Which they should.)
- I loved everyone asking other gymnasts "Could you hear me?" when they were done with their routines
- To quote my sister, "They have a ton of weird floor music this year." I'm not particularly happy with the turn US floor routines have taken this year, they seem either to have no focus with a few crowd-pandering moves thrown in or are just old choreography thrown together.
Thursday, July 7, 2016
'Twas the night before Trials
13 videos of the 7 chosen gymnasts from whom the team will 95% likely be formed were uploaded today, providing a little discussion fodder on the eve before the 2016 Hunger Games- ahem, US Olympic Team Trials Women's Gymnastics.
Simone was not shown on vault or floor, weirdly enough, only on bars and beam. Simone is Simone is Simone, she hit and was super crisp and looks totally ready. There was not a single wobble on her beam, but I'm still wary of that Barani. Her dismount was SO FLOATY!! But anyway, she's Simone and performed in typical Simone fashion, next.
So, Aly. I love the way she landed that front pike super low and then just went "wolf jump, there, what landing issue?" You can also tell she has really put in the numbers on that layout to get it to a real stretched position. At this point, I honestly don't get why it's being downgraded- heck, even at P&Gs she had to submit an inquiry for it to be recognized! Seriously, it's a layout. Her form is Aly form, but that's not the realm of the D-score. What is the reason for downgrading? But still, no controversy where she's concerned, she's a lock, next.
Laurie looked as good as she has all year on vault. It would still be optimal for her not to be used there in the team final, though, so I think that really is going to be an important event for other battles to make the team. Her beam looked absolutely gorgeous, once again. She has downgraded her dismount from a BHS+BHS combo to just a round off into her double pike, potentially giving Aly a bit more stock in the second-beamer race. And she rounds off the locks. So to the races for the other two spots.
#Mashton
From the looks of things, this race is exactly the same as it has been the whole time. Maddie's got the difficulty edge, Ashton out-executes her, and Madison does all four events while Ashton eschews vault and floor. In who-brings-the-bigger-bars-score terms, Ashton gets the spot. In what-Martha-likes terms, Madison gets the spot because she does all four events. And we all know the latter terms are stronger than the former. I would be shocked if a true specialist is named. Leaving us with...
Gabby vs. Maggie
I was in favor of Maggie over Gabby back in January, and then only picked Gabby in May when I went with an entirely different team structure which has now fallen through. So post-P&Gs, I've been consistently pro-Maggie, and that's become an increasingly popular mindset. Here's the logic: Gabby is only consistently in contributing range on bars, so it makes more sense to bring Maggie who can contribute on multiple events. This is the battle where I think vault will really come into play, as I was referring to with Laurie up there. Which is where things could get interesting, and where we might actually have gotten some insight from the videos. Both gymnasts have been making noises all year about bringing out an Amanar, and Maggie only displayed a DTY in podium training. Unless she pulls a move like Aly at Classics last year, it looks like she's not going to get an Amanar nod. If I were the one picking the team, this would be my position: if Gabby does an Amanar, she goes regardless of Maggie's vault; if Gabby doesn't do an Amanar and Maggie does, Maggie goes; if neither Gabby nor Maggie does an Amanar, battle with advantage Maggie. I do think that even with just a DTY, she could very well outscore Gabby and Laurie on vault, and if she has floor back in fighting shape, she should outscore Laurie on floor, still giving her two events with potential for the lead off bars spot if they don't want to put Simone there. However, if I really use Martha-logic, I do think Gabby has the Martha advantage because... she just seems to.
Honestly, at this point, I've got a fair bit of sympathy for Mykayla in the last spot. Her floor scores have been the same as Laurie's, but I think that's a bit of a case of Laurie getting a boost. Mykayla does have a bit an interesting tendency to score at least as well internationally while her teammates experience a slight drop. She also is, of course, the US's only other hope for a vault medal, and would neatly finish off the vault lineup. The only real downside is her inclusion would mean Simone would have to do bars in the team final, which is not Martha's preference.
I do think Martha's team is most likely going to be Simone, Aly, Laurie, Maddie, and Gabby, even if it's not one I think is the best option. But then again, we all thought we knew what she was going to do last year, and then she went and named Brenna to the team. So who can really say?
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Post-P&Gs Worlds Team Situation
Right now, there are basically eight gymnasts in contention for the six gymnasts and one alternate on the US World Championship team. Those eight are Simone Biles, Kyla Ross, Maggie Nichols, Alyssa Baumann, Mykayla Skinner, Maddie Kocian, Ashton Locklear, and Brenna Dowell. People are writing Brenna off, but there's no reason she'd be named to the national team if she wasn't in Worlds contention. People are also being a bit sensationalist about Alyssa, but according to Landi, she'll be back for selection camp just fine. Simone and Kyla are locks barring their own health. Simone will contribute on vault, beam, and floor and be a backup on bars. Kyla would ideally only be used on bars and beam but would also be backup on the other events if we need her.
So, choosing the best combination of four of the other gymnasts means we have to consider how well their specialty events fit into the current slots. Maggie and Mykayla could both compliment Kyla's specialties well on vault and floor. Mykayla vaults a Cheng and Maggie had a gorgeous DTY day two of P&Gs. Mykayla could be backup on beam, and Maggie's a great all around team player. Alyssa's beam would be a great addition to the lineup and she did herself a big favor with her outings on floor at P&Gs. She could absolutely be used as the table-setter there. Maddie K and Ashton Locklear both share the same two-event specialty, bars and beam. Both have absolutely gorgeous bars sets to fill in the gaps on that event, so Pan Ams will be a critical performance for both of them. Brenna's said she will be coming back all around at selection camp, so if she actually does come back on all four events, she could be well in contention. Her vault especially could help the team outside of bars. I get the feeling Brenna isn't really alternate material right now, she's either completely on the team or completely off.
The Pan Ams team was clearly strategically selected as a trial for Worlds. Simone and Kyla don't need any more observation from Martha, so they are at home preparing to arrive at camp as strong as possible. Brenna has already had plenty enough international experience, and apparently she, Al Fong, and Martha agreed she didn't need the exposure and it would be better to stick to training and let her ankle heal as much as possible. All the other hopefuls are in Canada except for Alyssa, who was supposed to be. I think that if she shows herself well at camp, she should have no problem snagging a spot, but Pan Ams wasn't as critical for her anyway. It will be important for Mykayla and Maggie, and absolutely critical for Ashton and Maddie K. Martha will definitely want to see what the Pan Ams judges do with Mykayla before officially naming her to a Worlds team, and she'll want to be sure Maggie won't repeat her errors from Tokyo earlier this year. Also, Maggie needs to prove her events are worth taking. Pan Ams is most critical for Maddie K and Ashton, who will almost certainly be fighting for the same spot unless Maddie K shows she can do other events at least in qual, and even then I'd be surprised to see them on the same team. Bars will be the clutch event for these two. If Ashton can outscore Maddie K by as much as she did at Classics and night one of P&Gs on bars, she would look to be the obvious choice. However, beam will also be of note for Martha- she will likely want to have a team player who could go backup on beam if needed if she can have one. If both can put up decent beam sets, bars really should be the big deciding factor. And, of course, Martha wants to make sure neither will crumble under the international pressure.
Right now, I'd say four spots on the team are practically set. Simone and Kyla are going. Ashton or Maddie K will go as a bars specialist. Mykayla will compliment Kyla on vault and floor, though Maggie might be able to overtake her. This leaves two spots for Ashton or Maddie K, whoever doesn't make the first bars spot, Maggie, Alyssa, and Brenna. Alyssa will, I think, likely be on the team as our table-setter on beam and floor. Her routines will definitely be a good place to start on both events and beam especially is a place the US needs to target this year, so her prowess there will probably be her ticket to China. As our third-best all arounder, Maggie would seem to be the obvious choice, but she really is just better alternate material. Her abilities just aren't the best fit for the team's needs. However, if she needs to be named to the official team, it certainly wouldn't hurt the US team's chances any. She just serves the team better as an alternate. As I said earlier, Maddie K would have to show she could do other events in quals for her and Ashton to be on the same team. Vault in particular would be a good event to have a backup in case anything weird happens with Mykayla's Cheng. Even if she just has an FTY and a super watered down floor, those events would basically only be there as a backup in qual. If she shows that at camp, she could be a very good addition. In an ideal situation, Brenna would be my pick for the final team member, as her vault and bars complement Alyssa's beam and floor nicely and could both bring in very good scores. A third 6.3+ D score vault would be a huge asset and so would her jam-packed bars routine, though I think she maybe needs to just do the routine without trying to connect the Church to the Pak and maybe even straddle the Pak. Plus, she could get the piked double front named the Dowell!! (No, it is not named after Veronica Wagner). While her errors on night two could not have helped her, her determination and the way she fought through the routine could not have hurt her, either, so I hope she's given a fair shot. If Brenna isn't back and ready, both other options are good though and will still be gold-medal worthy barring implosion.
