mlc2005 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@grafgirl27: I know your comment was 3 years ago, but just saw it and recognized you from the figure skating vids. On the skating clips, you invariably bitch about whatever skater is posted above, and here you are repeatedly posting that Mary Lou wouldn't have won if the Soviet's hadn't boycotted. My question is this:  Why do you take pleasure in raining on multiple parades? You know what I mean? You are a textbook example of the proverbial "buzz kill."

mlc2005 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

I miss these days of gymnastics. Like figure skating and the 6.0, losing the perfect 10 has been a buzz kill with gymnastics. It's so much more impressive to see stuck landings earn the gold, versus incredibly difficult vaults with crappy landings still earn gold. You know what I mean? There's just something anti-climactic about a winning performance that involves bad/mediocre dismounts.

ViardotVSGrisi (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@mlc2005 I certainly wouldnt call the stumble on retton's last floor pass slight. All you need to do is watch how she landed that during the team competition to see that she is dressing up a very short landing. To your point, I agree: a many number of those 10s are quite suspect. Look at Comaneci's legendary 10 on the uneven bars, she has a slight hop in the dismount. How Korbut never scored a 10 is a mystery to me.

mlc2005 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@MyCupcake6: There was an ever so slight step on the 2nd vault (which was irrelevant in terms of the gold anyway). There was absolutely NO step on the first vault, that's for sure.

mlc2005 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@ViardotVSGrisi: I disagree about her vaults being tainted by an overscored floor routine. I assume you are talking about a very, very slight two footed hop on the final tumbling pass? Back then, they gave out 10's even with such mistakes, for some reason. For example, look at Zsabo's 10 on balance beam, where she very clearly had a substantial hop on the dismount. If you felt Mary Lou didn't earn a 10 on floor, you'd have to say the same for Zsabo's beam. IMO, she earned her gold medal.

mlc2005 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Mary Lou become the instant love of every American who watched her here; she had this amazing emotional abandonment that is so rare in gymnastics, and it was glorious to see!!! When she landed that perfect vault and jumped up and down with joy, you just couldn't help but fall madly in love with her! Amazing.

pressbox1492 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@PopeOfTheUniverse I agree

TheCopper05 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Now, that is what you call a perfect ten. I loved the old scoring. This new scoring like in figure skating or ice skating is very confusing. Please bring both of them back, please?

3Axel1996 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@SmileBeautyDebz At the 1988 Olympics, the women who scored a perfect 10 were Daniela Silivas of Romania and Elena Shoushounova of the Soviet Union. At the 1992 Olympics, the women who scored a perfect 10 were Lavinia Milosovici of Romania and Lu Li of China.

3Axel1996 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

@SmileBeautyDebz 1984 Olympics in Women's Artistic Gymnastics, those who scored a "Perfect 10": Ma Yanhong of China, Ecaterina Szabo of Romainia, Simona Pauca of Romania, Julianne McNamara of the United States and Mary Lou Retton of the United States.