Relitigating 2000 Olympics stuff

[RedBirdie]

To not even make Atler an alternate is something I still just don't understand at all. Not that I think spending more time with Bela and Valeri would have done her fragile mental state any good; I shudder to think of just how broken she might have been in Sydney.

 

[rlayt]

And we never got to the bottom of those claims, IIRC by Bela that she wouldn’t have accepted an alternate slot.

 

[irichluck21]

Yeah I wonder if Atler stated she would not be accepting the alternate spot.

I did seem like she was over the whole thing before Day 2 began. It was like she was going through the motions.

 

[RedBirdie]

Atler has stated she was never asked

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

Genuinely delighted we're doing this! The US in 2000 is one thing that pretty much passed me by, as I wasn't following anything in the run up to the Olympics, then didn't pay that much attention to the team when they were there as they were so obviously not medal contenders.

So the timeframe is- the initial team was White, Dantszcher, Ray, Chow, Dawes and Maloney. I'm guessing no confirmation of who was going to sit out what. Then White was injured and Tasha was subbed in, over Alyssa who was the 1st alternate because they were ranking them at that point.

Am I right in thinking the locks were Chow, Ray, Jamie and Maloney, and the last two were to fit around them, or is that looking at it in retrospect?

 

[RichardL]

Atler goes over it all here:

254: Vanessa Atler

LISTEN HERE THIS WEEK’S INTERVIEW Vanessa Atler is an American treasure and fans have loved her from the moment they first saw her elegant power. She’s a multi-time national champion, multi-World Cup champion, Goodwill Games event champion. She would probably have made the 1996 Olympic team had...

gymcastic.com

She states that she was told after night one that she wasn't going to be named to the team, which explains the mistakes and sense of going through the motions on day two. But she also says that she wouldn't have picked herself for the team, either (albeit knowing more than we did at the time about what was really going on).

I remember attending Nationals that summer in person and thinking that the US looked amazing. Ray was still performing the mega-hard bars routine, Maloney was spectacular, Dantzscher was finally hitting everything. Then they were worse at Trials, and exhausted by Sydney.

 

[rlayt]

The Karolyi practice of starving, over-work and too many internal competitions. That’s what defeated the 2000 team.

 

[rlayt]

I think MLT said Beckerman wasn’t doing well in Sydney because she couldn’t take her meds. Whatever she took was in the list of banned substances.

 

[IratePanda]

I think MLT said Beckerman wasn’t doing well in Sydney because she couldn’t take her meds. Whatever she took was in the list of banned substances.

Was it possible to get a Therapeutic Use Exemption like Biles did?

 

[rlayt]

TUE Was never addressed in anything I heard.

 

[FrolovasDoubleLayout]

With the debacle of the vault - while I agree that perhaps the horse was set to the 'old' norms for the all-around why wouldn't it have been noticed during any/all of the qualification rounds or team finals?

Personally I think that during the change over from MAG to WAG - it was just set to the incorrect height.

 

[RichardL]

Even exhausted, there were certainly moments of brilliance for the US team in Sydney, especially in the team final. Maloney's TF FX would have qualified 3rd into event finals, Dantzscher's into 5th. Chow's TF UB would have qualified 6th into EF, Ray's into 7th behind her.

You can combine Chow's best scores across the first two phases of the competition to give her an AA score that would've given her the bronze medal.

 

[JoseM]

Too bad about Moceanu injuring herself. She had her 1 .5 back and was vaulting HS front layout half vaults again. So 9.8/9.9 sv would have put her in line for favorite for the team. Such a shame. A 1998 GWG Moceanu would have been a lock for Sydney.

Too bad about Moceanu indeed. Team USA at Sydney 2000 would have fared much better with Moceanu. The fact that Moceanu was injured and was unable to make the Team truly sucks !

Back in 2000, the fact that Moceanu couldnt make the Team was sad, and bad news for me. Bummer !! Aw shucks !! Oh shoot !! Back in 2000, I was hoping for Moceanu. I believe in her, even if she didnt make the Sydney Team.

Shortly after, at OOBNess, I posted a thread titled: “Dominique Moceanu is awesome !!”.

Moceanu didnt make the Sydney Team, but she is still a champion in my eyes.

Dominique H. Moceanu Canales, 4 ever a champion !!


José M.

 

[JoseM]

I don't know if I've ever seen a gymnast as spectacularly mismanaged as Atler.

If Atler would have been managed and guided correctly, she CERTAINLY would have made the Sydney Team ! Much too bad that Atler was the object of such crappy and sh***y management.

Back in 2000, when Bela didnt choose Atler for the Team, I thought he was crazy and out of his mind. Now I am more aware of Atler’s issues and problems of back then. However, I still think Bela was crazy. He should have chosen Atler as an alternate.

José M.