Right now, with the uncertainties of Brenna's competitive potential and Maddie K's all around status, I'd name Simone, Kyla, Mykayla, Ashton, Alyssa, and Maggie:
VT- (Alyssa), (Maggie/Kyla), Maggie/Kyla, Mykayla, Simone
UB- (Alyssa), (Simone), Maggie, Kyla, Ashton
BB- (Ashton), (Maggie), Alyssa, Simone, Kyla
FX- (Maggie), (Kyla), Alyssa, Mykayla, Simone
But, as we all know, it's not over 'til the fat lady sings.
So, choosing the best combination of four of the other gymnasts means we have to consider how well their specialty events fit into the current slots. Maggie and Mykayla could both compliment Kyla's specialties well on vault and floor. Mykayla vaults a Cheng and Maggie had a gorgeous DTY day two of P&Gs. Mykayla could be backup on beam, and Maggie's a great all around team player. Alyssa's beam would be a great addition to the lineup and she did herself a big favor with her outings on floor at P&Gs. She could absolutely be used as the table-setter there. Maddie K and Ashton Locklear both share the same two-event specialty, bars and beam. Both have absolutely gorgeous bars sets to fill in the gaps on that event, so Pan Ams will be a critical performance for both of them. Brenna's said she will be coming back all around at selection camp, so if she actually does come back on all four events, she could be well in contention. Her vault especially could help the team outside of bars. I get the feeling Brenna isn't really alternate material right now, she's either completely on the team or completely off.
The Pan Ams team was clearly strategically selected as a trial for Worlds. Simone and Kyla don't need any more observation from Martha, so they are at home preparing to arrive at camp as strong as possible. Brenna has already had plenty enough international experience, and apparently she, Al Fong, and Martha agreed she didn't need the exposure and it would be better to stick to training and let her ankle heal as much as possible. All the other hopefuls are in Canada except for Alyssa, who was supposed to be. I think that if she shows herself well at camp, she should have no problem snagging a spot, but Pan Ams wasn't as critical for her anyway. It will be important for Mykayla and Maggie, and absolutely critical for Ashton and Maddie K. Martha will definitely want to see what the Pan Ams judges do with Mykayla before officially naming her to a Worlds team, and she'll want to be sure Maggie won't repeat her errors from Tokyo earlier this year. Also, Maggie needs to prove her events are worth taking. Pan Ams is most critical for Maddie K and Ashton, who will almost certainly be fighting for the same spot unless Maddie K shows she can do other events at least in qual, and even then I'd be surprised to see them on the same team. Bars will be the clutch event for these two. If Ashton can outscore Maddie K by as much as she did at Classics and night one of P&Gs on bars, she would look to be the obvious choice. However, beam will also be of note for Martha- she will likely want to have a team player who could go backup on beam if needed if she can have one. If both can put up decent beam sets, bars really should be the big deciding factor. And, of course, Martha wants to make sure neither will crumble under the international pressure.
Right now, I'd say four spots on the team are practically set. Simone and Kyla are going. Ashton or Maddie K will go as a bars specialist. Mykayla will compliment Kyla on vault and floor, though Maggie might be able to overtake her. This leaves two spots for Ashton or Maddie K, whoever doesn't make the first bars spot, Maggie, Alyssa, and Brenna. Alyssa will, I think, likely be on the team as our table-setter on beam and floor. Her routines will definitely be a good place to start on both events and beam especially is a place the US needs to target this year, so her prowess there will probably be her ticket to China. As our third-best all arounder, Maggie would seem to be the obvious choice, but she really is just better alternate material. Her abilities just aren't the best fit for the team's needs. However, if she needs to be named to the official team, it certainly wouldn't hurt the US team's chances any. She just serves the team better as an alternate. As I said earlier, Maddie K would have to show she could do other events in quals for her and Ashton to be on the same team. Vault in particular would be a good event to have a backup in case anything weird happens with Mykayla's Cheng. Even if she just has an FTY and a super watered down floor, those events would basically only be there as a backup in qual. If she shows that at camp, she could be a very good addition. In an ideal situation, Brenna would be my pick for the final team member, as her vault and bars complement Alyssa's beam and floor nicely and could both bring in very good scores. A third 6.3+ D score vault would be a huge asset and so would her jam-packed bars routine, though I think she maybe needs to just do the routine without trying to connect the Church to the Pak and maybe even straddle the Pak. Plus, she could get the piked double front named the Dowell!! (No, it is not named after Veronica Wagner). While her errors on night two could not have helped her, her determination and the way she fought through the routine could not have hurt her, either, so I hope she's given a fair shot. If Brenna isn't back and ready, both other options are good though and will still be gold-medal worthy barring implosion.
Right now, with the uncertainties of Brenna's competitive potential and Maddie K's all around status, I'd name Simone, Kyla, Mykayla, Ashton, Alyssa, and Maggie:
VT- (Alyssa), (Maggie/Kyla), Maggie/Kyla, Mykayla, Simone
UB- (Alyssa), (Simone), Maggie, Kyla, Ashton
BB- (Ashton), (Maggie), Alyssa, Simone, Kyla
FX- (Maggie), (Kyla), Alyssa, Mykayla, Simone
But, as we all know, it's not over 'til the fat lady sings.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Classics Wrap-Up
Last night was Classics, the official start to the US Elite season. Finally! As with tradition, many gymnasts randomly scratched, such as Madison Kocian who decided to only compete bars and beam, we had two last-minute dropouts in the form of Peyton Ernst, who somehow was able to injure herself between arrival and the first training, and Lexie Priessman, who tore a ligament on her beam dismount in the evening practice, we had splats, and some big surprises to take titles. Overall, it was a fun day of gymnastics viewing!
Juniors
Despite the absence of Bailie Key, the junior fight was a major battle and explosive gymnastics was still on display. Plus, it led to a much more interesting battle for the title.
Classics displayed the huge well of talent the US has in its gymnasts who won't be old enough for this Olympic cycle. The US really has perfected a system to run out super-talented little ones who just need to make the improvements that come with time experience.
Jordan Chiles surprised by taking the title last night, despite not being age-eligible for Rio's 2016 Olympics. Jordan made waves this summer when this training video was released from the ranch showing huge upgrades in the works. Many worried for little Jordan's safety. However, Jordan only displayed her double Arabian and BHS+LOSO+LOSO series at Classics, so hopefully these are more long-term upgrades. She shows incredible talent and potential and is definitely one to watch. Jordan had a clean meet last night, with one of the top DTYs of the juniors. She is definitely a powerful gymnast, but has nice elegance and some nice basic dance displayed in her beam and floor which could definitely be built upon. Jordan shows potential on all four events, and we just hope her pacing is well handled.
Deanne Soza, who tied for third in the all around, is another exciting gem in the US junior landscape. She also boasts a DTY on vault, which is nicely performed. Deanne was the junior silver medalist last night on the uneven bars, which is a key event for the US. Her routine includes an Ezhova, which makes me very happy! Her Pirates of the Caribbean floor music makes her a gymternet favorite, and she performs nicely on the event. Her lowest scoring event last night was beam, but Deanne shows great potential there as well. She already has a front aerial+front aerial+side aerial connection, and she just shuffled on her front tuck and BHS+LOSO. Her BHS+BHS+double tuck dismount connection was stuck, but landed in a squat. She shows the grit needed for beam, she just needs more experience.
Twistars's new phenom, Delanie Harkness, made a great showing for herself last night. Her vault needs some work- she blocks at the very back of the table and has to pike down the landing. She shows great potential on all the other events, though, and Geddert has lots of time to work on vault. She was first in her age group on bars at JO Nationals this year, and she definitely showed promise yesterday. On beam, she fell on her aerial cartwheel, but otherwise looked very strong. Her floor was also clean, and I just love her ending choreography! Mostly, Delanie just needs to upgrade and gain experience.
Morgan Hurd, the adorable bespectacled little gem from First State, also was great on the podium last night. She showed wonderful composure. Her FTY was a bit wonky on the block, but she pulled it around. Her main problem on bars is missing handstands. Morgan also doesn't have a high bar to low bar transition, so she loses CR there. On beam, Morgan received a high 8.9 execution score. She had some wobbles throughout the routine but remained calm. Her floor was also beautiful and to the Game of Thrones music Grace Waguespack used last year! Her biggest problem was an uncontrolled first pass. Like Delanie, Morgan just needs to use her time wisely.
Maile O'Keefe also showed strong routines yesterday, despite not becoming senior until 2018. Her beam was one of the greatest of the night, and she placed sixth on the event with a 14.350. Maile also placed second on floor with her routine to Canadian favorite music "Torn." Maile placed sixth in the all around.
