Antwerp rewind

[RAFIKI]

While we twiddle our thumbs waiting for podium training and hoping that no one else gets injured….let’s reminisce about 2013 worlds.

I remember being impressed that half the WAG floor finalists had double-doubles. I’ll try and dig out my competition journal to find more of what I thought at the time.

I rewatched the WAG AA last night and I’d forgotten about Sasada’s full twisting straight back beam mount. It was really sad hearing Mitch Fenner worry about Ferrari retiring

It was amusing hearing Biles described as having very little experience and quite the whiplash going from Biles to SCS on vault. Ross and Biles were so close going into the last rotation but there wasn’t much excitement elsewhere with half the top group group falling on beam. Was 2013 when beam started going downhill in terms of consistency?

Loved seeing Iordache at close to her best but sad knowing what was ahead for her.

I went to 2013 worlds and had a great time but I haven’t rewatched it much. The individual worlds just don’t have the same staying power. I’ve rewatched 2005 a fair bit but never 2009/2017 (again I went to both but they were quite forgettable comps).

What are your memories of 2013 worlds?

 

[Passion]

 

[CameliasFingerpaint]

For a post Olympic individual worlds, 2013 was by far one of the best.

• The debut of Simone. There were huge questions regarding her consistency after the Classics debacle. She had a fantastic meet. Her 2.5 + Punch lay from the AA is still one one of the most beautifully executed pieces of gymnastics ever.
• Mustafina showed up with some very interesting upgrades, had a comical qualifications, and won the beam final with a Level 8 flight series.
• Kyla Ross at her absolute peak.
• Iordache was excellent, and was a total heartbreaker. Same for Becky Downie.
• Isbaza taking her final bow by face planting her final pass wearing make up that would make a drag queen blush.
• Yao successfully performed the Mo Salto.
• Maroney competed the AA in prelims! And of course AOGC fucked her over by making her floor routine too long.

It was a great competition, great gymnastics, interesting scandals, hilarious cosmetics choices. 10/10 would Antwerk again.

 

[MaryClare]

The beam final was immense. Mustafina was first up, finished her routine absolutely fuming, spent the rest of the final scribbling down her routine on a piece of paper then realised she’d won

 

[brg09]

Bleached hair and bright red lipstick. The style choices were indeed interesting.

Who was the fourth American? Simone won it all of course, Kyla cleaned up and Mckayla got redemption from the year before but i can’t for the life of me remember who the fourth American was? Shades of Jana Bieger in 2005, being the only American to come home without any hardware.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

Brenna Dowell. Except Jana at least got to do bars in prelims.

 

[irichluck21]

Mckayla got redemption from the year

6th in the AA and 2 per’d. That was a pretty strong result for someone that was “just a vault specialist”. Even more so, she would have been 3rd if she hadn’t fallen off beam.

She would likely have medaled in FX as well but got the .1 deduction for going over 90 seconds with floor music and Ross won the tie breaker over her.

 

[brg09]

Ah. I was just reading an old thread about GAGE gymnasts who never quite make it, that’s a good example of one.

 

[CameliasFingerpaint]

That was so harsh of Martha. As much as I love her, there was no reason for Maroney to do AA in prelims. Brenna probably could have used the experience given what happened later that quad.

 

[RichardL]

I wonder if she was scared that Biles would completely implode and not qualify to the AA (I mean, it was possible.) Would’ve been incredibly embarrassing to only have one AA qualifier, even if she would’ve also been the winner.

 

[MRR]

Harsh in terms of Dowell being named to the team to not compete a single routine, but Price was a far better bar worker if they wanted one (and Kocian, had she not gotten injured). Dowell couldn’t match Biles on bars that year nor on any other event.

