US Olympic Team Trials - June 24-27, 2021

[irichluck21]

There was also one more replacement that could be named as they were planning up to five.
There is a rumor that Riley was offered an alternate position and she turned it down similar to Atler in 2000. If this rumor is true then it makes sense why they didn’t name a 5th person before the live announcement or in the days following.
I mean if all 5 Olympians have to be swapped out for alternates it wouldn’t matter if Riley was +1 and injured.

 

[rue_des_plantes]

Almost done with the spreadsheet analysis, hoping to post in an hour or so. The fourth spot isn’t really a hard decision according to the panel (I don’t think?), and the only question is what to do with the +1.

I still would have brought McCusker, but she is much easier for the selection committee to throw under the bus and blame injuries, inconsistency, and the format than Skinner, who was fifth AA, according to USAG but not WWGym.

 

[RedBirdie]

I would hope that if Riley was selected but turned it down that it would have been accurately reflected in the report.

Because, to me, selecting Riley and her turning it down is very different than what the report says occured. If she did indeed turn it down, the report is re-writing what happened. I would be upset to find out USAG isn’t being truthful. Unsurprised, but upset. The whole point of these reports and an independent observer is transparency.

 

[irichluck21]

Unless they didn’t want to call attention to it and are respecting her privacy/decision?

If it becomes public that she turned down an alternate spot for whatever reasons, people (Maggie fans) will come down on her. Look at what the judge said based on her IG post.

If she was named an alternate and there are 4 others, who knows if you will get called on and having already been injured and having a rough 2021 who knows if she decided being an alternate was not worth it. Alternates have rarely been used for the US team. IIRC only 2000 was an alternate ever used.

McCusker would have been the last alternate IMO unless Skinner went down, but even then it might go to Wong or Eaker.

 

[rue_des_plantes]

WWGym Panel Results & Breakdown, 2021 US Olympic Trials

Sorry for the caveats and limited routines. Only 6 AAers were visible. Home viewers couldn’t see both of Skinner’s vaults on day 1, but obviously she’s second there, behind Simone. Incomplete scores (aka athletes lacking 2 visible or performed events) can be seen on the document linked below.

The parentheses are USAG’s scores and placements for the athletes within each event that the panel was able to see, with over/underscores listed after. Sorry to be confusing, but Wong can’t be listed as both 5th on the spreadsheet and 8th on USAG’s behind DiCello, Eaker, and Skinner when we cannot see DiCello’s and Eaker’s routines and rank them. Plus sign is USAG overscore, minus sign is USAG underscore.

AA:

1. Biles, 59.675 + 57.275 = 116.950 (1. 60.566 + 57.533 = 118.098; +1.148)
2. Lee, 57.525 + 58.075 = 115.600 (2. 57.567 + 58.166 = 115.832; +0.232)
3. Chiles 56.400 + 57.167 = 113.567 (3. 57.133 + 57.500 = 114.633; +1.066)
4. McCallum, 56.333 + 55.400 = 111.733 (4. 56.500 + 56.067 = 112.567; +0.834)
5. Wong, 53.500 + 55.933 = 109.433 (6. 53.800 + 56.733 = 110.533; +1.100)
6. Skinner, 54.817 + 53.050 = 107.867 (5. 56.600 + 55.600 = 112.200; +4.333)

VT (AA/TF):

1. Biles, 15.375 + 15.425 = 30.800 (1. 15.466 + 15.400 = 30.866, +0.066)
2. Chiles, 14.900 + 14.975 = 29.875 (3. 14.966 + 14.933 = 29.899, +0.024)
3. Skinner, 15.067 + 14.773 = 29.840 (2. 15.133 + 15.266 = 30.399, +0.559)
4. Wong, 14.750 + 14.725 = 29.475 (4-T. 14.700 + 14.700 = 29.400, +0.075)
5. McCallum, 14.500 + 14.750 = 29.250 (4-T. 14.633 + 14.767 = 29.400, +0.150)
6. Lee, 14.275 + 14.475 = 28.750 (6. 14.400 + 14.600 = 29.000, +0.250)