Plenty of other juniors from the first session put up memorable routines. Alexis Vasquez of Chow's turns senior next year and only competed on two events. Her FTY was very nice, but lacked distance from the table. Her bars, which I personally prefer to teammate Norah's, were solid and nicely executed. We will look forward to watching Alexis at Nationals later this month. Sydney Johnson-Scharpf was one of the fan favorites of this Classics. She didn't seem to have the same spark to me this year, especially on floor. Her beam had all her lovely skills, but a few wobbles throughout. Sydney's appearance at Nationals will be much anticipated. Christina Desiderio didn't have the meet of her life last night, but still placed eighth all around last night and there was plenty commendable. She competed a DTY on vault, which was landed with a significant knee bend which resulted in a step out of bounds, but it definitely looks workable. Bars has some work to be done, but she has a huge Tkatchev and good swing. Christina came to grief on beam last night here she had an uncharacteristic fall. She also debuted a new floor last night, and it was performed very well! I believe Christina has it in her and will make her splash in two years!
Some of the best juniors for 2016 competed in the senior session last night and had great performances. Emily Gaskins is another gymternet favorite due to her beautiful balletic style. Unfortunately, Emily fell in her floor routine, which she also showed inconsistency on in Jesolo earlier this year. Emily did not debut her DTY shown in her camp video, but received the highest score for an FTY of the juniors. Beam was her best routine of the night. She has a very nice Y-spin in the works, but wobbled on it last night. Other than that, it was a nice routine. She definitely has great potential on beam. Emily also did well on bars. She began with a shaky start, missing handstand on a Stalder full and struggling through a dead hang on a hecht transition, but she cleaned up afterward to have a nice rest of her routine.
Jazmyn Foberg was the surprise of the juniors last night. She placed fifth in the all around last night. Bars was easily her weakest event, where Jazmyn was too far on her Pak. She almost pulled it off as a cool Pak-clear hip connection, but she missed handstand and lost swing. She also needs to work on her handstands. Jazmyn also competed a DTY, but she underrotated the salto and had to stumble out of it. Her beam was her best routine of the day, and she scored a 14.250.
Ragan Smith is my personal favorite of the juniors from the senior session. She best embodied the splat-fest testing ground nature of Classics. Ragan tried a DTY on vault, but she was brought to her knees. Ragan also fell on a BHS+BHS+layout connection on beam. She also successfully added a double wolf turn and dismounted with a BHS+BHS+double pike connection, which was landed low. Ragan has shown great improvements on bars since last year. Her swing is much better. She still has some work to do, but I think she could turn into a good bar worker. Ragan was the junior floor champion last night with her adorable routine to "Puttin' on the Ritz!" It's very well choreographed and she completed all her skills successfully. She will definitely be one to watch at Nationals!
Gymternet favorite Norah Flately came in tied third last night. One thing that impressed me from Norah's gymnastics last night was her vaulting! She only compete an FTY, but it was much improved from her vault at Pac Rims! Her bars were solid, but she missed several handstands. I think she's ready for inbars, though! That is definitely a place where she could upgrade. Her floor also was a good effort and nicely performed, but she received a .3 OOB penalty. Norah won the beam title with a 15.100, but the really exciting thing is it wasn't a very good routine for her. Norah can do so much better, having broken many connections. That 15.100 could absolutely be shattered by Norah!
Nia Dennis, who was considered by many to be the favorite for the title, came away with the silver. She had a fall on floor, where she also had a fall at Pac Rims. She never had problems on floor before, so this is a bit worrying. Nia was in the top two on the other events, however. Her DTY resulted in a large hop back, but was very secure. She also came in second on beam, despite stumbling on her opening double wolf turn. her standing Arabian was, as always, flawless, and she also had a beautiful BHS+layout series. She showed great flexibility and maintained good fluidity and connections. Nia won the title on bars with her high-flying releases and great connections. She also upgraded her dismount to a double layout, which is great since she turns senior next year! Nia is definitely a shining star in USAG.
Seniors
Brenna Dowell had a really rough go of it last night. She only competed bars, and made major errors there. She has changed the composition of her routine, and I prefer this to her previous composition. She bent her knees on both her Ezhova and Pak. She chose not to finish her routine. It will be a red flag next to her name she really doesn't need. Her performance at Nationals will be critical for her.
Nica Hults only competed bars. She put up a solid routine, but placed sixth on the event. Her execution wasn't perfect, but since she has had some inconsistency on this event, it's probably best for her to have lots of experience. Beam will be the important performance for her.
Alyssa Baumann did not compete her full potential beam routine and scored only a 14.300. She missed quite a few of her connections and did not attempt her aerial front+aerial front+aerial cartwheel series. Beam was considered her ticket to Worlds, and so she will need to provide a more solid routine at Nationals. She did upgrade her vault to a DTY, so that is great for her.
Maddie Kocian only competed bars and beam last night because of her ankle injury. She scored a very high 15.400 on bars and placed second on the event. She had some leg separations, especially on her transitions, but was otherwise very clean. She also had a great stuck landing. This was definitely a great statement to make for Maddie. Beam did not go quite so well. As like last year, Maddie fell on her standing Arabian. She also had a large wobble on her front aerial, but settled down after there. She has beautiful work on beam but a lot of times she lets her mind get to her. She should really only compete bars and beam at Nationals if her ankle is this big a problem.
Amelia Hundley had a mixed senior debut. She of course had surgery, and so she did not have all of the work of before. Amelia was strongly downgraded on vault and floor. Her vault was only an FTY. None of her D scores reached a 6.0. Her best event was floor, where she scored a 14.250 to place fourth. She had a beautiful opening double layout. Amelia has also changed her floor music from last year. Sadly, Amelia's injury came at an inopportune time for her senior debut.
Mykayla Skinner had some issues yesterday on her pet events. On floor, Mykayla fell on her dismount, a full-in. After her Moors and double double, Mykayla did a 1 1/2 to double full. This seems a bit out of character, both the fall and the downgrade. We'll just have to wait and see with her. Mykayla also had a new floor routine. On vault, Mykayla one-armed her Cheng again. MYKAYLA, YOU HAD A CREDITABLE BLOCK EARLIER THIS YEAR! GET BACK TO THAT POINT!! She also no longer has her Amanar from Jesolo. Something seems fishy.... In stranger news, Mykayla was solid on bars and beam. Her bars were rife with deductions, but she did have nice swing. Her beam was solid, with only a few small wobbles. If she can get her strong events solid, Mykayla might be able to place in the all around at Nationals.
Maggie Nichols had a surprise third place finish at Classics. Her consistency was her key. Maggie's high score of the day was surprisingly a 14.700 on bars, despite an unusual stall on her Pak where she held a handstand-ish shape. However, she placed best on floor, where she came in third with a score of 14.300. One upgrade did sneak its way into her set, the Grigoras on beam.
The biggest surprise of the night was Ashton Locklear of Everest. Ashton only competed bars and beam, but made a huge splash on those events. She was the champion on bars last night with a monster score of 15.700. Her d-score is a 6.8, and last night she received a stick bonus for her impeccable landing. She also placed fourth on beam. This could put her name in the mix for Worlds, and I'm sure it got Martha talking!
Kyla Ross had a strong showing yesterday to come in second, but she still has room to improve. The big news regarding Kyla coming into Classics was an upgraded whip+double Arabian pass on floor, which Kyla competed without the following stag jump. However, she also competed it at the beginning on her competition, so one has to wonder whether her endurance will hold when floor is her last event, as it will most definitely be if she qualifies to the all around final at Worlds this year. Kyla had a very clean and stuck vault, but not as well executed as last year. Kyla also had a beautifully executed bars routine, but without her inbars. She has said that is a goal for Nationals. She also tied with Simone for the top score on beam. Kyla placed in the top three on every event, and definitely looked ready for the season.
Simone Biles cemented herself as the favorite for Worlds this year. She opened her competition with her official announcement that she is in fact not human with her floor routine. Her passes were a double double, Biles, double layout, and full in. Normally I would whine that now she had to add an aerial to her routine, but I legitimately don't care when those are the tumbling passes. She is seriously not human. Simone was able to score a 15.800 for her routine. Seriously, even with domestic overscoring, that is the Frankenstein of monster scores. Simone also places first on vault and beam. Her Amanar doesn't get quite the height of last year it appears, but it is still like a rocket off the table. Her Lopez was underrotated last night, so that will be something to watch for at Nationals. Simone displayed her packed routine on beam, but had a bit of a stumble on her BHS+LOSO+LOSO. This definitely has Worlds potential if it can be done cleanly, though. Her wolf turn was the best I've ever seen it. Simone had some trouble on bars, and she told us coming in at had taken a hit with her shoulder. She had a stall on her Weiler and didn't swing to horizontal on her Maloney, but she does appear to have worked on the little things such as keeping her legs together and her toes pointed. Even with some weaker bars work, Simone smashed the competition and the 60 barrier, scoring a 61.700. Also, like with Norah's beam, Simone has more to give, which is super exciting.
