Let's Get This Quad Started

The first camp of the Quad!! Woo!
Let's see who showed up...

From USA Gymnastics

Full Roster:
Shania Adams, Buckeye
Sloane Blakely, WOGA
Jordan Chiles, Naydenov
Christina Desidero, Parkettes
Olivia Dunne, ENA Paramus
Norah Flatley, Chow's
Colbi Flory, Texas Dreams
Margzetta Frazier, Parkettes
Morgan Hurd, First State
Sydney Johnson Scharpf, Brandy Johnson's
Madeleine Johnston, Hill's
Shilese Jones, Buckeye
Sunisa Lee, Midwest Gymnastics
Lauren Little, Everest
Emma Malabuyo, Texas Dreams
Victoria Nguyen, Chow's
Maile O'Keefe, Salcianu Elite
Abby Paulson, Twin City Twisters
Gabby Perea, Legacy Elite
Lexy Ramler, KidSport LLC
Emily Schild, Everest Gymnastics
Alyona Shchennikova, 5280 Gymnastics
Trinity Thomas, Prestige
Olivia Trautman, Twin City Twisters 

I'm so happy to see Norah Flatley back in action. I so badly wanted to see her in Rio but it was not to be. I'm hoping her and teammate Victoria Nguyen have success this quad because both are lovely gymnasts with great form. I'm also partial to Gabby Perea and Emma Malabuyo so good to see them there too. I guess this camp they're only doing conditioning and half routines so there won't be any exciting news about new skills and whatnot. I'm just ready to see what the girls above have in store. It's really weird/exciting to think that some of them will be on the next Olympic team.

That Time I Realized I Was Wrong...

I wrote this post over two years ago. In it, I look back at past world championship winners and how they end up fairing in the Olympic All-Around. All signs pointed to...well bad news for Simone! I was worried that she wouldn't be able to hold her dominance all the way until Rio but guess what, she did! And then some.

I suppose I was wrong, but I'm glad that I was.

2 Year Bloggiversary!

I actually feel like I've had my gym blog for a lot longer than two years. I guess because so much has happened since then! Two world championships and an Olympics. I look forward to having this blog to Tokyo and beyond.

In honor of the two year milestone, I'm going to revise the gymnastics Q and A I completed awhile back, here it is:

Get to know the blogger - Gymnastics edition

Name: (G)race

DOB: Spring, 1994

Gym fan since: 2008ish but not seriously until 2012

Gymnast since: Sadly never. I had scoliosis which gifted me a fused spine which gifted me zero flexibility. But had I been one, I obviously would have won the AA in London. Obviously. (See, "Why I Would Have Made a Perfect Gymnast" post)
Gymnastics coach since: I coached my younger sister in the front yard when I was 14, so that definitely counts.

Favorite Quad to Date: Oooh ok. I love 1996-2000 because there was so much going on behind the scenes but Sydney was a hot mess! So I guess, gymnasts/gymnastics wise, I really enjoy 2004-2008. There seemed to be a lot of variety of styles during that time. You had Shawn's power/nice form and Ivana and Mattie's dance. Asac brought the power and Sloane was just fun to watch.

Favorite Olympics: Hmmm...I really enjoy rewatching Athens for some reason even though that quad tends to bore me. But I have to go with London because that's when I got REALLY into the sport.

Favorite Worlds: Stuttgart, 2007 or Tokyo 2011.

Most Disastrous Competition: 2010 US Nationals, falls galore.

Favorite Gymnast of All-time: Shannon Miller but I also enjoy Lilia Podkopayeva and Shawn Johnson. Shannon takes it though.

Favorite Gymnast Currently Competing: Norah and Morgan Hurd of the US. Larissa Lordache of Romania. Dara Spiridinova of Russia and Shang Chusong of China.

Met any gymnastics celebrities?: Yes! Maybe not all super famous but I met McKayla Maroney, Jordan Chiles and Lexie Priessman in 2014 and Shawn Johnson, Sabrina Vega and Nia Dennis in 2015 and Shannon Miller, Kyla Ross and Carly Patterson in 2016.