UB:

1. Lee, 15.300 + 14.725 = 30.025 (1. 15.300 + 14.900 = 30.200, +0.175)
2. McCusker, 14.800 + 13.575 = 28.375 (4. 14.800 + 13.566 = 28.366, -0.009)
3. Chiles, 14.000 + 14.350 = 28.350 (2. 14.300 + 14.433 = 28.733, +0.383)
4. Biles, 14.500 + 13.575 = 28.075 (3. 14.600 + 13.833 = 28.433, +0.358)
5. McCallum, 13.900 + 13.867 = 27.767 (5. 13.833 + 14.000 = 27.833, +0.066)
6. Wong, 13.700 + 13.675 = 27.375 (6. 13.666 + 13.800 = 27.466, +0.091)
7. Skinner, 13.250 + 13.125 = 26.375 (7. 13.466 + 13.5 = 26.966, +0.591)

BB:

1. Lee, 14.650 + 14.850 = 29.500 (1. 14.733 + 14.733 = 29.466, -0.034)
2. Biles, 14.700 + 13.975 = 28.475 (3. 15.133 + 13.700 = 28.833, +0.358)
3. Eaker, 13.800 + 14.375 = 28.175 (2. 14.400 + 14.566 = 28.966, +0.791)
4. Chiles, 13.900 + 13.575 = 27.475 (4. 14.233 + 13.900 = 28.133, +0.658)
5. McCallum, 13.767 + 13.650 = 27.417 (5. 13.867 + 13.800 = 26.667, +0.250)
6. Skinner, 13.300 + 12.925 = 26.125 (6. 14.133 + 13.400 = 27.533, +1.408)
7. Wong, 11.300 + 13.500 = 24.800 (7. 11.500 + 14.000 = 25.500, +0.700)

FX:

1. Biles, 15.100 + 14.300 = 29.400 (1. 15.366 + 14.600 = 29.966, +0.596)
2. Chiles, 13.600 + 14.267 = 27.867 (3. 13.633 + 14.233 = 27.866, -0.001)
3. Wong, 13.750 + 14.033 = 27.783 (2. 13.933 + 14.233 = 28.166, +0.383)
4. Lee, 13.300 + 14.025 = 27.325 (5. 13.233 + 13.933 = 27.166, -0.159)
5. McCallum, 14.167 + 13.133 = 27.200 (4. 14.166 + 13.500 = 27.666, +0.400)
6. Skinner, 13.200 + 12.925 = 26.125 (6. 13.866 + 13.500 = 27.366, +1.241)

Beam judging looks pretty feral, particularly re: Skinner. Even if the panel didn’t think Skinner was overscored by 4.333 total and you adjust her score upwards to the average discrepancy between the panel and USAG for other athletes, she still comes up short of McCallum by 4 tenths and change.

Who is on your team? Does this for-fun data help, hurt, or have no effect on USAG’s selection and reasoning, in your mind?

Document: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...f4jPFscKysZbxKenKjBEWLrSo/edit#gid=1287127031

 

[JaJa]

I’m enjoying this very much. https://www.peacocktv.com/watch-online/sports/golden-the-journey-of-usas-elite-gymnasts/5551761349463900112

I am enjoying it too. I did not realize that Suni Lee is from the Hmong people. Makes me love her even more and even more proud of her and her family.

 

[rue_des_plantes]

The panel thinks WCC was overscored and McCusker should be top 2 on bars even with the fall. USAG has her fourth, behind Biles and Chiles.

I suppose this constituted more ammunition to leave her home if all 3 locks beat her on bars at Trials and actually do AA. Still, though, that was an EF-worthy routine after the toe full, and Simone doesn’t deserve any non-fluke UB medal this year, IMO.

 

[glamafonic]

Simone doesn’t deserve any non-fluke UB medal this year, IMO.

This is just a fact lol. She’d need lots of errors from others to get there with all the added difficulty from the UB workers.

But because of the depth of the field, I think Riley needed to hit her full 6.4 set every time to be considered since she was only doing bars.