The biggest mystery coming into Classics was Rachel Gowey's performance. Would she blow everyone away with her Chow-trained upgrades? Would she crash and burn? Ultimately, she did neither. Rachel had a good performance, not astounding in either way. On her first event, Rachel stumbled back on her BHS+LOSO+LOSO, but calmed down for the rest of her routine to place third. Her triple twist dismount wasn't quite fully rotated, but the interior of her routine was great. On floor, Rachel debuted her 3 1/2 twist. She got it safely around, but she was also uncontrolled on the landing. She did have a beautiful Gogean, though, and the rest of her passes were well controlled. It was a bit low on difficulty though, but if she can control the 3 1/2, she should still score well. Gowey's bars were nice, but she did not score well. Her biggest problems were missed handstands and flexed feet. She will still go into Nationals as the wild card.
Looking ahead to Worlds...
Ultimately, Classics doesn't mean that much in the grand scheme of things. However, that doesn't mean they are inconsequential. Brenna now has a red flag by her name she didn't need, Mykayla has to prove herself when many thought she didn't before, and Ashton Locklear basically just threw herself a giant coming out party.
Simone and Kyla are locks for the team barring their own bad health. Simone has monster routines that will bring in huge scores and will likely walk away with at least one individual gold. Heck, she has the potential to walk away with three individual golds and a team gold. Kyla will bring stability, especially a stable beam routine, which is the weak spot of this year's US team.
On vault, the US could potentially be finding itself looking for strong workers. Simone should bring in the top score on vault both individually and of the team final, so that's definitely a great place to start. Earlier, the US was looking to be overrun with safe high-difficulty vaults. Now, that doesn't seem so strong. Rachel fell on vault last night, but if she can perform it consistently, it can definitely be an asset for selection. Mykayla has to BLOCK OFF BOTH HANDS AGAIN (seriously, what is up with her? why have her block and difficulty both devolved from last year?) but can put herself back into the top of the running again. Brenna didn't vault at Classics, but she was another potential strong vault this year. I will be an important event for her at Nationals, assuming she does compete the all around.
Bars was pleasingly strong at Classics. Kyla is of course glorious on this event. She will bring in a great score and her experience will be huge for Martha. She likely will take the team captain spot this year. Ashton Locklear now definitely has to be in the discussion and the back of Martha's mind. Her huge d-score can definitely help the team a ton. Maddie Kocian is also in great shape for a bars specialist spot. If Maddie doesn't end up doing the all around, I think it will be unlikely for both to make the US team due to Martha wanting to put up the maximum number of gymnasts per event in qualifications. If it is only one or the other, beam could make the difference. Peyton also could swing well on bars, and if she does well on beam, could take a UB/BB specialist spot for Worlds. Assuming she is okay for the rest of the season? Brenna did not do herself any favors yesterday, but if she can do her bars routine without imploding and competes well and vault, Brenna should be in good standing. Rachel had nice bars, but if she can't hit her handstands, she will be slaughtered, unfortunately, because this could be an event where she could contribute well otherwise.
Beam will be interesting. Kyla will again provide consistency here among a crop of some new gymnasts. Simone has proved dependable on beam, so she could definitely help the team this year on beam. With her upgrades, if she gets everything under control she can bring in a monster score. Rachel Gowey performed a strong routine last night despite a slight stumble on her acro series. If she can keep improving and pull it all together, Rachel could definitely make a strong statement for herself on beam. Alyssa Baumann needs to bring her difficulty back up and be consistent to make Nanning if the others will continue performing the way they did last night. Ashton Locklear made a case for herself on this event as well last night. A few more consistent performances on these two events and she could find herself on the team. Peyton also is one who could be brought for good beam work if she can prove consistency.
Floor is super strong for this team. Remember Kyla made the floor final in Antwerp! Simone likely won't be able to hit 15.800 internationally, but a score above 15.000 would absolutely be likely. She, at this moment, looks poised to repeat as floor champion. If Skinner can compete her set without major errors, she will be able to bring in a high score as well. Kyla scored well at Classics and made finals last year, so she could definitely be a team player her as well. Brenna could also be a good team player on floor if she does come back to do all around at Nationals. Rachel also has the potential for a good score despite low difficulty if she can bring her landings under control.
Alright, I feel like this will be wildly inaccurate, but here's a Worlds team prediction:
Biles, Ross, Gowey, Kocian, Skinner, Dowell
VT: Gowey/Dowell/Skinner, Gowey/Dowell/Skinner, Biles
UB: Dowell, Ross, Kocian
BB: Biles, Gowey, Ross
FX: Dowell/Skinner/Gowey/Ross, Dowell/Skinner/Gowey/Ross, Biles
Ultimately, unless Kyla and Simone both are physically unable to compete, the US should be able to stroll away with the gold.
Juniors
Despite the absence of Bailie Key, the junior fight was a major battle and explosive gymnastics was still on display. Plus, it led to a much more interesting battle for the title.
Classics displayed the huge well of talent the US has in its gymnasts who won't be old enough for this Olympic cycle. The US really has perfected a system to run out super-talented little ones who just need to make the improvements that come with time experience.
Jordan Chiles surprised by taking the title last night, despite not being age-eligible for Rio's 2016 Olympics. Jordan made waves this summer when this training video was released from the ranch showing huge upgrades in the works. Many worried for little Jordan's safety. However, Jordan only displayed her double Arabian and BHS+LOSO+LOSO series at Classics, so hopefully these are more long-term upgrades. She shows incredible talent and potential and is definitely one to watch. Jordan had a clean meet last night, with one of the top DTYs of the juniors. She is definitely a powerful gymnast, but has nice elegance and some nice basic dance displayed in her beam and floor which could definitely be built upon. Jordan shows potential on all four events, and we just hope her pacing is well handled.
Deanne Soza, who tied for third in the all around, is another exciting gem in the US junior landscape. She also boasts a DTY on vault, which is nicely performed. Deanne was the junior silver medalist last night on the uneven bars, which is a key event for the US. Her routine includes an Ezhova, which makes me very happy! Her Pirates of the Caribbean floor music makes her a gymternet favorite, and she performs nicely on the event. Her lowest scoring event last night was beam, but Deanne shows great potential there as well. She already has a front aerial+front aerial+side aerial connection, and she just shuffled on her front tuck and BHS+LOSO. Her BHS+BHS+double tuck dismount connection was stuck, but landed in a squat. She shows the grit needed for beam, she just needs more experience.
Twistars's new phenom, Delanie Harkness, made a great showing for herself last night. Her vault needs some work- she blocks at the very back of the table and has to pike down the landing. She shows great potential on all the other events, though, and Geddert has lots of time to work on vault. She was first in her age group on bars at JO Nationals this year, and she definitely showed promise yesterday. On beam, she fell on her aerial cartwheel, but otherwise looked very strong. Her floor was also clean, and I just love her ending choreography! Mostly, Delanie just needs to upgrade and gain experience.
Morgan Hurd, the adorable bespectacled little gem from First State, also was great on the podium last night. She showed wonderful composure. Her FTY was a bit wonky on the block, but she pulled it around. Her main problem on bars is missing handstands. Morgan also doesn't have a high bar to low bar transition, so she loses CR there. On beam, Morgan received a high 8.9 execution score. She had some wobbles throughout the routine but remained calm. Her floor was also beautiful and to the Game of Thrones music Grace Waguespack used last year! Her biggest problem was an uncontrolled first pass. Like Delanie, Morgan just needs to use her time wisely.
Maile O'Keefe also showed strong routines yesterday, despite not becoming senior until 2018. Her beam was one of the greatest of the night, and she placed sixth on the event with a 14.350. Maile also placed second on floor with her routine to Canadian favorite music "Torn." Maile placed sixth in the all around.
Plenty of other juniors from the first session put up memorable routines. Alexis Vasquez of Chow's turns senior next year and only competed on two events. Her FTY was very nice, but lacked distance from the table. Her bars, which I personally prefer to teammate Norah's, were solid and nicely executed. We will look forward to watching Alexis at Nationals later this month. Sydney Johnson-Scharpf was one of the fan favorites of this Classics. She didn't seem to have the same spark to me this year, especially on floor. Her beam had all her lovely skills, but a few wobbles throughout. Sydney's appearance at Nationals will be much anticipated. Christina Desiderio didn't have the meet of her life last night, but still placed eighth all around last night and there was plenty commendable. She competed a DTY on vault, which was landed with a significant knee bend which resulted in a step out of bounds, but it definitely looks workable. Bars has some work to be done, but she has a huge Tkatchev and good swing. Christina came to grief on beam last night here she had an uncharacteristic fall. She also debuted a new floor last night, and it was performed very well! I believe Christina has it in her and will make her splash in two years!
Some of the best juniors for 2016 competed in the senior session last night and had great performances. Emily Gaskins is another gymternet favorite due to her beautiful balletic style. Unfortunately, Emily fell in her floor routine, which she also showed inconsistency on in Jesolo earlier this year. Emily did not debut her DTY shown in her camp video, but received the highest score for an FTY of the juniors. Beam was her best routine of the night. She has a very nice Y-spin in the works, but wobbled on it last night. Other than that, it was a nice routine. She definitely has great potential on beam. Emily also did well on bars. She began with a shaky start, missing handstand on a Stalder full and struggling through a dead hang on a hecht transition, but she cleaned up afterward to have a nice rest of her routine.
