Thursday, May 10, 2012
European Championships: Women's Qualifying
Vika, my darling!
Quick Hits
Quick Hits Part 2
Grishina!
Problems for Aliya. Frankly, it looks like she is going Aurelia Dobre on us and is in danger of sucking wind at the Olympic Games.
Anastasia Grishina
Viktoria Komova
Anastasia Sidorova
Aliya Mustafina
Maria Paseka
Izbasa
Iordache
Ponor
Diana Bulimar
Raluca 'Pitic' Haidu
Vanessa Ferarri
Francesca DeAgostini
Carlotta Ferlito
Erika Fasana
Marta Pihan-Kulesza
More to come!
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thanks a lot for putting all the videos together.
ReplyDeleteBars scores felt a little hard. Larisa is on fire, Cata and Didi look great tooo.
Hopefully the russians will put it together in TF, and I'm devastated we won't Aliya in TF
Hey, let's be real here, if Aliya was going to have a meltdown on the road to the Olympics, this was about the best time she could do it. She's not doing AA, it was the quals, not the finals, and she didn't suffer a terrible injury while doing so. Is it shitty that she missed 2 of 3? Yes. Is it an unqualified disaster? Considering last year's Euros, hell no.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Every time a Russian headcases it, there's always an excuse. If an American had performed like this in a major competition akin to Euros, people on this board would be chomping at the bit to criticize them for everything from their choreography to their weight. Give me a break.
ReplyDeleteI totally called this one...I had a feeling she would 'Dobre' the rest of her career. Sad, but she just doesn't have the same swagger/confidence she had before. There's no question she'll make the team, but I think she'll be more team player than 'star.'
ReplyDelete@Anon @8:40, please. Acknowledging that she's coming back from a torn ACL in her first major competition in an Olympic year and performing close to full difficulty on 3 events, not to mention the fact that this was the very same comp where she blew out said ACL, plus the added pressure of shouldering the "experience" burden of her team (2 new seniors plus 1 recovering Komova and 1 inexperienced Paseka) isn't making excuses, it's stating facts.
ReplyDeleteShe might have headcased today, but it's frankly understandable. And to their credit, the USA hasn't had really any comparable headcasing moments in recent years, unless you want to talk Gabby at PacRims which if you ask me is a whole other kettle of fish.
Being a Dobre doesn't mean a headcase moment, it means you aren't the same gymnast you were before the knee injury. There are moments where you look capable, but it is never the same.
ReplyDeleteI highly doubt Mustafina shoulders Komova during competition. They likely want to kick the other's fucking ass.
There were plenty of Americans who headcased at Nationals. Pick a number.
She's not the same gymnast she was before the knee injury. She's tentative and unsure, and doesn't have the swagger and diva-ness she had before. That's what makes her a Dobre, not necessarily the mistakes.
ReplyDeleteLarisa and Cata are peaking too soon. They will melt down at the Olympics. Aliya will be back being the fierce bitch that she is and take silver to Gabby or if the stars align, Grishina.
ReplyDeleteGrishina seems like the headcase here...has she ever truly hit in a competition???
ReplyDeleteGrishina hit bars and beam, which is important. Grishina has hit meets as a junior. She is getting better as a senior. She seems to be having a technical error with the new 2 1/2+front full pass. She missed it in warm ups and in the meet. Hitting bars and beam is very big for her.
ReplyDeleteKomova seems to be pacing herself to peak at the Olympics. They are being smart with her and that ankle. She looks more confident than she did at Worlds.
Aliya has looked fitter and better with each competition she has done, this is only her third outing since the injury, I actually think they're pacing her very well. No one wants to peak at euros in an Olympic year, the US silvers in the last few Olympics have been in part down to peaking and trying to maintain that peak for far too long leading up to the games, it's unsustainable and ends in exhaustion, injury, and disappointment.
ReplyDeleteWhether Aliya has enough time to regain her spark remains to be seen, I hope so, but it's a hell of a long road back from that injury both physical and mental. The difference between even Russian Nationals and now is marked, and that was only a few weeks ago.
I think Vika looks stronger and fitter than she did at world's last year, I wouldn't be surprised if she peaks perfectly for London and takes it.
@Anon at 11:38, completely agree with you. Aliya was in dominant, super form during 2011 Euros, and that did her no good after an injury. Peaking now is surely not her goal, nor Team Russia's goal. Keeping her healthy, regaining her skills, and giving her as much competitive experience as possible prior to London are all still very much in the cards.
ReplyDeleteShe won't win in London.
ReplyDeleteAliya still swings really nicely. So she had some mistakes. So what. There's still time...I think she'll get it together.
ReplyDeleteThere's a difference between peaking and being consistent. Every gymnast is training to peak at the Olympics but these girls have a problem with their consistency.
ReplyDeleteIf these girls can't consistently hit their easier routines what makes people think they'll hit their harder ones in a few months?
The Russians train more with a schedule of periodization than the other teams. It can lead to them hitting harder routines later on. They don't really do consistency the way Martha/the Romanians do, but it can work for them. It can also bite them in the ass. It is good that Grishina is getting better with every meet, but they have some major holes to fill...before team finals and certainly before the Olympics.
ReplyDeleteI hope the Americans lose for the sole reason of how annoying their fans are. They will all claim they were robbed anyway. They lost in 2004, which was pathetic. It took being deaf, dumb and blind for Team USA to pick the them and compete like they did in Athens,
ReplyDeleteWow, I wonder if we'll see an amanar from Ponor! She over rotated a DTY with PLENTY of power. She looks closer than anyone else here.
ReplyDeletenews flash anon 1:11....all gym fans are insufferable no matter the team they cheer for
ReplyDeleteI hope the Russians lose for the sole reason of how annoying THEIR fans are. You would think that Grishina and Mustafina get up in the morning and poop gold medals. Sorry, but they have problems just as every other gymnast in the world does. Quit making excuses for them. As for the Americans, they've won a hell of a lot more medals at the Olympics than Russia has recently (IIRC, Russian women won ZERO in Beijing), and at the last few worlds. Get a grip.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous at 1:11 - The Russians are the ones that are constantly whining about being "robbed," not the Americans. They bitched about Nabieva not getting a vault medal in 2010 even though she had horrible technique and form, and couldn't even manage to get the vault all the way around. They whined again when Komova lost in 2011. Re-read the history.
ReplyDeletelighten up it's just gymnastics... hahaha
ReplyDeleteI don't think Romania is peaking too soon at all. I saw a lot of wobbles out of both Larisa and Cata that can be cleaned up. Not to mention hops from Izbasa and room for bars improvement on form for both Bulimar and Haidu. We are only a few months from the olympics, you should not be working on skills, you should be working on consistency and getting rid of the wobbles and getting everything polished.
ReplyDelete