Oh, I don't want to be mean but

I am Gina Gogean.



Sadly, I do not deviate much from this facial expression. I always look bored, have bad under-eye circles, and in general, I am the most unenthusiastic gymnast you will see.

[Haters to the right. This is a post where I am going to gripe about Gina Gogean. Yes, she certainly has some redeeming qualities, but seriously....okay here we go].

I have the traditional Romanian hairdo: bangs slightly curled and then split in half, equally pushed to both side of my face (ick!). As previously mentioned in the post "Biggest Scandal" re: 1997 Worlds event finals, I frequently do sub-par routines and somehow medal.

I do not have the best "gymnastics hands," as my fingers are always separated. In addition to the "hands" issue, I have ugly wolf jumps and have this habit of doing my beam choreography, then taking two "little steps" before "big skills."


I have the most "dead vaulting run" ever. I start off without the little "jump start" some gymnasts have and continue to run with zero facial expression. And I have an annoying little habit of "almost sticking" my vault but not really but I still get marked down some but not much. Case in point: 1996 Olympics, all-around AND AGAIN in event finals. I got a silver in the AA (thank GOD Lilia hit...I can't imagine the 1996 Olympic champ being Gogean) and a bronze in the vaulting finals, which really should have gone to the neater, cleaner Galieva, especially considering my sloppy and strange Phelps vault). (And note the leg separation as I take off from the horse!).




I also have the most pathetic excuse for a Tcatchev known to man. I really need to chat it up with Courtney Kupets. (On the + side though, I do have a very nice one-and-a-half pirouette).


And who, in their right mind would have given me the bronze in the 1996 Olympic balance beam final? OK, I hit everything, but seriously, Kochetkova took like 5 times the risk and had 10 times the grace...Judges, step up to the plate. After all, it's an event final....we need to see the extra risk and reward it.

And no one can forgive me for the extremely uninspired music and dance used in my 1997 worlds floor exercise music. "Zorba the Greek" never seemed so...grim. (In keeping with the Biggest Scandal of all time entry, again, the gold should have gone to Khorkina for floor, then Produnova, then Gogean...if we must).
(Note the little piece of "choreography" she does at :56...this same "skill" is repeated on her beam routine...ugh...).


Now, so that I am not being a total hater, I will say that she does have a pretty leap that I think is "hers:"


And we do need to say that she was tough as nails, as Elfi and Tim love to remind us at the 1994 Worlds in Dortmund:

Now, please don't think I'm being mean to be mean. Basically, I think Gina lacked a lot of polish, not to mention she at time seemed inhuman. It's hard to like someone who doesn't seem real. And frequently, yes, she did hit her routines. That being said, many times there was a gymnast who took more risk and have cleaner, better lines & presentation who got bumped a place behind Gogean. Blah!