Jessica is reporting in person from the 2015 Women’s Gymnastics Championships in Glasgow, Scotland with the European Gymnastic Crew: Emma Bailey, Michelle Web, and Katie Foster:
- Simone Biles told us what kind of “mental break” the US team got that helped them perform at their best in team finals.
- The incredible success of the British women’s program, winning the first ever World Team medal : angry beam, vaulting under pressure and emotion filled floor routines.
- More details on Brenna Dowell’s music-less floor routine, reasons for judging delays, why the
- Swaggy Maggie Nichols performing like a G!
- A recap of each team’s performance, including last minute replacements Enus Mariani (ITA) for injured Vanessa Ferrari
- Why was Rhonda Faehn running to take Skinner and Dowell into the arena for march-in?
- Komova allegedly blamed Russia’s loss on China and the US using steroids.
- Russian MVP’s Afassaneyva and Paseka came through when others faltered.
- How USA Gymnastics reacted and their full response when we asked why MyKayla Skinner and Brenna Dowell weren’t on the floor with the team during team finals.
- NCAA team coaches for Jamaica’s official response to the Olympic Test Event (AKA only want to qualify for the Olympics) overlapping with NCAA Championships.
Here are our tweet highlights from Women’s Team Finals:
- Enus is up on BB replacing injured Ferrari
- Balance beam delays in prelims were due to a discrepancy of D scores. If D scores is off by 0.2 judges must conference. In finals zero margin error is allowed.
- NOOO! Ellie Downie fell again on UB (tkachev), after Ruby hit.
- Up to Ferlitto to save all of the country of Italy now after Enus fell.
- Becky Downie hit bars! Full house here and they went NUTS! Getting teary hearing so many people scream for great gymnastics. HEART YOU GLASGOW!
- Lieke Wevers made me cry on floor . So many emotions! NED are winning the “artistic” part of “artistic gymnastics”
- Happy tears shed so far by @OtotheBeirne Becky Downie UB & Thorsdottir on FX
- BOOM! China = bars dominatrixes (China on UB in 2014 TF: 43.599; China on UB in 2015 TF: 45.632 – +2.033) via @uncletimmensgym
- Lots of coaching from the sidelines, coaches not on the floor but behind barrier on the floor screaming at their gymnasts.
- Wang(CHN) has been waiting to go on BB since before Mai (JPN) did her entire floor routine.
- Ellie Downie (GB) just redeemed herself with some traditional angry BB! Standing arabian over our heads & then stuck 2.5 with wave to crowd
- The whole GB BB squad just did a @RubyHarrold on BB: Like Tequila, so hot they make us want to take our clothes off!
- Stress fractures don’t casue pain if you are ERIKA FASANA!!!
- SWAG-O-METER is about to BURST! Bless Little Canada for giving us @MagsGotSwag12 and all her swag.
- If you didn’t believe that Aly would hit tonight, you’ve been blind for the past 6 years. Beam demon!
- Only deduction in Simon’s entire BB was a freakin’ hop on her landing. The more pressure, the more of a diamond she becomes.
- Theme of today is, I may have missed my connections but I stayed on and fought through..or not. Seda (RUS) overcooked her double pike
- Kharenkova (RUS) fell on the easiest skill in her routine, L turn. GGHHHH! SCREW THIS BEAM!
- If Khorkina is here, she’s going to cook these girls for dinner. Oh, team Russia….
- Two falls for Komova tonight. Bars and now BB. Khorkina is defiantly going to ask them in for cookies like Hansel and Gretel.
- Shang (CHN) just hit her FX but the crowd was like meh.
- Even though, Thorsdottir gave away tenths in bonus connections & had three balance checks, still feels like NED invented a new way of doing BB .
- Sanna Wevers missed her D+D aerial aerial bonus connection. NED is off tonight, being pioneering is hard work (we know).
- Ellie Downie is in tears after anchoring vault and so are we and basically the entire UK right now.
- Crowd is LOSING their minds as GB wins first world team medal, Ellie Black (CAN) off BB in unsual falter.
- The best way to celebrate your first WAG team world medal is by watching Simone on FX. CONGRATS TEAM GB!
The Gym Report’s best guesstimate which individuals made it to the Rio Test Event.
Thank you Jessica for asking USA Gymnastics about why Brenna and Mykayla were not on the floor. In my opinion it is an absolutely fair question. Their response is not acceptable. They had to have known people were going to ask. I felt gutted for Brenna when the rest of her team was celebrating when she wasn\’t there. Something has changed because Sam Peszek was totally on the floor in 08 as well as Anna Li in 11. Saying that the years blend together is a total cop out. And if the years to \”blend together\” then you are not qualified for your job. Many gym fans know more about the sport than you!
First of all, great job on the Worlds coverage! Only one thing I\’d point out – in this episode, it was mentioned that the Chinese team aren\’t \’as bonded\’, or aren\’t \’emotionally invested\’ in their routines, and aren\’t \’out there on social media\’ interacting with their fans as other teams. Actually, they ARE out there – it\’s just the Chinese have their own popular social media channels (like WeChat, Weibo, and other Chinese forums), but very few of their photos, posts, \’tweets\’ get translated for the rest of the gymternet to see. The Chinese girls are incredibly sweet, have great sense of humour and are also big fans of the other gymnasts. I\’m so glad that this Worlds the rest of the gymternet has slowly gotten to see that side of them through translated posts on Tumblr – particularly SongSong, have you seen the photos of her buying truckloads of icecream for her teammates?? Given Gymcastic\’s awesome rep for myth-busting, I thought this is also another one you\’d like to mention on one of your upcoming podcasts. Thanks guys.
I agree! Also, there have been translations of some interviews with the Chinese team, as well as of in depth articles about Deng Linlin and Yao Jinnan, posted on the gymternet. Here’s the post about Shang Chunsong and the ice cream (and her fangirling over Lari): http://delta1088.tumblr.com/post/132456645897/more-on-songsong-lari-food-i-have-managed
(by the gymternet I mean the website thegymter.net)
First off, another WONDERFUL Worlds podcast! Bravo!
THANK YOU Jessica for asking USAG about Brenna’s absence from the floor during team finals!! The question was absolutely valid and appropriate, and if I had been in your shoes, I would have asked the question myself. It’s refreshing to finally have someone like you out on the floor, asking REAL questions! I’m so over all the coddling Martha has been given by the media over the years, asking only what seem to be pre-determined, generic, cookie cutter questions.
Leslie King’s answer was complete BS, but did anyone think we’d get the real story behind Brenna’s absence? I’m sure they NEVER thought anyone would have the balls to ask that question (because God forbid anyone question anything Martha does). Let’s hope your bravery is contagious!!