- Joined
- Jul 28, 2003
Looking at the results of the recent Gymnastics World Championships, it seemed that there was very little "holding up" , making a newcomer "wait their turn", or Bloc judging. This could actually help the sport to regain its popularity that it lost after the Atlanta Olympics.
There are drawbacks to the sport. Artistry and Choreography don't semm to count for much in the COP. The sport is more injury infested than skating or even Football.
Once upon a time in Gymnastics, the event outcomes were almost as predetermined as Ice Dancing particularly the team events. Whatever countries were on the technical committee seemed to mirror World podiums. East Germany, for years, always finished 3rd in the team divisions no matter the quality of their gymnsatics. During all of those years Ellen Berger(sp?) of East Germany was president of the Technical Committee. This year Germany wasn't even a team finalist in Mens or Womens Team divisions. The same is going on in skating today. I don't think a certain Dance team would have ever been near the podium if the ISU president wasn't from the same country.
It was great that there was an all English speaking podium for the Uneven Bars. A gymnast from Brazil won the Floor Exercise Gold. Could this even happen in skating today? It would be difficult to imagine a skater or team from Belgium(randomly picked never medalled nation) coming out of nowhere to win the Gold.
I am all for letting the chips fall where they may in a given competition. It gives one less argument for skating detractors who are of the opinion that skating is not a sport. After all, if Venus or Serena Williams are having an off day do TPTB advance them to the Finals of Wimbledon based on their past achievements?
If letting the chips fall where they may might hurt skaters from countries that have always been held up well it'd be an adjustment. It seems that all of the Russian skaters get the judging benefits of SWR(Skating While Russian). The US Ladies also get some benefit(only a major meltdown or tragedy such as the 1961 plane crash has kept them off the podium), as for the most part they have almost never finished less than 3rd at Worlds or Olympics.
As it is it seems the ISU is trying to apply the worst of both worlds: A COP that encourages figure jumping and an anonymous judging system where Bloc judging can take place ith impunity.
There are drawbacks to the sport. Artistry and Choreography don't semm to count for much in the COP. The sport is more injury infested than skating or even Football.
Once upon a time in Gymnastics, the event outcomes were almost as predetermined as Ice Dancing particularly the team events. Whatever countries were on the technical committee seemed to mirror World podiums. East Germany, for years, always finished 3rd in the team divisions no matter the quality of their gymnsatics. During all of those years Ellen Berger(sp?) of East Germany was president of the Technical Committee. This year Germany wasn't even a team finalist in Mens or Womens Team divisions. The same is going on in skating today. I don't think a certain Dance team would have ever been near the podium if the ISU president wasn't from the same country.
It was great that there was an all English speaking podium for the Uneven Bars. A gymnast from Brazil won the Floor Exercise Gold. Could this even happen in skating today? It would be difficult to imagine a skater or team from Belgium(randomly picked never medalled nation) coming out of nowhere to win the Gold.
I am all for letting the chips fall where they may in a given competition. It gives one less argument for skating detractors who are of the opinion that skating is not a sport. After all, if Venus or Serena Williams are having an off day do TPTB advance them to the Finals of Wimbledon based on their past achievements?
If letting the chips fall where they may might hurt skaters from countries that have always been held up well it'd be an adjustment. It seems that all of the Russian skaters get the judging benefits of SWR(Skating While Russian). The US Ladies also get some benefit(only a major meltdown or tragedy such as the 1961 plane crash has kept them off the podium), as for the most part they have almost never finished less than 3rd at Worlds or Olympics.
As it is it seems the ISU is trying to apply the worst of both worlds: A COP that encourages figure jumping and an anonymous judging system where Bloc judging can take place ith impunity.