Jazmyn Foberg was the surprise of the juniors last night. She placed fifth in the all around last night. Bars was easily her weakest event, where Jazmyn was too far on her Pak. She almost pulled it off as a cool Pak-clear hip connection, but she missed handstand and lost swing. She also needs to work on her handstands. Jazmyn also competed a DTY, but she underrotated the salto and had to stumble out of it. Her beam was her best routine of the day, and she scored a 14.250.
Ragan Smith is my personal favorite of the juniors from the senior session. She best embodied the splat-fest testing ground nature of Classics. Ragan tried a DTY on vault, but she was brought to her knees. Ragan also fell on a BHS+BHS+layout connection on beam. She also successfully added a double wolf turn and dismounted with a BHS+BHS+double pike connection, which was landed low. Ragan has shown great improvements on bars since last year. Her swing is much better. She still has some work to do, but I think she could turn into a good bar worker. Ragan was the junior floor champion last night with her adorable routine to "Puttin' on the Ritz!" It's very well choreographed and she completed all her skills successfully. She will definitely be one to watch at Nationals!
Gymternet favorite Norah Flately came in tied third last night. One thing that impressed me from Norah's gymnastics last night was her vaulting! She only compete an FTY, but it was much improved from her vault at Pac Rims! Her bars were solid, but she missed several handstands. I think she's ready for inbars, though! That is definitely a place where she could upgrade. Her floor also was a good effort and nicely performed, but she received a .3 OOB penalty. Norah won the beam title with a 15.100, but the really exciting thing is it wasn't a very good routine for her. Norah can do so much better, having broken many connections. That 15.100 could absolutely be shattered by Norah!
Nia Dennis, who was considered by many to be the favorite for the title, came away with the silver. She had a fall on floor, where she also had a fall at Pac Rims. She never had problems on floor before, so this is a bit worrying. Nia was in the top two on the other events, however. Her DTY resulted in a large hop back, but was very secure. She also came in second on beam, despite stumbling on her opening double wolf turn. her standing Arabian was, as always, flawless, and she also had a beautiful BHS+layout series. She showed great flexibility and maintained good fluidity and connections. Nia won the title on bars with her high-flying releases and great connections. She also upgraded her dismount to a double layout, which is great since she turns senior next year! Nia is definitely a shining star in USAG.
Seniors
Brenna Dowell had a really rough go of it last night. She only competed bars, and made major errors there. She has changed the composition of her routine, and I prefer this to her previous composition. She bent her knees on both her Ezhova and Pak. She chose not to finish her routine. It will be a red flag next to her name she really doesn't need. Her performance at Nationals will be critical for her.
Nica Hults only competed bars. She put up a solid routine, but placed sixth on the event. Her execution wasn't perfect, but since she has had some inconsistency on this event, it's probably best for her to have lots of experience. Beam will be the important performance for her.
Alyssa Baumann did not compete her full potential beam routine and scored only a 14.300. She missed quite a few of her connections and did not attempt her aerial front+aerial front+aerial cartwheel series. Beam was considered her ticket to Worlds, and so she will need to provide a more solid routine at Nationals. She did upgrade her vault to a DTY, so that is great for her.
Maddie Kocian only competed bars and beam last night because of her ankle injury. She scored a very high 15.400 on bars and placed second on the event. She had some leg separations, especially on her transitions, but was otherwise very clean. She also had a great stuck landing. This was definitely a great statement to make for Maddie. Beam did not go quite so well. As like last year, Maddie fell on her standing Arabian. She also had a large wobble on her front aerial, but settled down after there. She has beautiful work on beam but a lot of times she lets her mind get to her. She should really only compete bars and beam at Nationals if her ankle is this big a problem.
Amelia Hundley had a mixed senior debut. She of course had surgery, and so she did not have all of the work of before. Amelia was strongly downgraded on vault and floor. Her vault was only an FTY. None of her D scores reached a 6.0. Her best event was floor, where she scored a 14.250 to place fourth. She had a beautiful opening double layout. Amelia has also changed her floor music from last year. Sadly, Amelia's injury came at an inopportune time for her senior debut.
Mykayla Skinner had some issues yesterday on her pet events. On floor, Mykayla fell on her dismount, a full-in. After her Moors and double double, Mykayla did a 1 1/2 to double full. This seems a bit out of character, both the fall and the downgrade. We'll just have to wait and see with her. Mykayla also had a new floor routine. On vault, Mykayla one-armed her Cheng again. MYKAYLA, YOU HAD A CREDITABLE BLOCK EARLIER THIS YEAR! GET BACK TO THAT POINT!! She also no longer has her Amanar from Jesolo. Something seems fishy.... In stranger news, Mykayla was solid on bars and beam. Her bars were rife with deductions, but she did have nice swing. Her beam was solid, with only a few small wobbles. If she can get her strong events solid, Mykayla might be able to place in the all around at Nationals.
Maggie Nichols had a surprise third place finish at Classics. Her consistency was her key. Maggie's high score of the day was surprisingly a 14.700 on bars, despite an unusual stall on her Pak where she held a handstand-ish shape. However, she placed best on floor, where she came in third with a score of 14.300. One upgrade did sneak its way into her set, the Grigoras on beam.
The biggest surprise of the night was Ashton Locklear of Everest. Ashton only competed bars and beam, but made a huge splash on those events. She was the champion on bars last night with a monster score of 15.700. Her d-score is a 6.8, and last night she received a stick bonus for her impeccable landing. She also placed fourth on beam. This could put her name in the mix for Worlds, and I'm sure it got Martha talking!
Kyla Ross had a strong showing yesterday to come in second, but she still has room to improve. The big news regarding Kyla coming into Classics was an upgraded whip+double Arabian pass on floor, which Kyla competed without the following stag jump. However, she also competed it at the beginning on her competition, so one has to wonder whether her endurance will hold when floor is her last event, as it will most definitely be if she qualifies to the all around final at Worlds this year. Kyla had a very clean and stuck vault, but not as well executed as last year. Kyla also had a beautifully executed bars routine, but without her inbars. She has said that is a goal for Nationals. She also tied with Simone for the top score on beam. Kyla placed in the top three on every event, and definitely looked ready for the season.
Simone Biles cemented herself as the favorite for Worlds this year. She opened her competition with her official announcement that she is in fact not human with her floor routine. Her passes were a double double, Biles, double layout, and full in. Normally I would whine that now she had to add an aerial to her routine, but I legitimately don't care when those are the tumbling passes. She is seriously not human. Simone was able to score a 15.800 for her routine. Seriously, even with domestic overscoring, that is the Frankenstein of monster scores. Simone also places first on vault and beam. Her Amanar doesn't get quite the height of last year it appears, but it is still like a rocket off the table. Her Lopez was underrotated last night, so that will be something to watch for at Nationals. Simone displayed her packed routine on beam, but had a bit of a stumble on her BHS+LOSO+LOSO. This definitely has Worlds potential if it can be done cleanly, though. Her wolf turn was the best I've ever seen it. Simone had some trouble on bars, and she told us coming in at had taken a hit with her shoulder. She had a stall on her Weiler and didn't swing to horizontal on her Maloney, but she does appear to have worked on the little things such as keeping her legs together and her toes pointed. Even with some weaker bars work, Simone smashed the competition and the 60 barrier, scoring a 61.700. Also, like with Norah's beam, Simone has more to give, which is super exciting.
The biggest mystery coming into Classics was Rachel Gowey's performance. Would she blow everyone away with her Chow-trained upgrades? Would she crash and burn? Ultimately, she did neither. Rachel had a good performance, not astounding in either way. On her first event, Rachel stumbled back on her BHS+LOSO+LOSO, but calmed down for the rest of her routine to place third. Her triple twist dismount wasn't quite fully rotated, but the interior of her routine was great. On floor, Rachel debuted her 3 1/2 twist. She got it safely around, but she was also uncontrolled on the landing. She did have a beautiful Gogean, though, and the rest of her passes were well controlled. It was a bit low on difficulty though, but if she can control the 3 1/2, she should still score well. Gowey's bars were nice, but she did not score well. Her biggest problems were missed handstands and flexed feet. She will still go into Nationals as the wild card.
Looking ahead to Worlds...
Ultimately, Classics doesn't mean that much in the grand scheme of things. However, that doesn't mean they are inconsequential. Brenna now has a red flag by her name she didn't need, Mykayla has to prove herself when many thought she didn't before, and Ashton Locklear basically just threw herself a giant coming out party.
Simone and Kyla are locks for the team barring their own bad health. Simone has monster routines that will bring in huge scores and will likely walk away with at least one individual gold. Heck, she has the potential to walk away with three individual golds and a team gold. Kyla will bring stability, especially a stable beam routine, which is the weak spot of this year's US team.
