For those of you who don't know, I am utterly obsessed with the summer Olympics. I mean I wouldn't be surprised if I lost a few friends after these are over .... (ok, kidding)! I cried a minimum of 5 times this weekend watching the athletes and their reactions. My heart feels for every good and bad moment that comes along with the tough competition.My absolute favorite sport is Women's Artistic Gymnastics. I will watch that all year round regardless of the Olympics. I also love diving and swimming.
Opening Ceremony: To be honest I was a bit disappointed in these ceremonies. There were also very high stakes surrounding this year's opening. How could 2012 even compare to the Beijing Opening Ceremony?! I was a little bored with the history timeline as well as the music. Although I could see how much detail went into everything, I was not impressed. I did, however, love the explosion of the rings and the 'queen' diving in with James Bond. I also LOVE me some Kate Middleton, so watching her in the audience was rather thrilling to me.
Swimming: I would like to congratulate Ryan Lochte and Dana Vollmer on their Gold Medals in swimming! Dana set a new world record in the 100m Butterfly after missing her ticket and chance to Beijing at the Olympic Trials in 2008. But, Ryan, please, for the love of everyone, get rid of those grills!!!
Diving: Tears were definitely shed watching the reaction of USA divers Kelci Bryant and Abby Johnston. Winning medal among the Chinese is so impressive! Especially after they basically swept all of the medals in Beijing! So proud of these girls and they deserve all the glory! They were ecstatic!
Women's Gymnastic Qualifications: This was by far the biggest upset of the weekend so far. It breaks my heart to even think about it, let alone type it out. Jordyn Wieber, the current All-Around (AA) World Champion was denied a chance to compete at the Individual All-Around competition Thursday. With the current rules in place, only TWO gymnasts from each country are able to compete in the All-Around. The two highest scoring gymnasts from qualifications move forward. Sadly, Jordyn was beat out by her teammates and best friends, Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman.
Final scores:
1. Victoria Komova - 60.632
2. Aly Raisman - 60.391
3. Gabby Douglas - 60.265
4. Jordyn Wieber - 60.032
So, even though Jordyn placed 4th out of ALL the girls in Women's Gymnastics she is not allowed to compete due to the 2 per country rule.
In my opinion, it should be the top 24 girls no matter what country you are from. If you are the best, you are the best. These girls have trained their whole lives and practice endlessly. The fact that these girls will NOT be competing against the current WORLD champion (the best gymnast in the world!!!!) is absurd. Some people have argued that the current world champion should automatically be put in the AA finals.
Jordyn has been talked about as a medal contender for an All-Around medal along with her teammate, Gabby Dougals. Gabby and Jordyn placed 1/2 at Olympic Trials and have been rock solid going into London. Aly Raisman, Jordyn's Olympic roommate, the oldest person on the Fab 5 Olympic Team, and also the team captain beat out BOTH Jordyn and Gabby in yesterday's qualifications.
Although my heart is breaking for Jordyn, Aly deserves as much as a chance as any other girl. She has worked endlessly for this opportunity. And her reaction shows it. She had no idea what her scores were going into her last routine (floor). She just wanted to do a good floor routine so she could compete in the Floor Excercise finals. Little did she know, her score helped put her above Jordyn and Gabby and gave her the chance to compete in the AA on Thursday.
Aly Raisman after finding out she made the AA finals - "I did?!?! Where does it say that?!"
Priceless.
I can only imagine the pressure on these girls. What do you (Aly) say to your best friend (Jordyn), teammate and roommate after such an emotional day? But, Jordyn is SUCH a class act. She supported her teammates in tears and knows that they have worked just as hard as her to be in London. I truly hope that they can all make it through this together and be an even stronger team.
These girls go into the Team Finals on Tuesday as the favorite for the Gold medal which hasn't been captured in 16 years!! I hope that all their hearts can all heal after such a big day yesterday and that they can move forward and share the Gold medal glory together.
Below is my favorite moment from yesterday! Watching Aly Raisman's parents as she performs on bars. Ha ha!
GOOD LUCK TO ALL THE BOYS IN THE GYMANSTICS TEAM FINAL TODAY! Stay tuned :)
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