American Cup Lineup

USA Gymnastics announced the American Cup roster today. The women's field is Emily Little, Ellie Black, Claudia Fragapane, Ruby Harrold, Erika Fasana, Vanessa Ferrari, Jessica Lopez, and the American contingent Simone Biles and Mykayla Skinner.

So, on the roster:

• I'm a bit surprised Bailie or Nia isn't on the roster. The major new seniors (and these are really major ones) generally get a nod. But then, World Cup rosters are also known for being quite fluid.
• However, YAS MYKAYLA!!!! So excited about this, and I'm totally happy with her competing at the American Cup!
• Ellie Black is also a major bonus on the list. Her vault and tumbling pass variations will be very interesting.
• Jessica Lopez back for the first time this quad, always a nice touch. Imagine if Bailie did get swapped in- battle of the Lindsay Sterling floor routines!
• Sad not to see Iordache here. It's always great to see her and Simone competing together, and she would have been a shoe-in for the World Cup title.
• I've come to enjoy Erika Fasana (at least on floor, which is a good intro event to become a favorite of mine), so I'm glad to see her here.
• I'm interested to see what the Trio will make of Frag's floor routine. It wasn't included in the NBC Worlds coverage. I think they'll like it, but it's always amusing to hear what they do finally have to say.
• Oh, and Ruby's bars! YES, official broadcast quality!
• Speaking of floor, I'm interested to see who all brings new routines for 2015. Fragapane, Harrold, Ferrari, and Lopez have all had their routines for two years, so I'll be interested to see if they stick with them or bring something fresh. I'd also like to see Emily Little with a new routine...
• And, finally, what is Simone going to bust out?! Are we going to see the DLO 1/1? What of the other awesome upgrades we saw in her last USAG video? And maybe Mykayla too...

And my prediction:

1. Simone Biles (duh)

2. Mykayla Skinner

3. Vanessa Ferrari

4. Jessica Lopez

5. Ellie Black

6. Claudia Fragapane

7. Ruby Harrold

8. Erika Fasana

9. Emily Little

Spots 1-3 were easy, as were 7-9. 4-6 were harder to puzzle out, and I feel they probably won't be this order.

(Floor) Artistry in Nanning: The EF

Yeah, so it's REALLY late to make a Worlds post, I know. This is just the first of three or so on artistry, but I'll get to them before the end of the year at least. Just be patient.

We're all accustomed to the claims the the sport is totally lacking in artistry and should just drop that part of the name and kick out anyone bigger than a size 2 and just shut down all the programs outside Europe except with maybe of the exception of the China, depending who you're talking to, and lynch Martha Karolyi while we're at it- or, at least, we're used to the whining of the artistry trolls who can't accept that the sport won't evolve from what it was in the 80s, and the rest can often be easily inferred. So, what was the artistry situation really like this year? I decided to take a look at some top routines from Worlds (and some of my favorites as well) to get a general temperature of (floor) artistry in 2014.

On tonight's episode of (Floor) Artistry in Nanning- the 8 routines of the floor event final!

Simone Biles

This is the kind of routine the trolls mentioned above love to crucify with no real reasoning as to why. Simone is a real performer and it is on perfect display in this routine. Her amazing eye contact, totally genuine dazzling smile, and even fun expressions before her mind-blowing tumbling passes make for the most enjoyable performance. This routine works with all her strengths and is another example of Dominic Zito at his best. This routine interprets the music perfectly. Her low to the floor bit is especially in tune with the accompaniment. The choreography also does a great job of capturing the fun nature of the music and making it like a party instead of a grueling test of physical ability. I love the way she is constantly moving from one skill or gesture to the next. This routine never stops and continues seamlessly as one complete, cohesive unit. I also love how well her trademark cartwheel was incorporated into the ending!

Larisa Iordache

I definitely prefer this routine to her guitar one from 2012. Larisa is one of the best gymnasts at working with the regulations of how long the gymnasts may stand in the corner. She has great body movement and does a great job of moving her body along with her arm and leg movements instead of having disconnected gestures. Larisa does a really good job of combining punctuating movements with extended ones to shape the music. I also like the way she changes the way she holds her hands and head position to add flourish and depth to her choreography and get in lots of good eye contact. It's a really great energetic and joyful routine but still mature.

Aliya Mustafina

This routine is just so- empty. I finish the routine and wonder where exactly the choreography was. It's good, but... she can do so much more than this! She does, as Christine says, have a beautiful shoulder line and nice smooth movement. She just spends so much time setting up for turns or getting into place for them with extremely simple movement. Aliya has just had such underwhelming routines that don't take advantage at all of what she can put forth since London! Just- the Rods! Like I said, it's good, but it should be so much better than good.

Mykayla Skinner

Mykayla is most certainly not the best dancer. She is fairly stiff, especially in her upper body movement. Whereas Aliya has great movement but lacking choreography, Mykayla- well, she doesn't have great choreography but it does fill the routine, but her quality of movement is just not there. Usually I prefer gymnasts who don't have the most natural movement to perform routines like this instead of crowd-pleasing ones, but her folk routine worked for her because she was able to have angular movement for the music. I think she handled it pretty well in the final and it was definitely her best performance, but there's only so much you can do when you are stiff in movement.

