Post qualifications WAG musings

[Doug1233]

People might criticise me for this - but to me - this was a case of the twisties and a case of the twisties alone.

She put up a 60 in PT. She’s fine.

She’s competed for 5 years, at the highest level, for USAG, ever year, since all the shit with Nassar.

This was simply a freak out under huge pressure in the team final at the Olympics, where she baulked a warm up vault, had a lonnnng wait to think about it, and then did it again in real. Losing herself ten feet in the air upside down twisting under bright lights. A million percent understandable.

Her mind then ran away with her. She didn’t want to BOMB the other events with similar freak outs. She didn’t want to get injured. She didn’t wanna get a 4.0. So, for the good of the team score and her own mental sake, she asked her VERY COMPETENT team members to fill in for her.

It’s quite simple. People are trying to overcomplicate this, IMO. All of a sudden, everyone has a masters degree in psychoanalysis and PTSD.

A good nights sleep, a workout tomorrow, and a chat with the trainer and her coaches, she will be fine on Thursday.

5 days ago she put up a 60.0. No one can touch that. She just needs to take a breath. However, I worry that the intense media reaction to today will not allow her to do that.

 

[irichluck21]

Hopefully she stays off social media completely.

 

[Seyonne]

I love how she bravely faced the media afterwards. So responsible and mature.

I’ve been holding off on criticizing Tom, because he is in a difficult position coming in in a post Nassar world. But, I’ve had it with him. He should have faced the media. He should have offered words of support for Simone. He should have congratulated the rest of the team for persevering in very uncertain circumstances. He’s an absolute disgrace. I don’t know how long his contract is, but I hope whoever is responsible for hiring for the position doesn’t renew it.

 

[makam]

Or lets Jordan just read the nice, supportive comments. Because despite the internet wolves and trolls, a lot of us still love Simone and would love her if she walked off floor because she was tanking her double pikes in warmups.

 

[RedBirdie]

I don’t think it’s twisties. Or at least, not really. She may have gotten lost on a twist today, but her spiraling out of control as a result is something else. IMO, Simone was not well managed this quad

Props to Laurent for turning her into a good bar worker, but other than that? It’s been all about huge difficulty and ignoring fundamentals like not taking .3 and .5 bounces on darn near every vault and floor pass. It’s ignoring her beam problems and letting some code whoring and a big dismount carry her d score. Her execution is good, but she’s been vulnerable to someone getting close enough on d that their superior execution scores could threaten Simone’s AA dominance. And we’ve now seen that happen. You can’t spend 4 years bounding 6 feet out of passes and suddenly stop doing that.

The whole GOAT thing…aurgh. No no no no no. The more she had goats on her leos and blankets and everything else, the more I saw the potential for collapse if things went wrong. There didn’t seem to be anyone around her to keep her balanced and realistic. Aimee did a really good job of that, IMO.

She looked like a mess at Trials. Like Gabby in 2016, Simone pretty clearly doesn’t want to be doing this. She said as much today. So why is she doing this? Genuinely, why? People on her team should have stepped in long before this. Not to stop her, but help her step back so she could make the right decision for her. Instead, it appears to have been a whole lot of “GOAT GOAT GOAT!” and no one seeing a woman who is unhappy and teetering on the edge.

I’m sad for her. I’m mad about the whole thing. Today never should have happened! People keep failing this woman left and right.

 

[JaJa]

A good nights sleep, a workout tomorrow, and a chat with the trainer and her coaches, she will be fine on Thursday.

Would LOVE this to be true. And it may well be. We will see. None of us really knows right now.

 

[JaJa]

I love how she bravely faced the media afterwards. So responsible and mature.

I’ve been holding off on criticizing Tom, because he is in a difficult position coming in in a post Nassar world. But, I’ve had it with him. He should have faced the media. He should have offered words of support for Simone. He should have congratulated the rest of the team for persevering in very uncertain circumstances. He’s an absolute disgrace. I don’t know how long his contract is, but I hope whoever is responsible for hiring for the position doesn’t renew it.

Please feel free to criticize the heck out of that man. And it does not matter how long his contract is. I can promise you there are clauses in it which would offer ample opportunity to get rid of him.

 

[Jack]

I 100% agree with this. Simone’s work hasn’t sat well with me all quad, and I think the Landi’s have a lot to do with it. I just don’t think she would have these problems if she was still with Aimee.

 

[JaJa]

Instead, it appears to have been a whole lot of “GOAT GOAT GOAT!” and no one seeing a woman who is unhappy and teetering on the edge.

I do not see this at all. Simone did not seem unhappy and teetering on the edge. And when she left the TF she seemed to be making a rational, good, decision based on the greater good for the Team. Something was clearly happening to her starting for sure on the 2d night of Trials. But more and more I am thinking maybe Doug is right about it being all about twisties.

 

[choclatechip45]

I stopped liking Cecille when she was tweeting about the rumor there were back room dealings for the 2016 Olympic team.

 

[Doug1233]

So why is she doing this? Genuinely, why?

Her face is on literally a million Olympic sponsor ads. They’re all agreed like, a year ago.

The pressure on her to keep going must have been ridic.

 

[Seyonne]

And there’s a tour.

 

[Sparklesmom]

I don’t want to be a negative nelly here but I think she’s done for now. I love watching her but she need to be safe. Because her life is more valuable than this sport. And well, I saw relief in her when she was out. And joy. She was happy again. And I haven’t seen that in her face in a long time. She was so glad she was not out there. I want it all to be fine tomorrow but honestly even more I want HER to be fine. And I have this nagging feeling that HER being fine isn’t going to mesh with competing in two days. I could be totally off base and well I hope to heck I am, but ugh just a feeling i have.

 

[Caledi]

You know, I wouldn’t put it as harshly as you did, but I do agree with a lot of what you said. I feel like several aspects of her gymnastics have deteriorated this quad: the landings obviously, but also her form, especially on bars.

 

[Stacey]

The “Gold Medal Tour”

 

[Doug1233]

Full videos from Prelims are gradually showing up here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8HMcOp_XRf3qzCZRsYNIxA/videos