On vault, the US could potentially be finding itself looking for strong workers. Simone should bring in the top score on vault both individually and of the team final, so that's definitely a great place to start. Earlier, the US was looking to be overrun with safe high-difficulty vaults. Now, that doesn't seem so strong. Rachel fell on vault last night, but if she can perform it consistently, it can definitely be an asset for selection. Mykayla has to BLOCK OFF BOTH HANDS AGAIN (seriously, what is up with her? why have her block and difficulty both devolved from last year?) but can put herself back into the top of the running again. Brenna didn't vault at Classics, but she was another potential strong vault this year. I will be an important event for her at Nationals, assuming she does compete the all around.
Bars was pleasingly strong at Classics. Kyla is of course glorious on this event. She will bring in a great score and her experience will be huge for Martha. She likely will take the team captain spot this year. Ashton Locklear now definitely has to be in the discussion and the back of Martha's mind. Her huge d-score can definitely help the team a ton. Maddie Kocian is also in great shape for a bars specialist spot. If Maddie doesn't end up doing the all around, I think it will be unlikely for both to make the US team due to Martha wanting to put up the maximum number of gymnasts per event in qualifications. If it is only one or the other, beam could make the difference. Peyton also could swing well on bars, and if she does well on beam, could take a UB/BB specialist spot for Worlds. Assuming she is okay for the rest of the season? Brenna did not do herself any favors yesterday, but if she can do her bars routine without imploding and competes well and vault, Brenna should be in good standing. Rachel had nice bars, but if she can't hit her handstands, she will be slaughtered, unfortunately, because this could be an event where she could contribute well otherwise.
Beam will be interesting. Kyla will again provide consistency here among a crop of some new gymnasts. Simone has proved dependable on beam, so she could definitely help the team this year on beam. With her upgrades, if she gets everything under control she can bring in a monster score. Rachel Gowey performed a strong routine last night despite a slight stumble on her acro series. If she can keep improving and pull it all together, Rachel could definitely make a strong statement for herself on beam. Alyssa Baumann needs to bring her difficulty back up and be consistent to make Nanning if the others will continue performing the way they did last night. Ashton Locklear made a case for herself on this event as well last night. A few more consistent performances on these two events and she could find herself on the team. Peyton also is one who could be brought for good beam work if she can prove consistency.
Floor is super strong for this team. Remember Kyla made the floor final in Antwerp! Simone likely won't be able to hit 15.800 internationally, but a score above 15.000 would absolutely be likely. She, at this moment, looks poised to repeat as floor champion. If Skinner can compete her set without major errors, she will be able to bring in a high score as well. Kyla scored well at Classics and made finals last year, so she could definitely be a team player her as well. Brenna could also be a good team player on floor if she does come back to do all around at Nationals. Rachel also has the potential for a good score despite low difficulty if she can bring her landings under control.
Alright, I feel like this will be wildly inaccurate, but here's a Worlds team prediction:
Biles, Ross, Gowey, Kocian, Skinner, Dowell
VT: Gowey/Dowell/Skinner, Gowey/Dowell/Skinner, Biles
UB: Dowell, Ross, Kocian
BB: Biles, Gowey, Ross
FX: Dowell/Skinner/Gowey/Ross, Dowell/Skinner/Gowey/Ross, Biles
Ultimately, unless Kyla and Simone both are physically unable to compete, the US should be able to stroll away with the gold.
Monday, July 21, 2014
Classics Guide
The beginning to the US elite season, the Secret US Classic, is almost upon us! Some of these gymnasts we have yet to see in 2014, and there are lots of big names. Classics is traditionally an unsteady meet for lots of gymnasts who use it as a testing ground for upgrades for the season. This year, there are just SO MANY juniors that nine- including Bailie Key, Nia Dennis, Norah Flately, Emily Gaskins, and Ragan Smith- will compete in the senior session! Sadly, Laurie's out with a new knee injury. So, here's who to watch, where to watch them, and the burning questions we will seek to answer on the second!
Juniors
Bailie Key: Obviously the junior with the biggest hype, and for great reason! Famously won every competition she entered last year and is set to achieve the same this year. One of the best beam workers in the world. The super exciting thing about Bailie is that everything she does looks incredibly easy. Tons of upgrade potential! Not to be missed ANYWHERE! Her routines are those to be re-watched on the USAG YouTube channel over and over again.
Questions to be answered: By how much will she win the junior title? Will we see the double layout and/or Dos Santos I we saw in her training videos?
Nia Dennis: Like Bailie, Nia is in her last year as a junior. Has beautiful work everywhere. Her DTY is among the best of the junior ranks. The air she gets on her releases rivals that Gabby got. She has the best standing Arabian on beam- ever! She also has gorgeous tumbling on floor and engaging choreography. The one thing that mars her performances is inconsistency. Not to be missed on vault and bars!
Questions to be answered: Can she keep it all together mentally? If she does, how close can she make this competition? Will she upgrade that double pike bars dismount?
Alexis Vasquez: Alexis is a junior from Chow's. She turns senior next year. She stands out from her teammates for having a nice block and her FTY is much better than teammate Norah's. Her beam is beautiful, and has a beautiful scale! She has nice bars work, but her routine is fairly simple and she had a meltdown on the event at last years Nationals, scoring only an 8.6. We will hope to see her with renewed confidence and fulfill her potential this year. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: Will she still be competing an FTY with her imminent senior career? How well can she place on beam?
Norah Flately: Norah is another Chow's student. She has placed third in the all-around at the City of Jesolo Trophy and Pac Rims this year. She is known for her incredibly difficult and solid beam, the event on which I believe she is the best in the world. She also does lots of el-grip work on the uneven bars, showing a ton of potential for the future. She also has a gorgeous straight double layout. Her weak spot is vault, where her block keeps her work on that event from matching her other events. Not to be missed on beam especially, it will be one of the routines of the night! Her floor is one to watch as well.
Questions to be answered: Will any seniors be able to touch her beam score?
Emily Gaskins: Emily is the bright new star of CGA. She began in ballet, but switched after she saw gymnastics. Her background gives her gorgeous carriage and choreography. Her video from camp displayed a DTY, upgrading her vault from last year. Her floor made waves last year for it's wonderful balletic style and technique. Bars can be a weak spot for her, with problems with handstands. Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: Will she have a new floor routine? If she does, will her style remain intact in its pure form? With a DTY, could she topple Norah in the all-around?
Ragan Smith: Ragan recently transferred from Northwind gymnastics to mega gym Texas Dreams. Based on the camp footage we see (I'm not a Gymnastike Gold member, so I don't know what she looked like in Jesolo) the change was great for her! Her bars have made huge improvements and she showed nice stalder work. Last year she had a super-duper cute floor routine to "Puttin' on the Ritz." She shows great potential to have a strong senior career. Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her standings improve after the gym change?
Christina Desiderio: Christina, a 2000-born, is a great new face for Parkettes. Unlike recent Parkettes prodigy Ebee Price, she has a weakness on vault. Her bars also leave a lot to be desired, but she has a gorgeous Tkatchev. Beam and floor is where her potential can be most clearly seen. Christina has the goods for a successful senior career, it all just has to come together. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: How well can she do on beam?
Sydney Johnson-Scharpf: Sydney is famously daughter to former US gymnastics great Brandy Johnson. She is known for being a firecracker performer and really drawing in the crowd. The performance events are where she really shines. She was known for saying vault hurt her feet because she was so small! Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: Have her bars improved at all?
Jordan Chiles: Jordan is a 2001 born, and as such, is not eligible for the Rio Olympics. She does, however, have difficult and stylish gymnastics. She has the potential to be a strong all-arounder, but lots of concern has been expressed regarding burnout. She showed huge upgrades at camp, including a 3 1/2 twist. She made the vault final at Jesolo this year. Not to be missed on vault and beam!
Questions to be answered: Will she actually show the crazy upgrades from her camp video? If she does, will she survive them without major injury?
Delanie Harkness: Delanie also is not age-eligible for Rio. Delanie comes from Twistars, the gym which gave us Jordyn Wieber. She took home the junior all-around, bars, and floor titles from JO Nationals this year. Her bars routine currently contains a standing transition, which will need to be changed for elite. She could definitely be part of a bright future for USAG! Not to be missed on floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her bars be now she has to change them for the elite Code? How will she be able to place on bars?
Shilese Jones: Another youngling, Shilese made a name for herself at JO Nationals after she performed the 1 1/2 twisting double tuck. This skill is super exciting and has yet to be included in to elite Code. Not to be missed on floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her new skill on floor help her on that event?
Seniors
Simone Biles: Simone is the reigning World all-around and floor champion, and so comes into this competition the odds-on favorite. She has, however, been struggling with her shoulder this year, and word is her bars will be less difficult than those from last year. Her vaults are unbelievable and she is stellar on floor. If she hits, no one can touch her. Not to be missed ANYWHERE!
