Olympic Trials Thoughts

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Did Vox eat my Nationals Day One post? I swear I made one. Oh well.

Anyway. The Trials have come and gone and to nobody's surprise, Shawn and Nastia locked up the two guaranteed spots. If you were surprised, either you only just started watching gymnastics or I need to start drawing you pictures with crayons.

The 12 girls going on to the selection camp are:
    Shawn Johnson
    Nastia Liukin
    Alicia Sacramone
    Samantha Peszek
    Bridget Sloan
    Ivana Hong
    Jana Bieger
    Shayla Worley
    Mattie Larson
    Corrie Lothrop
    Chelsea Davis
    Chellsie Memmel

The only actual surprise on that list is Lothrop (who is coached by USAG staple Kelli Hill). Lothrop apparently agrees because she was in tears once hearing her name called. Just getting to Trials was a major accomplishment for her. I think she's awesome and wish her a lot of luck.

Chellsie Memmel pretty much sealed her spot on the O-Team, leaving one spot left (aside from the four locks of Johnson, Liukin, Sacramone, and Peszek). Bieger seems to be everybody's current #6 despite not even being on their short list for so long and Sloan, who was the lock up until Trials, is now out. God, we go through these girls like they're fads or something.

Mattie Larson made her case for an alternate position. Larson's FX was the favorite of both evenings and her DTY, while could use some improvement on the landing, is usable. There's the added bonus in that Larson isn't putting a lot of pressure on herself to make this particular team because she knows most of the spots are all but sown up and she has every intent on going for London 2012. Whatever you all are doing to those AOGC girls, please keep it up. Shapiro and Larson are just such a treat. They're what gymnastics should be.

Ivana, Ivana, Ivana. She's pretty much out at this point. An alternate position would be her highest attainable position. Nationals didn't go so well and Trials wasn't much better, culminating in a botched BB dismount that revealed her headcasey side. A damn shame because she's in the same category as Larson: what gymnastics should be. Her double front is a thing of beauty.

Shayla Worley is broken and others have surpassed her on UB, the event that she would have been taken for. I would say that she would be alternate. Too much of a liability to put her on the team.

I don't know much about Chelsea Davis or her gymnastics, except that she is coached by former Golden Girl/World Champion/Karolyi favorite Kim Zmeskal. It's almost nepotism with Davis getting to the camp (I'm only half serious).