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Gymnastics: The Road to the Tokyo Olympic 2021 Olympics Part 1
I’ve been involved in the sport of gymnastics for a long time. I’ve competed at almost every level and judged it. The Olympics are the premier event in the sport and after all of the craziness of the last year, we are finally approaching the Tokyo games.
The Two Legends
Of all the gymnasts on the U.S. national team, there is one person who stands out as a lock for the American team: Simone Biles. Many refer to her as the greatest of all time. I would have to agree with them on these counts. She is by far the most innovative and technically gifted athlete. She has more world medals and titles than anyone before her. She has already earned an Olympic title, yet she continues to push the boundaries.
Have you ever heard of Oksana Chusovitinia? If you are a gymnastics fan then yes, if not, then Chuso is a legend. End of sentence. Chuso is a forty-five year old gymnast who will be attending her eighth Olympic games! She is a vault specialist and she may even challenge for a medal there. She has represented Uzbekistan, Germany, and the Soviet Union. Watch out for her story.
A Team of Four
There are only four gymnasts that will be named to each Olympic team. The era of having one gymnast who is an event specialist is over. Each one of the team members will have to be able to compete on any event. In qualification, the team of four will have the ability to drop one score, but in the team final everything changes. Three gymnasts compete and all three scores count. A fall or injury will be devastating.
Who will make the team? In the next installment, we will look at differing teams from around the world.