Questions to be answered: Will her shoulder affect her performances? How strong is she heading into Worlds this year?
Kyla Ross: Kyla is known for her clean, precise gymnastics which lacks the difficulty of her competitors. She was a triple silver medalist at Worlds last year and is the nation's best bars and beam gymnast. Kyla had a back injury earlier this year which forced her to downgrade and caused her to be a bit sluggish earlier this year. In the private training video posted in May, a toe-on was seen directly connected out of her Pak. Not to be missed on bars and beam!
Questions to be answered: Will her difficulty be back to last year's level? Will she be able to hold onto a second-place spot? Will that toe-on amount to anything?
Brenna Dowell: Brenna earned attention last year when she debuted a new Tweddle in her bars routine, which she has now connected to an Ezhova! A new floor could be seen for her in the camp videos, and a change from "Sabre Dance" will be one welcome to many. She has an Amanar on vault and an awesome pike double front on floor. Beam is her vice, and she scored in the low 13s at American Cup this year. Not to be missed on vault, bars, and floor!
Questions to be answered: Will she be able to be strong enough on vault and bars to make a strong statement for herself in the running to Worlds? Can she get her beam together?
Peyton Ernst: Peyton is a strong all-arounder with talent on bars and beam. She has beautiful back flexibility which she displays in her floor. Peyton really doesn't have a weak event. She has a layout which may not be credited on beam. She has very elegant gymnastics and performs everything with ease. Peyton was last year's Classics beam champion. Not to be missed on bars and especially beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she make a strong enough showing on bars and beam to make a statement for Worlds selection?
Mykayla Skinner: Mykayla is known for her highly daring gymnastics though she often sacrifices execution. However, she has made great strides in this regard. She performs the very difficult Amanar and Cheng vaults and a laid out double-double. Bars and beam can cause big difficulties for her, however. If she can put it all together, she can definitely be in the top three in the all-around. Not to be missed on vault and floor!
Questions to be answered: How good will her block on vault be? Will she stay on bars and beam?
Madison Kocian: Madison makes her name among the American seniors for her strong bars set. She won the event earlier this year at Jesolo. She also has nice beam work, but can be dogged by inconsistency. Word from camp is that she has beaten Kyla earlier this year, but Brenna also beat Simone and Kyla last year, so who knows what that means. Not to be missed on bars!
Questions to be answered: If Kyla comes with her inbar stalders back, will Madison be able to take the the title ahead of her?
Alyssa Baumann: Alyssa is considered a contender for the Worlds team this year due to her strong beam, where the US has weakness this year. She won the silver on the event Jesolo this year. Alyssa also has a strong floor which could potentially take the first spot on the event in the team final. Alyssa came from nowhere last year to be in strong running this year. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she win the beam title? Can she have a strong enough showing on floor to make a case for the first TF floor spot?
Lexie Priessman: Lexie caused a stir earlier this month by leaving longtime gym CGA to train at Perfection Gymnastics. We last saw Lexie at Classics last year, and she was taken out of Nationals running due to injury. Lexie is known for powerful gymnastics on vault and floor, but also having slightly messy form. She had an Amanar as a junior, which she competed in Jesolo last year but not Classics. Her floor last year exhibited both a full twisting double layout and a double-double. Not to be missed on vault and floor!
Questions to be answered: What will Lexie display on vault? How has the gym change influenced her gymnastics? Can she make a strong statement for Worlds selection?
Amelia Hunley: Lexie's longtime teammate at CGA, Amelia is finally a senior this year after having been on the junior level for seemingly ever! Amelia also displays powerful gymnastics on vault and floor, but without the big-name skills of Lexie. She also has a very strong bars set, the event on which she won the National title last year. Beam is her weakest event, but she can score in the 14s when she hits. Not to be missed on bars and floor!
Questions to be answered: Despite her strong potential and talent, will Meals be left behind in the pool of talent? How will her bars fare against the likes of Kocian?
Maddie Desch: Maddie came in second in the all-around at the 2012 Nationals as a junior, but had a lackluster first senior year in 2013. In January, her camp video displayed many upgrades, such as a whip+double Arabian+stag pass and a Downie! At Jesolo, she came in last of the Americans who competed all four events, making several costly errors. She displayed her Arabian combo, but not the Downie. If she cleaned up, she could be scoring significantly higher. Not to be missed on floor, and her bars may be interesting!
Questions to be answered: Can she put together a solid performance and up her all-around standings? Can she put herself in Worlds contention?
Felicia Hano: Felicia made a gym switch earlier this year to Gym-Max. This makes her performance at Classics rather interesting. Last year at Nationals, Felicia had a terrible go of it on bars day 2 and had to pull out of the rest of her performances. She also has a new floor this year choreographed by Dominic Zito. Felicia displayed a strong DTY last year. Not to be missed on vault!
Questions to be answered: How has her gym change influenced her gymnastics?
Maggie Nichols: Maggie Nichols was a first year senior last year. Maggie was on the Jesolo team and came in third in the all-around. Maggie also competed in this year's Tokyo Cup. In her May camp video, Maggie displayed some very exciting upgrades, including a Seitz on bars and a Grigoras on beam. Her floor also displays a double layout. Not to be missed on floor, but an eye should be kept open for her upgrades!
Questions to be answered: Will she throw her upgrades from her camp video? Will they help her move up the standings and possibly help her Worlds chances?
Nica Hults: Nica has been a gymternet favorite for years, and is finally a senior this year! Nica is hunting for a bars and beam spot on the Worlds team this year. She can show inconsistency, somewhat surprisingly usually on bars rather than beam. On vault, she's not capable of high difficulty.Not to be missed on bars and beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she put up a strong performance on bars?
Rachel Gowey: I intentionally kept this Chow's pupil for last. Rachel made her international debut earlier this year at Jesolo and will be making her national debut at Classics! Rachel is the wildcard of the team without a doubt. At Jesolo, Gowey had some problems in her performances but was able to place fifth in the all-around. What makes her a real possible dark horse is what we saw in her camp video. Rachel had huge upgrades, including an Amanar and 3 1/2 twist on floor (however, these particular upgrades I would rather not see on a competition surface). If Rachel hits in the US season, all Worlds predictions go straight out the window. Rachel has the potential to really shake things up this year! An eye should be kept out for her everywhere!
Questions to be answered: Will she throw her camp upgrades? Will her knees survive if she does? What the heck will she do to Worlds contention?
Juniors
Bailie Key: Obviously the junior with the biggest hype, and for great reason! Famously won every competition she entered last year and is set to achieve the same this year. One of the best beam workers in the world. The super exciting thing about Bailie is that everything she does looks incredibly easy. Tons of upgrade potential! Not to be missed ANYWHERE! Her routines are those to be re-watched on the USAG YouTube channel over and over again.
Questions to be answered: By how much will she win the junior title? Will we see the double layout and/or Dos Santos I we saw in her training videos?
Nia Dennis: Like Bailie, Nia is in her last year as a junior. Has beautiful work everywhere. Her DTY is among the best of the junior ranks. The air she gets on her releases rivals that Gabby got. She has the best standing Arabian on beam- ever! She also has gorgeous tumbling on floor and engaging choreography. The one thing that mars her performances is inconsistency. Not to be missed on vault and bars!
Questions to be answered: Can she keep it all together mentally? If she does, how close can she make this competition? Will she upgrade that double pike bars dismount?
Alexis Vasquez: Alexis is a junior from Chow's. She turns senior next year. She stands out from her teammates for having a nice block and her FTY is much better than teammate Norah's. Her beam is beautiful, and has a beautiful scale! She has nice bars work, but her routine is fairly simple and she had a meltdown on the event at last years Nationals, scoring only an 8.6. We will hope to see her with renewed confidence and fulfill her potential this year. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: Will she still be competing an FTY with her imminent senior career? How well can she place on beam?
Norah Flately: Norah is another Chow's student. She has placed third in the all-around at the City of Jesolo Trophy and Pac Rims this year. She is known for her incredibly difficult and solid beam, the event on which I believe she is the best in the world. She also does lots of el-grip work on the uneven bars, showing a ton of potential for the future. She also has a gorgeous straight double layout. Her weak spot is vault, where her block keeps her work on that event from matching her other events. Not to be missed on beam especially, it will be one of the routines of the night! Her floor is one to watch as well.
Questions to be answered: Will any seniors be able to touch her beam score?
Emily Gaskins: Emily is the bright new star of CGA. She began in ballet, but switched after she saw gymnastics. Her background gives her gorgeous carriage and choreography. Her video from camp displayed a DTY, upgrading her vault from last year. Her floor made waves last year for it's wonderful balletic style and technique. Bars can be a weak spot for her, with problems with handstands. Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: Will she have a new floor routine? If she does, will her style remain intact in its pure form? With a DTY, could she topple Norah in the all-around?