Favorite Event to Watch: I love watching uneven bars, always have! Floor is probably second if it has good music and flow.

Gymnastics Pet Peeve: I hate ugly floor choreo, boring mounts (especially beam), front or side ariels on floor, overused wolf turns, bad form/technique in general, sloppy vaults just for difficulty, cowboyed giants...there are more that I can't think of right now.

Favorite Skill: Geinger on bars, completed and well formed triple twist on floor, needle or illusion turn on beam and vault...I don't think I have a favorite. I guess, a clean Amanar. 

So that's all for now, here's to many more blogging years!

In Honor and Appreciation of Maggie Nichols Elite Career

After Maggie Nichols was left of the Rio team, she announced that her elite career was over and that she was looking forward to competing NCAA with Oklahoma come the fall. I'm happy that Maggie is happy to move forward to college but I'm also sad because, well, I love Maggie's determination and work ethic, even in the face of adversity or favoritism. I'll miss her powerful floor passes and steady beam and bars. So I want to take a moment to appreciate all that she has done at the elite level.

When I first saw Maggie at the 2013 nationals, I was fairly unimpressed. I was unimpressed by most people that day so it wasn't necessarily her fault but no newcomers really stood out in a good way except Biles and even she was overshadowed by Maroney and Ross's comebacks. Fast forward to the next year when I got to see her in person at Classics and I was impressed by the altitude of her tumbling and strong dance, but still, I didn't think too much of her (sorry Maggie). At nationals however, she really proved herself as someone worthy of a spot on the worlds team, coming in third place all around. Everyone thought she should be in Nanning. Sadly, she was sent to Pac Rims for some unknown reason (cough, stupid reason, cough) and she injured her knee there. Some may have quit then, knowing they were clearly not a "favorite" but not Maggie, when she resurfaced in 2015, fully healthy, she was better than ever! She had an Amanar ready to compete and upgrades galore, she quickly proved herself as a reliable and steady competitor, being even more consistent than veterans like Aly Raisman who was just coming back.

At 2015 nationals, Maggie came in second place! She earned that spot rightfully as being among a select few who didn't falter over the two day competition. She, of course, was  named to the Worlds team that headed to Glasgow. Thus, the second time Maggie was screwed over. She SHOULD have competed in the all-around during qualifications, because hello, she placed 2nd all around at Nationals. But, favoritism won over and she was left off. Obviously, her AA score was valued above others because they put her up on all four events during team finals. How curious.

Happily, Maggie made floor finals where she won a bronze! In early 2016, many people had her on their list of "likely to make the Rio team, myself included. So when she injured her knee again in April, I was super upset. Most people wrote her off but once more the comeback queen, Maggie was back in action at Nationals where she competed only bars and beam but let the world know she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

I was at the Olympic Trials, and let me tell you, despite the one fall on beam, Maggie looked loads better than a certain someone who was named to the team. I'm still super pissed off that she was left at home. Despite being hurt just three short months ago, Maggie came in 6th and beat a certain someone who was taken on the team! She had almost all of her skills back and looked rock solid but unlike a certain someone, she was not given the benefit of "more time". It's still an open wound folks.

If Maggie had been in Rio I have no doubt that she would have competed admirably. Honestly, I think she could have challenged Raisman for the second AA spot and possibly made beam finals. Que cera, cera.

I'll miss Maggie but I know she will CRUSH in NCAA. I can't wait to see her being appreciate as she should have been all along.

Rio Reflections

I hate to say this, I really do, but Rio was a tiny bit of a let down to me. Part of the reason was that I had really built it up in my mind these four years and partly because it was just so predictable. I wanted that epic moment when you realize who is going to win after the score is flashed, not when you go in knowing without a doubt what the majority of the podiums will look like. I wanted to root for a team that felt united and that I had been hoping for. The Final Five competed really well but I don't know, I just didn't feel their team chemistry like the Fierce Five and the team selection was so corrupted that I just felt bitter.

