Shannon Miller: My Child, My Hero by Claudia Miller

[Big_rock_show]

It seems like Shannon was a cash cow for people. The more she performed and showed up to appearances, the more everyone around her benefited but the more injured she became.

 

[MaryClare]

I guess I mean in terms of risk. Falls on both prevented otherwise superb gymnasts from advancing to finals in several cases. Vault and floor obviously consisted of very simple skills that only Eileen Diaz could possibly miss. But you're right, they're not "difficult" skills.

I meant because you described them as gatekeeper skills and not designed for every body type. How?

 

[RichardL]

I meant because you described them as gatekeeper skills and not designed for every body type. How?

I guess you're making me rethink what I meant by that!

I was mostly just reacting to how they were the skills that were most likely to trip them up, and were also skills that few gymnasts would include in their optional exercises. The shoulder flexibility for the hecht could obviously be developed, though, and a tour jete is a tour jete lol. But the 1992 routines had no twisting leaps or jumps and no blind catch transition, for example.

 

[Aeris]

Clear-hip skills are certainly something of a gatekeeper, same as Stalders. The majority of people don't like the feeling of one of them, so the choice to force a specific root skill on everyone is something of a dice roll for who is advantaged or not.

Tour jete shouldn't be the term used for that compulsory leap, but a turning jump that ends in scale is definitely an atypical kind thing compared to what people are normally training.

 

[RedBirdie]

that clear hip hecht was the cause of so many tears at the gym.

 

[MaryClare]

I think a few of you misunderstand the purpose of compulsories a little. The purpose was not to show good form. Good form is just what was required to score well and set yourself apart from the rest.

They are supposed to be technically complex and demand mastery of the largest range of skills and techniques that are realistically possible in the time frame of the routine. It was not supposed to give everyone an equal shot. When everyone started from the same maximum score, the technical complexity of compulsory exercises were a significant divider.

 

[RichardL]

I think a few of you misunderstand the purpose of compulsories a little. The purpose was not to show good form. Good form is just what was required to score well and set yourself apart from the rest.

They are supposed to be technically complex and demand mastery of the largest range of skills and techniques that are realistically possible in the time frame of the routine. It was not supposed to give everyone an equal shot. When everyone started from the same maximum score, the technical complexity of compulsory exercises were a significant divider.

I don't think we're in disagreement! But I think it's important to remember that not all base skill lines are represented in every compulsory routine, so there's a certain kind of luck involved when the skill lines you're most comfortable with end up being showcased most prominently. And the opposite was certainly true as well, most notably in the 93-96 routines IMO.

 

[irichluck21]

They are supposed to be technically complex and demand mastery of the largest range of skills and techniques that are realistically possible in the time frame of the routine. It was not supposed to give everyone an equal shot. When everyone started from the same maximum score, the technical complexity of compulsory exercises were a significant divider.

Eileen Diaz is in the corner weeping.

 

[makam]

Shannon being a class act was mainly shade at MLR since I don't remember any drunk driving arrests or gofundme grifting from Shannon. Though, obviously, I could have missed them...