Ragan Smith: Ragan recently transferred from Northwind gymnastics to mega gym Texas Dreams. Based on the camp footage we see (I'm not a Gymnastike Gold member, so I don't know what she looked like in Jesolo) the change was great for her! Her bars have made huge improvements and she showed nice stalder work. Last year she had a super-duper cute floor routine to "Puttin' on the Ritz." She shows great potential to have a strong senior career. Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her standings improve after the gym change?
Christina Desiderio: Christina, a 2000-born, is a great new face for Parkettes. Unlike recent Parkettes prodigy Ebee Price, she has a weakness on vault. Her bars also leave a lot to be desired, but she has a gorgeous Tkatchev. Beam and floor is where her potential can be most clearly seen. Christina has the goods for a successful senior career, it all just has to come together. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: How well can she do on beam?
Sydney Johnson-Scharpf: Sydney is famously daughter to former US gymnastics great Brandy Johnson. She is known for being a firecracker performer and really drawing in the crowd. The performance events are where she really shines. She was known for saying vault hurt her feet because she was so small! Not to be missed on beam and floor!
Questions to be answered: Have her bars improved at all?
Jordan Chiles: Jordan is a 2001 born, and as such, is not eligible for the Rio Olympics. She does, however, have difficult and stylish gymnastics. She has the potential to be a strong all-arounder, but lots of concern has been expressed regarding burnout. She showed huge upgrades at camp, including a 3 1/2 twist. She made the vault final at Jesolo this year. Not to be missed on vault and beam!
Questions to be answered: Will she actually show the crazy upgrades from her camp video? If she does, will she survive them without major injury?
Delanie Harkness: Delanie also is not age-eligible for Rio. Delanie comes from Twistars, the gym which gave us Jordyn Wieber. She took home the junior all-around, bars, and floor titles from JO Nationals this year. Her bars routine currently contains a standing transition, which will need to be changed for elite. She could definitely be part of a bright future for USAG! Not to be missed on floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her bars be now she has to change them for the elite Code? How will she be able to place on bars?
Shilese Jones: Another youngling, Shilese made a name for herself at JO Nationals after she performed the 1 1/2 twisting double tuck. This skill is super exciting and has yet to be included in to elite Code. Not to be missed on floor!
Questions to be answered: How will her new skill on floor help her on that event?
Seniors
Simone Biles: Simone is the reigning World all-around and floor champion, and so comes into this competition the odds-on favorite. She has, however, been struggling with her shoulder this year, and word is her bars will be less difficult than those from last year. Her vaults are unbelievable and she is stellar on floor. If she hits, no one can touch her. Not to be missed ANYWHERE!
Questions to be answered: Will her shoulder affect her performances? How strong is she heading into Worlds this year?
Kyla Ross: Kyla is known for her clean, precise gymnastics which lacks the difficulty of her competitors. She was a triple silver medalist at Worlds last year and is the nation's best bars and beam gymnast. Kyla had a back injury earlier this year which forced her to downgrade and caused her to be a bit sluggish earlier this year. In the private training video posted in May, a toe-on was seen directly connected out of her Pak. Not to be missed on bars and beam!
Questions to be answered: Will her difficulty be back to last year's level? Will she be able to hold onto a second-place spot? Will that toe-on amount to anything?
Brenna Dowell: Brenna earned attention last year when she debuted a new Tweddle in her bars routine, which she has now connected to an Ezhova! A new floor could be seen for her in the camp videos, and a change from "Sabre Dance" will be one welcome to many. She has an Amanar on vault and an awesome pike double front on floor. Beam is her vice, and she scored in the low 13s at American Cup this year. Not to be missed on vault, bars, and floor!
Questions to be answered: Will she be able to be strong enough on vault and bars to make a strong statement for herself in the running to Worlds? Can she get her beam together?
Peyton Ernst: Peyton is a strong all-arounder with talent on bars and beam. She has beautiful back flexibility which she displays in her floor. Peyton really doesn't have a weak event. She has a layout which may not be credited on beam. She has very elegant gymnastics and performs everything with ease. Peyton was last year's Classics beam champion. Not to be missed on bars and especially beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she make a strong enough showing on bars and beam to make a statement for Worlds selection?
Mykayla Skinner: Mykayla is known for her highly daring gymnastics though she often sacrifices execution. However, she has made great strides in this regard. She performs the very difficult Amanar and Cheng vaults and a laid out double-double. Bars and beam can cause big difficulties for her, however. If she can put it all together, she can definitely be in the top three in the all-around. Not to be missed on vault and floor!
Questions to be answered: How good will her block on vault be? Will she stay on bars and beam?
Madison Kocian: Madison makes her name among the American seniors for her strong bars set. She won the event earlier this year at Jesolo. She also has nice beam work, but can be dogged by inconsistency. Word from camp is that she has beaten Kyla earlier this year, but Brenna also beat Simone and Kyla last year, so who knows what that means. Not to be missed on bars!
Questions to be answered: If Kyla comes with her inbar stalders back, will Madison be able to take the the title ahead of her?
Alyssa Baumann: Alyssa is considered a contender for the Worlds team this year due to her strong beam, where the US has weakness this year. She won the silver on the event Jesolo this year. Alyssa also has a strong floor which could potentially take the first spot on the event in the team final. Alyssa came from nowhere last year to be in strong running this year. Not to be missed on beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she win the beam title? Can she have a strong enough showing on floor to make a case for the first TF floor spot?
Lexie Priessman: Lexie caused a stir earlier this month by leaving longtime gym CGA to train at Perfection Gymnastics. We last saw Lexie at Classics last year, and she was taken out of Nationals running due to injury. Lexie is known for powerful gymnastics on vault and floor, but also having slightly messy form. She had an Amanar as a junior, which she competed in Jesolo last year but not Classics. Her floor last year exhibited both a full twisting double layout and a double-double. Not to be missed on vault and floor!
Questions to be answered: What will Lexie display on vault? How has the gym change influenced her gymnastics? Can she make a strong statement for Worlds selection?
Amelia Hunley: Lexie's longtime teammate at CGA, Amelia is finally a senior this year after having been on the junior level for seemingly ever! Amelia also displays powerful gymnastics on vault and floor, but without the big-name skills of Lexie. She also has a very strong bars set, the event on which she won the National title last year. Beam is her weakest event, but she can score in the 14s when she hits. Not to be missed on bars and floor!
Questions to be answered: Despite her strong potential and talent, will Meals be left behind in the pool of talent? How will her bars fare against the likes of Kocian?
Maddie Desch: Maddie came in second in the all-around at the 2012 Nationals as a junior, but had a lackluster first senior year in 2013. In January, her camp video displayed many upgrades, such as a whip+double Arabian+stag pass and a Downie! At Jesolo, she came in last of the Americans who competed all four events, making several costly errors. She displayed her Arabian combo, but not the Downie. If she cleaned up, she could be scoring significantly higher. Not to be missed on floor, and her bars may be interesting!
Questions to be answered: Can she put together a solid performance and up her all-around standings? Can she put herself in Worlds contention?
Felicia Hano: Felicia made a gym switch earlier this year to Gym-Max. This makes her performance at Classics rather interesting. Last year at Nationals, Felicia had a terrible go of it on bars day 2 and had to pull out of the rest of her performances. She also has a new floor this year choreographed by Dominic Zito. Felicia displayed a strong DTY last year. Not to be missed on vault!
Questions to be answered: How has her gym change influenced her gymnastics?
Maggie Nichols: Maggie Nichols was a first year senior last year. Maggie was on the Jesolo team and came in third in the all-around. Maggie also competed in this year's Tokyo Cup. In her May camp video, Maggie displayed some very exciting upgrades, including a Seitz on bars and a Grigoras on beam. Her floor also displays a double layout. Not to be missed on floor, but an eye should be kept open for her upgrades!
Questions to be answered: Will she throw her upgrades from her camp video? Will they help her move up the standings and possibly help her Worlds chances?
Nica Hults: Nica has been a gymternet favorite for years, and is finally a senior this year! Nica is hunting for a bars and beam spot on the Worlds team this year. She can show inconsistency, somewhat surprisingly usually on bars rather than beam. On vault, she's not capable of high difficulty.Not to be missed on bars and beam!
Questions to be answered: Can she put up a strong performance on bars?
Rachel Gowey: I intentionally kept this Chow's pupil for last. Rachel made her international debut earlier this year at Jesolo and will be making her national debut at Classics! Rachel is the wildcard of the team without a doubt. At Jesolo, Gowey had some problems in her performances but was able to place fifth in the all-around. What makes her a real possible dark horse is what we saw in her camp video. Rachel had huge upgrades, including an Amanar and 3 1/2 twist on floor (however, these particular upgrades I would rather not see on a competition surface). If Rachel hits in the US season, all Worlds predictions go straight out the window. Rachel has the potential to really shake things up this year! An eye should be kept out for her everywhere!
Questions to be answered: Will she throw her camp upgrades? Will her knees survive if she does? What the heck will she do to Worlds contention?
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