Still, Rio had it's merits! Here are my high points:

1. Simone's four gold medals. Yes, she made the Games predictable but that's not to say I didn't appreciate what she accomplished. It was so nice to see someone finally living up to their hype. I know the chances of this are near impossible, but can you imagine the downfall if she'd failed to deliver the performances we all knew her to be capable of?
2. Aly winning silver in the AA and floor. I've always felt fond to Aly because we're the same age and she just seems like a very genuine person. She sold me with that floor routine in London that I still watch occasionally. Her gymnastics aren't my favorite but I love that her hard work has been rewarded. Her comeback was real, earned and even better than before. I wish she would have decided to retire after Rio though. I think it would have been great for her to go out on such a high note and make room for the newcomers.
3. Sanne Weivers winning gold on beam! Sad that Simone fell but Sanne had the routine of her life and it was simply lovely. I'm on the fence as to how I feel about actually replacing tumbling with dance on floor but I don't mind it on beam because I do think it's equally as difficult.
4. Aliya's repeat bar title. She also makes me "lows" list but that bar routine was spot on and I'm glad she was rewarded after being worked to the ground these last four years. I was also happy with Maddie winning silver, she did her job.
5. USA's leotards. Oh my gosh, we finally pulled it together. I kind of hated the V neck one worn for event finals but the qualification and team finals were absolutely gorgeous and patriotic.
6. The arena. Love the green.

Lows:

1. Our team not being who it should have been.
2. Shang getting robbed in the AA. I've rewatched routines and there is no way Aliya should have scored ahead of her with that beam, I  mean geez.
3. Lackluster floor routines. Where was the epic music? Where was the emotion even? I wanted Kyla's opera, the urgency of Aliya and Jordyn's London music.
4. Vault finals were disappointing. I really don't care how difficult a vault you can execute if you can't land it. Sorry. I love Chuso as much as everyone else but don't attempt something you aren't consistent at. It's not even safe.
5. The Chinese getting screwed for bar finals. In favor of a certain American among others. I mean come on, the CHINESE AND BARS! It's like peanut butter and jelly.
6. Predictability as stated above. Oh and NO EMOTIONAL THEME SONG? I want Phillip Phillips back.

Overall, I don't think I'll rewatch Rio nearly as much as I have London, here's to Tokyo being twice as awesome.

USA Goes 1-2

Sorry for posting this so late but hurray for Aly and Simone! As stressful as it was to watch Aly make that mistake on bars, it did give some suspense to the whole watching experience that hasn't been there yet. In the end, it was pretty obvious that Musty couldn't overcome her balk on beam.

I'm sure I'm not in the minority when I say that I was crying right along with Aly after her FX. Gahhh, it was so beautiful! And then when she said to Mihai, "That was my best double turn ever!", I'd literally been thinking the same thing. She worked so hard and this is what it looks like to have that pay off. Being second in the world! I've been a big fan of Aly's for a long time. We're teh same age so I guess I live vicariously through her haha. Her and Simone are such genuine, classy young ladies and I'm so happy to see them reach such success.

Now, I love Aliya but I do agree with those who thing that Shang should have gotten bronze. On a good day, Aliya would have the edge over her in difficulty from VT but this was not a good day for Musty. She opened the door with beam and Shang should have been able to walk through it but was definitely underscored on that day, as well as previously in the games. I'm excited for the day when China can be scored fairly and make podiums again.

Back soon with EF thoughts!

The Final Five Get it Done

Quite an upset, am I right?

Jk, this was the most predictable team final of all time. And I can't lie, that made it a lot less fun. I love that the US has so much talent but it sure does make it boring when we know we'll win by such a ginormous margin. London, had me at the edge of my seat. Rio found me comfortably reclining.

Vault was fabulous by all, though Laurie's form does leave a lot to be desired. Bars were a bit scary for Simone but she managed. And Gabby and Madison both had really nice routines. Beam was good, floor was excellent. And our girls came away with a gold medal and a pretty team name.

I was blue that China didn't get silver but not unhappy for Russia. Aliya is the queen! I would love for her to rock AA and come out with a bronze.

And Shang broke my heart during bars :((((( while Mao further bruised it during floor. Sad. I just wish the other teams could get some consistency. They have the talent.

Back tomorrow!