Vanessa Ferrari

Like her Last of the Mohicans routine, this is really a Vanessa-only routine. The choreography itself really isn't the greatest and fairly repetitive, but Vanessa is exactly the one to perform it. She makes it dramatic and full of flair and somehow regal. It suits the music and fits it easily, and her interpretation of the slower part is similarly perfectly Vanessa. There's really not much more to say about this routine. Vanessa makes this routine.

Larrissa Miller

Larrissa is elegant, no doubt. But where is the musicality in this routine? Her movements seem to have little to no relation with the music. Christine says that she seems to be waiting for the music- this describes her less than serendipitous relationship with the accompaniment. She also seems to be a bit stiff in her movement at times, though not as bad as Mykayla. The best choreography is definitely between her second and third tumbles.

Erika Fasana

Erika has amazing presence here. Very aggressive and she really attacks her movements. Works well with the slightly different music choice. She really has a flair for the dramatic. The choreography isn't always the greatest, but it has some really good moments as well. I especially love the sequence after her leap passage and before her final tumble. Nice variety between sharp movements and smooth ones and really exciting moments. She moves quickly throughout the routine but really does a good job of interpreting the music. I also really love how Erika is pulling in toward herself and tossing her back backwards throughout the routine. The routine seems to pass fairly quickly because Erika moves so quickly and it is such a forward moving routine but she really packs in a lot of good artistic work.

Claudia Fragapane

I'm still so sad about that fall! What is there really to say about this routine? It's just so mind-blowing! Claudia has such unique, fun, and exciting choreography! It totally works with the unusual music choice. Claudia has perfectly combines her skills with dynamic artistic work. The best sequence is definitely in the corner after her leap pass. The leap to prone position is so exciting, and is the falling spin into the back spin into the toss to her knees. She shows such delight in her movement and is just so much fun to watch!

Overall, I'd say the artistry in the floor EF was... okay. There were some really fun routines to watch, there were some fine ones, and there were some flat ones. Quality of movement definitely needs to be addressed in gymnastics as there was some fairly stiff work. The best routines in this final were exciting and crowd-pleasing ones as opposed to elegant ones, which were strangely lacking. Performance quality was good, as a lot of the gymnasts seemed to really enjoy what they were doing and drew in the audience to watch.

MostepanovaFan-Style Rankings After Worlds

If you aren't aware of MostepanovaFan's YouTube channel, I suggest you go check it out. Lots of wonderful informative and entertaining videos for gymfans. One of the great kinds of videos is videos with the rankings of the most successful gymnasts by various categories. The rankings are done by individual medals from Worlds and Olympics, with Olympic medals taking precedence in ties.


Top Ten Most Successful American Gymnasts
10. Kyla Ross: 3 silver, 1 bronze
9. Mary Lou Retton: 1 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze
8. Chellsie Memmel: 2 gold, 2 silver
7. Kim Zmeskal: 3 gold, 1 bronze
6. Rebecca Bross: 2 silver, 3 bronze
5. Shawn Johnson: 3 gold, 2 silver
4. Alicia Sacramone: 2 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze
3. Simone Biles: 5 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze
2. Nastia Liukin: 4 gold, 6 silver, 1 bronze
1. Shannon Miller: 6 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze

Simone is one of the top three decorated Americans after two Worlds. Not too shabby. Kyla has also overtaken Awesome Dawesome for a spot on the list.


Top Ten Most Successful Gymnasts Ever
10. Aliya Mustafina: 3 gold, 3 silver, 6 bronze
9. Elena Shushunova: 5 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze
8. Nellie Kim: 6 gold, 4 silver, 2 bronze
7. Daniela Silivas: 9 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze
6. Lavinia Milosivici: 5 gold, 3 silver, 6 bronze
5. Gina Gogean: 6 gold, 3 silver, 6 bronze
4. Ludmilla Tourischeva: 6 gold, 5 silver, 4 bronze
3. Vera Caslavska: 10 gold, 4 silver, 1 bronze
2. Svetlana Khorkina; 11 gold, 7 silver, 2 bronze
1. Larissa Latynina: 12 gold, 8 silver, 4 bronze

The first gymnast to make the list since Khorkina retired. Shows just how special it is not only to have longevity but to medal in multiple finals in the age of specialists.


Top Ten Most Successful Gymnasts of the 2013-2016 Quad (so far)
9. Vanessa Ferrari: 1 silver
9. Bai Yawen: 1 silver
7. McKayla Maroney: 1 gold
7. Yao Jinnan: 1 gold
6. Hong Un Jong: 1 gold, 1 bronze
5. Huang Huidan: 1 gold, 1 silver
4. Larisa Iordache: 2 silver, 1 bronze
3. Kyla Ross: 3 silver, 1 bronze
2. Aliya Mustafina: 1 gold, 4 bronze
1. Simone Biles: 5 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze

Simone is on top, duh. The only two gymnasts who have medalled this quad so far who are not on the list are Daria Spiridinova and Mykayla Skinner, who both have one bronze.

