British WAG (and MAG!) talk

[MaryClare]

It’s fairly common in event finals where each athlete can have 2 coaches, they often bring a team mate instead.

 

[FrolovasDoubleLayout]

I cannot say for certain but I think that something similar happened in 2016 or at another games where an athlete was deliberately given falsified credentials. For some I feel it was an athlete from PAGU. I’ll try to reach into the crevices of my mind to see if I can actually remember who it was (MEX???). Maybe Tokyo2020 needs to be made aware of this and that there needs to be action taken or there will be a media/social media blast put out. For me with the situation that everyone faces entering Japan - to blatantly lie about something like this means that the head(s) of the person (people) who deliberately lied, need to roll right away.

 

[Snowfan]

This is true. Team mates are there during EF or AA finals but they are not alternates trying to get into the olympic village and practicing on the equipment.

 

[Doug1233]

I cannot imagine for one second that they did this without getting someone outside of BG to approve it.

 

[Doug1233]

Is there any way to watch GB podium training?

 

[FrolovasDoubleLayout]

I think that the process is that BG submits the names of the persons for whom they want accreditation to BOA and then BOA does the paper-work with the IOC. So if BG says that GMF is a personal coach of, lets say Alice Kinsella, the paper pusher at BOA sends the information off. It might be someone who really has no idea about WAG.

 

[rlayt]

Even though it’s been done before the officials weren’t dealing with COVID then. There weren’t bubbles to prevent contacts, to prevent infection. Even if they didn’t break the rules it seems wrong that extra people were slipped in.

 

[MaryClare]

No, this isn’t correct.

Coaches do not need to be named coaches of a particular athlete as potentially they could be a fitness coach or dance coach for the whole team.

This differs from the situation at other competitions because “alternates” have zero status at the Olympics. They are not recognised, they do not exist, there is no such thing as an alternate. Georgia and Jake have exactly the same status officially as any other accredited coach. And I don’t believe there is any specific rule preventing coaches from using equipment at a practice session.

The British Olympic committee won’t notice or care when processing accreditation and ordering kit. British gymnastics will have been given a quota of coaching, medical and support staff they are allowed to take, a decision that is generally financial and nothing else.

 

[MaryClare]

They weren’t slipped in. They are officially accredited within the number of coaching and support staff allocated to British Gymnastics from the BOC. They have the same status as any other coach from any other federation. There’s no such thing as alternate athletes remember.

 

[Seyonne]

Since it sounds like there is nothing wrong with it, I’m surprised this is the first time it has happened. Well, maybe it happens all the time and this is the first it was noticed.

Unless they close the loophole, it will happen all the time now. Every Olympic alternate in Paris will suddenly be coaches, trainers, or support animals

 

[MaryClare]

The FIG controls the limits on how many can be present as a coach during competition. So anyone else using this loophole in the future, it only has very limited potential advantages which end once podium training starts.

However, as a positive outcome for the athletes, they do at least this way get some of an Olympic experience, being able to stay in/access the village with the rest of the team and receive all the official Olympic swag.

 

[LMB]

I remember hearing that alternates have to leave Tokyo earlier as well. I think once the time period for a potential replacement has ended, they have to leave. So this way, their replacement athletes get to stay as long as the rest of the team.

 

[YurchenkoLoop]

So the FIG apparently reported them to the IOC??

 

[Doug1233]

Any idea how they looked in PT?

ETA: So the FIG blog said that Jen did a DLO 1/1 on floor. And that Alice is doing BHS LOSO LOSO on beam (and not an Aerial) although that could have been the FIG blogger being shit.

 

[Gymfan93]

There’s the gymternet live blog, but it doesn’t tell us much.
Doesn’t look like any big upgrades or big issues, at least.
ETA: It says Alice did a aerial LOSO LOSO.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

I had a quick Twitter scan. Doesn’t appear that any big vault upgrades have materialised. Apparently there was Gadirova Lopezing and Alice did a quite messy DTY, which is as we’d expect. A Portugese tweet said Amelie did a simple vault, presumably the FTY.

 

[shirai]

RE: the alternate situation, discussion on twitter says that rules state those accredited as officials are not allowed to compete, meaning if GMF and Jarman competed as alternates their results would be annulled. Similar situation happened at 2007 Pan-Ams with Mexico’s team bronze being revoked after their alternate competed while having a coaching accreditation.

 

[Doug1233]

I was thinking that.

So GB don’t have alternates.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

If true, that’s actually rather hilarious. Not that I wish injury or covid on anyone, but should it happen, the shitstorm might be at least as satisfying as another stellar 6th place in TFs.

Looking at the bits and bobs from twitter re PT, there don’t seem to be any videos yet. Piecing together bits and bobs from the report, nobody is upgrading vault. So they’ll count two good Gadirova DTYs and a scrappy one from Alice. Perhaps 43.5ish if all goes well. The Portuguese tweet I found said Amelie was doing more difficulty on bars than vault and floor. Nobody has mentioned any upgrades, which makes me think it’s a 42 best case scenario. Not sure if Alice has upgraded on beam or not or if that was just bad description, and if Amelie is still doing her easier floor set it’ll presumably be the Gadirovas and Alice. Luckily Jennifer’s 17.533 should go a long way towards making things up.

 

[shirai]

Does anyone know if you’re able to change accrediation type? Or is it a one-and-done sort of thing?