The prelims debacle happened because Penny wanted Maroney in the AA final due to her publicity following London (info I heard from a relative of a gymnast at the 2013 camp). Ross was almost relegated to UB/BB, but Martha’s “compromise” became having three AAers. Dowell was superfluous for finals and medal haul no matter what events she competed, though.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

If they were starting from the premise that Maroney must do AA, there wasn’t a lot else they could do other than the 3 AAers approach.

With Simone so inconsistent over multiple competitions earlier in the year, they really needed Kyla to be doing AA as insurance. She was the 2nd or 3rd best AAer in the world at that point. When you have someone like early 2013 Simone, clearly you have to give her an AA spot but you also have to factor in the possibility of her tanking in the final. If that had happened, there was a good chance Kyla would’ve won the title instead. Marta got that one right.

 

[Yarotska]

Martha was saying they could do 3 AAers as far back as championships. I don’t understand why people were shocked that it happened. Disappointed, sure, but it didn’t come out of nowhere, and arguably McKayla ended up scoring about as well as Dowell would have on bars. I kind of got the feeling that Martha was over Al & Armine after 2008. I think in Martha’s time, only one GAGE gymnast actually competed in a team final.

 

[JJS_5056]

• The collapse of the Russian team post-London and after ousting Alexandrov. Komova (meningitis), Afanasyeva (ankle injury after looking hot for AA, VT, and FX medals that summer), Paseka (back injury), Grishina (punished for missing Russian Cup; injured and retired in 2014 after AA and BB bronzes at 2013 Euros)
• The last time Mustafina competed: 2 Vaults (crashed her 1/2-on + FLO 1/1 in prelims to settle for Reserve; may have pulled out a VT medal had she made EFs), Seitz on UB, and Whip+Whip+ BHS+ADF+Stag on FX
• The insane and inconsistent balance beam judging that somehow thought Mustafina’s Sissone + Side Somi wasn’t worthy of credit in EFs, for example
• As mentioned, Maroney missing FX EF due to a -0.10 time penalty; she was a strong AA and FX worker in 2011 and 2013, yet her results and legacy are almost entirely based on 1 event (VT). It would’ve been nice to have seen her be able to compete her new (choreography and composition) in an FX EF vs. Ross who had no shot at a medal.
• I wish the WTC had never messed with BB after Rio: B+B+C SB for Dance/Mixed, upgrading Split/Straddle Jumps to B, devaluing Sheep to C, removing D (salto)+A Mixed CV, removing C+C Mixed CV, etc.

I remember thinking Mustafina was going to slowly build back up her program en route to Rio, which sadly never happened as she didn’t even get a new personal coach until late-ish 2015 (?). Her routines here were so much more competitive than what she brought to 2014 Worlds + 2016 Olympics: 2 Vaults, 6.9 D on UB (equal to 2016 Prelims/EF), 6.0/6.1 D on BB (with a more reliable Acro CR), ~5.9/6.0 D on FX.

I remember being excited, but frustrated, to see Afanayseva busting out an Amanar less than 12 months after the Rio Team Final, where Russia could’ve kept it an actual battle against the U.S. had they been able to produce 3 Amanars. Her BB routines from the early 2013 World Cup meets are some of my favorites. She was screwed out of so many potential World medals in 2009 and 2013.

 

[Beamer]

I remember how beautiful Ross’s FX routine was.

And how this was the only major meet at which Ross would perform a Komova II (inside stalder Shaposhnikova) on UB.

I freakin’ loved Ross at this meet.

Biles’s 2.5 + front layout sticks out both because she soon switched to another pass and because of how floaty the layout was.

I remember Ferrari getting her first World FX medal in 7 years.

And who could forget Maroney’s VTs and the pseudo-redemption she got from London.

I remember reading that Dowell was never officially on the Worlds team since she didn’t compete anything. Marta submitted a lineup with 3 AAers and Dowell technically the alternate. She was recognized by USAG as a World team member but not the FIG, if what I read was correct.

(I also remember as 2015 Worlds approached, that people said it looked like Dowell would be the alternate for a third year in a row).