BEIJING: Nastia Liukin’s loss of an Olympic gold medal couldn’t have come in a closer or more convoluted manner.
The Beijing Games all-around champion from the United States received the same 16.725 score as China’s He Kexin on uneven bars yesterday. A tiebreaker was used because dual medals are no longer awarded in gymnastics. And that tiebreaker was so complex that long after the medals were handed out, International Gymnastics Federation officials still were explaining it.
Suffice it to say that because of the deductions from a perfect 10 for each gymnast in their execution scores, He had gold and Liukin had her second silver and fourth overall medal of these games.
“For me, it’s not correct,” said FIG president Bruno Grandi, who noted the rules for dual medals were dropped in 1997 at the direction of the IOC. “When two people arrive on the same level, they are champions. But this competition doesn’t belong to us. It is the IOC’s.
“I believe it’s correct to have two gold medals, but this is my modest opinion. The IOC is different.”
Liukin would not criticize the scoring system. “It’s nothing I can control, and honestly, I can say it has been very fair to me, and I got the biggest gold medal of them all,” said Liukin, winner of the gold in women’s all-around gymnastics.
She doesn’t have the latest one, but her four medals tie her father Valeri’s haul when he competed for the Soviet Union. Coincidentally, one of Valeri Liukin’s golds, on high bar in 1988, came in a tie with teammate Vladimir Artemov. “I tied in my Olympics,” he said with a shrug. “There were people that tied in the all-around back when I was competing. I guess they don’t want that now.”
He Kexin, at the center of an age eligibility controversy — is she really the minimum of 16? — admitted to being surprised by the outcome. “I didn’t expect to win a gold medal because the more I want it, the more pressure I feel,” she said. “It’s more nerve-racking than competing with the whole team.” Particularly when it comes down to such a minuscule margin.
Liukin’s silver gave the United States six overall medals. China has five, including team gold.
Oddly, there also was a deadlock for the men’s vault gold, which went to Poland’s Leszek Blanik over France’s Thomas Bouhail.
Blanik’s 16.6 on the first vault was the highest of the four total attempts by the two gymnasts, giving him the gold. Bronze went to Anton Golotsutskov of Russia.
Silver and bronze on pommel horse Sunday also were decided by a tiebreaker.
Chen Yibing extended China’s perfect run of gold by winning the still rings competition. That string ended only because no Chinese men qualified for vault.
A hurricane couldn’t have swayed Chen, the two-time world champion, during his routine. He was perfectly still on nearly every move in registering a 16.600 that blew away the field of eight. “I was nervous, but I was prepared mentally and I believed I had the ability to win,” Chen said. Chen hammed it up big time. He lingered on the podium after his performance to soak in the cheers, and exulted with both arms high in the air when his name was announced at the medals ceremony. After an arm bump with silver medalist Yang Wei, Chen looked like he was smelling his medal before he kissed it and held it up to the crowd. He sang every word of China’s national anthem, his eyes tearing toward the end. His exit was just as grand as his rings routines: Chen draped a China flag on his shoulders before waving it to the enamored crowd.
“This is the highest individual honor for me,” he said, “and I waited a long time.”
All-around champion Yang Wei wasn’t nearly as impressive as in his previous rings routines, but his strength and steadiness earned him silver. Oleksandr Vorobiov of Ukraine took bronze. Five-time Olympian Jordan Jovtchev went first — and soon was gone. After he missed a handstand, the five-time Olympian knew he wasn’t getting a fifth Olympic medal. Jovtchev left the arena moments later.
