One of the biggest scandals of all time (IMO...)

1997 World Championships, Balance Beam Finals
Gina Gogean gets the gold. But why? She does a punch front mount and a punch front on the beam and her dismount. Otherwise, it's nothing but leaps. There is no tumbling, no creativity. It's not even well-choreographed. She's basically "cheating" the (at the time) new Code of Points. No, she doesn't wobble, but seriously? The FIG creates a new, demanding Code, and then doesn't reward the gymnasts who takes the most risk, has the most originality? And I must say, I don't like to be "mean" to any gymnast, but Gina is someone that I have never liked, find very hard to like, don't really enjoy anything she does. And this is one of the ugliest, most compulsory and boring routines, of ALL the events.


Now, a lot of people would say that Kui Yuanyuan should have won. Yes, this is one of the great balance beam routines of all time. But she does have a slight wobble after her layout (but who else DOES a laid-out full-twisting layout on beam? Oana Ban?). And she has a slight hop on the dismount. But this routine IS brilliant. It's what I thought the FIG wanted, since they eliminated compulsories, made it more difficult to get to a 10.0 start value and got rid of bonuses for repeating elements and added bonuses for connecting elements.


In my opinion, Svetlana Khorkina is the winner. This routine is difficult, artistic, original, and clean. Khorkina does not have any balance breaks. WHY do judges reward Gogean over Khorkina? Khorkina delivers what the new Code was looking for, AND she does it sans balance breaks and steps on the landing.


MY results:

1. Svetlana Khorkina
2. Kui Yuanyuan
3. Gag-me-Gogean (sorry, but she really is about the most irritating gymnast of all time)

And another thought: Khorkina looks so good here with a little bit of meat on her bones, much better than at the 2004 Olympics.