 

[tsarinajen]

Honestly, I think Simone is going to have a hard time making bars finals. I realize we won’t see everyone hit on qualifications, but I won’t be sad if she’s not there.

 

[glamafonic]

I don’t think even Simone would be sad if she’s not there.

Annnnnd this sentiment sent me down a spiral thinking about how sad I am that Becky won’t be there. Thanks, I hate it.

 

[ucrgirl]

Barring a disaster in ub finals, It seems Riley would be fighting for a bronze and there are a lot of contenders. She had a chance but i could see the selection committee deciding to leave her off the team after the fall.

It is silly to send three girls to fight for two medals but they are the best in the world. I can appreciate letting them fight it out in Tokyo rather than choosing someone to stay home.

 

[MRR]

Tom mentioned to the coaches that four alternates would be named. Li Li Leung and USAG communicated “up to five” alternates, not that there had to be five, though it’s strange the full allotment wasn’t used. Still, this almost surely rules out that Riley was named as the fifth and declined:

Reading the selection report, it appears the committee named the team exclusively off Trials. Grace’s Worlds resume is mentioned but her “resiliency” is only referred to in the context of Trials, not for improvements made since Nationals or consistency demonstrated over both. Skinner delivering 15.0+ vaults could almost apply to Nationals (14.9 Cheng day 1) but the document only mentions Trials for vault scores, whether they be first vault or average of two.

Unfortunately McCusker had no chance after the fall. Her bars were 4th best with the top 3 AAers ahead of her, and both Eaker (BB) and Wong (FX) ranked 2nd on their apparatus only to make alternate. Looking at both Nationals and Trials, McCusker finishes 2nd on UB, with Eaker 3rd BB and Wong 2nd FX, and this also applies to best 3 of 4 scores counting.

Taking the four meets into account, I would’ve named McCusker to +1. But what’s clear is her UB was not a Kocian/Locklear 2016 which could be hit with eyes shut, and McCusker picked the worst day to fall. Perhaps she hoped for Skinner to be named to the main team, because McCallum was superfluous in an individual role, not placing higher than 4th on any event at Trials.

 

[irichluck21]

Thanks for the Twitter clarification!

I really hope that USAG and Tom Forster get their acts together next quad because there seems to be a lot of miscommunication between the high ups and the high performance director. That only leads to confusion and conflicting statements.

 

[irichluck21]

Wait.

That email from Forster says the alternates are going to train and “prepare” with the main team in Tokyo before the main team is sent to “processing” at the Olympic Village.

What?

I thought the whole naming 4 alternates was if there was a Covid positive case on the team and the whole team was knocked out.

So why are they all training together? Especially when there is at least one known unvaccinated athlete (unless she went and got vaccinated after Trials). It doesn’t make any sense.

Although as I have stated before…there is no way that Simone Biles is going to be missing out on the Olympics Covid or not.

Hopefully they are having the entire delegation quarantine for a week before departure.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

Makes no sense to me either. I assume they’re going to be extremely careful, and be as close to living in a bubble as possible but… it won’t be an actual bubble. The risk is always there.

WRT the +1, I don’t think there’s going to be any way to assess whether Skinner was a good idea until and unless we get an idea of the extent of Jade’s injury. It is at least possible to conceive of a scenario where Mykayla is the best chance of an individual medal even with her having to pass Jade in prelims. It’s also conceivable that she gets nowhere close.

 

[Bob]

British teams are already isolating here ahead of travel.

 

[Doug1233]

They’re fucked if there’s an outbreak. They only have one alternate.

 

[Bob]

So are the US if they are all doing photo shoots, training and travelling together. Your alternates are only of use if they are isolated from the main team which I have heard they are not.

 

[rlayt]

Oh boy imagine if you trained for all those years for the Olympics, endure an extra year putting your life on hold then aren’t allowed to compete because someone on your team gets COVID. AND no one isolated or quarantined and costs your entire team a chance to compete.

 

[ArnoldRimmer]

Obviously not to wish that on anyone, but just imagine the excuses BG would have to come up with to leave Becky out then. The prospect is almost exciting.