So I had to watch the American Cup in 3 different sittings this year. And I haven’t had a chance to re-watch it yet, which is rare for me. But here are some of my thoughts from the NBC broadcast on Saturday…

  • wieberJordan Wieber won.  No surprise there.  Didn’t it seem like the whole thing was scripted?   It all seemed a little too predictable, I guess.
  • It was definitely a two person race on the women’s side.  Kim Bui of Germany, who came in third behind Wieber & Sloan, was almost 4 points behind the leaders.   Ridiculous.
  • Bridget looked absolutely incredible.  She was calm & collected throughout the competition.   Her gymnastics was clean as usual and her tumbling was powerful.   Wow.  I can’t believe she didn’t win.
  • That said, I ended up liking Jordan Wieber more than I thought I would.  She certainly seems older than 13, don’t you think?  She was very poised in her interview with Andrea Joyce.
  • Speaking of Wieber, though, I can’t stop thinking about her level of difficulty.  While she doesn’t seem to be doing anything that is above her ability, I keep wondering why her coaches have her competing some of her skills.  For example, what’s the logic on competing a 2.5 yurchenko at this point?  So that she can hone and perfect it over the next four years?  I just wonder if that is wise, considering how hard it is to train a vault of that caliber.  She doesn’t need the vault at this point, does she?  Why not compete the double-twisting yurchenko and continue to work the 2.5 onto soft landing surfaces until it is truly needed?  I don’t know.  I go back and forth on this.    What do you think?
  • Youna Dufournet’s double pike dismount off Beam was downright scary.  And according to Tim Dagget, she did this repeatedly during practice.   She should not be doing this dismount. The judges should have docked her severely.
  • I really liked some of the cool dance elements from the women.  There were some great double turns on Beam (well, the potential for some great ones anyway!) and I really liked that jump 1.5 on Beam from… who was it?
  • Did Martha Karolyi get a new haircut?   I thought she was looking less like Donald Trump on Saturday.
  • The Men’s competition seemed much more exciting.  At least there were several competitors within range of first place.  And it came down to the last rotation, which is always interesting.56138661AP019_2005_World_Gy
  • It would have been great to see David Sender pull out the win after the rough go he had last year.  I was glad he had such a stellar meet.   I am a big fan of Hambuechen, though, so I was pleased to see him end up on top.  He also had a rough go in 2008.  Well done, guys.
  • Joey Haggerty looked great as well.  His form is fantastic.
  • Where was perennial middle man, Al Trautwig?  We haven’t heard commentary on NBC without him, in what, 10 years?  I liked the new guy but how about bringing back John Tesh!
  • Back to Bridget, I really like her lines and overall look (Elfi used the word “lovely” and I couldn’t agree more),  but I think she could add a bit more to her Floor choreography.    Agree?  Disagree?

  • I like that there are only 4 tumbling passes allowed this quad for the women.  Hopefully we’ll see a resurgence of choreography and dance.
  • Anyone watch the online coverage of the meet?  How was it?

Ok, that’s all for now.  What were your thoughts?  Did you enjoy the competition?  Still seem like a Scam to you?  Sound off below.

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