Worlds Predictions

Alright, Worlds is around the corner, it's that time of year again to make predictions!

Team
Finalists:
USA
China
Russia
Romania
Great Britain
Italy
Japan
Germany

Podium:
1. USA
2. China
3. GB

The USA is the only team to have three strong routines on each event. China's bars will be a huge asset for them, but their vault and especially floor will provide problems. I was feeling GB even before the announcement over Paseka's injury was made, but now Russia is even farther in the hole. A strong Gabby Jupp should help the team out a fair bit, especially on beam, and it's pretty strong all over. Italy could also surprise, though- they looked great at Novara and Golden League.


All Around
Podium:
1. Simone Biles
2. Aliya Mustafina
3. Larisa Iordache

Simone on top is pretty obvious. I'm feeling Aliya in second after how great she looked at Russian Cup- that beam especially is amazing. I kept going back and forth on bronze between Larisa, Kyla Ross, and Yao Jinnan. I think Larisa and Yao both beat Kyla in ability, but Kyla is a rock. It should be a great fight.


Vault
Finalists:
Simone Biles
Mykayla Skinner
Hong Un Jong
Guilia Steingruber
Oksana Chusovitina
Ellie Black
Anna Pavlova
Dipa Karmakar

Podium:
1. Simone Biles
2. Giulia Steingruber
3. Mykayla Skinner

This one is fairly difficult as we haven't seen some of the big contenders (Hong Un Jong, Oksana Chusovitina, Phan Thi Ha Than) in a long time, so this might have to be adapted after the Asian Games. Figuring out places 2-4 is a bit difficult. If Mykayla does her vaults like day two of P&Gs, I might give her the slight edge over Giulia. And then she could also block like at Classics and be slaughtered. Hong Un Jong hasn't competed much this year, and so the Asian Games should provide more clarity where she's concerned. I'm rooting for Dipa out of all the Prods, and Pavlova got the silver at Europeans, so hopefully that's a good sign.


Uneven Bars
Finalists:
Yao Jinnan
Huang Huidan
Aliya Mustafina
Daria Spridinova
Becky Downie
Ashton Locklear
Madison Kocian
Larissa Miller

Podium:
1. Yao Jinna
2. Huang Huidan
3. Becky Downie

Ugh, why can't this final be open to more gymnasts? It's stacked! I'm feeling the Chinese going 1-2. Huang could potentially be replaced by Shang, but I'd still have her in silver. The big question make is Aliya's bars, seeing as we don't know what her routine will actually look like. She could also definitely medal. Really, anyone in this final could medal if things go their way. And of course, we can't count the Germans out to qualify. I'm excited!!


Beam
Finalists:
Kyla Ross
Simone Biles
Aliya Mustafina
Maria Kharenkova
Larisa Iordache
Andreea Munteanu
Shang Chunsong
Bai Yawen

Podium:
1. Shang Chunsong
2. Maria Kharenkova
3. Larisa Iordache

This one's near impossible to predict. Shang Chunsong has looked pretty steady this year, where as Larisa and Maria have both had some issues, but her scores were also merciless last year. But then again she's competing at home this year. Maria and Larisa are both obvious picks, but can definitely be inconsistent. Kyla, on the other hand, is very consistent, but her difficulty puts her down in the favorites list. Simone's new beam could definitely put her on the podium if she has a solid effort, but she really should take out that wolf hop. It does her no favors. We of course have no idea what incarnation of her routine Aliya will bring to the table, but the reigning champion (I still can't get over this) can't be counted out. Andreea Munteanu and Bai Yawen both can't be counted out either with good difficulty and beautiful execution. And then of course, there are the Lauren Mitchells and Ellie Blacks who could sneak into the final. This one's incredibly wide open, and basically any combination of gymnasts who can be expected to final would be a conceivable podium.


Floor
Finalists:
Simone Biles
Mykayla Skinner
Giulia Steingruber
Vanessa Ferrari
Larisa Iordache
Claudia Fragapane
Marta Pihan-Kulesza
Shang Chunsong

Podium:
1. Simone Biles
2. Larisa Iordache
3. Vanessa Ferrari

The first six on the list are almost certain to qualify, and the last two spots are fairly open. Lauren Mitchell might be able to snag a spot, Aliya did well in the floor final at Russian Cup, and in my dreams Ellie Black makes it into the finals again. Unfortunately, Mai Murakami doesn't look like she has good enough tumbling this year for the final. Simone winning is another obvious choice. Larisa's been super confident on floor this year and scoring consistently in the high 14s. Vanessa has also been strong and consistent, and word is going around that apparently she's upgrading, which could put her in favor over Larisa. I would cry tears of joy if Claudia were to medal.