Simone Biles comeback: latest on US Classic Roster

[irichluck21]

does competition surface really make that much a difference?

I guess it does to USAG!

 

[Aeris]

The rules say routines at camp have to be on competition surfaces to qualify to Classic. How then could Simone have qualified for Classic, but not Nationals? There isn’t a medical issue.

 

[CameliasFingerpaint]

This is pretty stupid. I’m not sure if they had the option for competition surfaces or not, but they shouldn’t be limiting opportunities to qualify. It’s a silly distinction to make when in the grand scheme of things qualifying to nationals isn’t a big deal. No one has ever complained about too many competitors at nationals.

 

[irichluck21]

It’s also Simone Biles FFS! Lol

I hope Memmel and Sacramone redo the criteria.

IMO, if you are a former World or Olympic team member and want to compete at Nationals, you should be able to. You’ve already represented the country at the highest level.

 

[Passion]

but they shouldn’t be limiting opportunities to qualify

The American Classic was the day before camp. The American Classic is a qualifier to Nationals. Biles skipped that competition and is electing to qualify at the US Classic instead.

There were also multiple other chances to qualify to Nationals throughout the year.

 

[makam]

IMO, if you are a former World or Olympic team member and want to compete at Nationals, you should be able to. You’ve already represented the country at the highest level.

I also think that if you competed at Nationals and are a former World or Olympic team member, you get invited to Trials on at least your best event or as exhibition or something. People paying 1500 for a ticket aren’t going to complain because Laurie Hernandez does a beam routine that has no chance of getting to the Olympics. It isn’t like US Nationals/Trials are the day long slog (or several day long slog) that Worlds qualifications are.

 

[Passion]

Olympic Trials is a competition, not a gala.

 

[Passion]

I hope Memmel and Sacramone redo the criteria.

 

[irichluck21]

Olympic Trials is a competition, not a gala.

I agree, but I do think inviting specialists to compete at Trials makes sense.
However, explicit criteria needs to be in place.

Why not have Hernandez come compete only on beam. She was the reigning Olympic silver medalist. Even if her chances were slim to none to make the team. (Though she was really too injured to compete realistically anyway).

That was the problem with Tom, none of the athletes knew what they needed to do. Morgan Hurd was vocal about that.

I also think that there might be more NCAA athletes that would do elite if they could be a specialist, like they are in NCAA.

 

[rlayt]

 

[makam]

Well, it could be. I’d rather a gala/party atmosphere where the athletes are like, “my hard work is paying off and my reward is making the olympic team” or “i worked hard and (because i know the selection rules) though i am not quite there, i still deserve celebration for my work” than the “oh please pick me” stressful sobfest it was under Martha.

 

[irichluck21]

Well, it could be. I’d rather a gala/party atmosphere where the athletes are like, “my hard work is paying off and my reward is making the olympic team” or “i worked hard and (because i know the selection rules) though i am not quite there, i still deserve celebration for my work” than the “oh please pick me” stressful sobfest it was under Martha.

Oh then no.
I don’t think it should be exhibition or gala like routines. It is a competition.
However, if there is a competitive routine that could be a potential specialist set for a team, then yes they should.
Morgan Hurd should have been allowed to compete at the 2021 Trials for example.

 

[makam]

No, i wasn’t meaning an actual gala but a competition where the athletes arent at risk of dying from stress because they know where they stand and even if they aren’t truly in the running for a team spot, USAG appreciates their past and current efforts enough to give them 3 minutes to compete.

 

[dweiss324]

So, seeing what we’ve seen from Biles, what do we want / dream for her come Paris? What are we pleasantly surprised at / hoping she’ll tweak?

I for one can’t believe she is that all around ready this quickly. It’s just insane. Considering that we were all like “oh she could just be a specialist in Paris” and pretty much everyone else just showed a couple routines here, it’s amazing she has not only a serviceable all around program, but by far the highest score this quad, after a few-ish months training.

Her vault basically makes her unbeatable, it’s at least a point advantage, if not two against most gymnasts. Doing that plus the other biles vault for EFs would be amazing. I wonder if she’s just going to focus on the YDP for the AA program, or bring back the Cheng or Biles for EFs. I still wouldn’t mind her playing around on vault, like just Shiraii the crap out of it. The TTY, a Yurchenko double tuck, and more all seem within the realm, depending on what her motivation is. Just, get them all named I say. It would also further cement her versatility and mastery of the event.

Her beam was solid and her bars were serviceable. I wouldn’t mind a bigger signature skill in her beam routine, but this was very efficient and very doable for her. Same with bars, don’t need to see much more besides the double double dismount. It’s great to see manageable, secure routines from her that still outscore most people.

Her floor was more enjoyable. I’m thinking the triple double will come back. So, Biles II, chuso, front full to double double and biles I + leap? Seems very doable by Paris. Not sure how much more she’s wanting to push the boundaries there, she certainly doesn’t need to. I would love to see her nagornyy her way to some triple flips. But that’s obviously not necessary.

Wow, what a joy to have her back, I didn’t realize it would feel this good.

 

[rlayt]

Would a Kohei comeback get more acclaim? He’s the only gymnast who was as dominant as Simone.

 

[dweiss324]

I personally don’t think it would, no. Kohei’s reign was due to him being defeatable but undefeated. Which is crazy and awesome. Simone’s reign is just something else entirely. She was rarely touchable. Especially in the US, her name recognition and brand is just… A whole nother league, not to mention her actual gymnastics,.and the drama and boundary pushing that have surrounded her career.

 

[CameliasFingerpaint]

I honestly would prefer for Simone to not upgrade any further this year except for the Fabrichnova. It was refreshing to see her finally land four controlled tumbling passes. She maybe scored a 14.9 once on FX last quad? The YDP is enough.

 

[rlayt]

I agree. With the extra maturity and life lessons Simone seems to be dialing back on attempts to do difficulty . At least we are not seeing difficulty beyond what she can control and it looks good.

 

[dweiss324]

Agreed for this year. Next year though I’d expect a few tweaks.

I’m still not clear what her motivation is, whether it’s showing a consistent level of high level AA gymnastics through multiple Olympic cycles (seems more likely after tonight), pushing boundaries, showing what she can do, naming skills, redemption after Tokyo, maximizing her specialty events, just competing as much as she can before her body breaks down…

 

[RedBirdie]

For vault event finals, if she stays with the double pike, she has to do a ro 1/2 vault, no?