'Tis the season when we get nostalgic about the year that was. When we remember gymnastics in the year 2010, which routines will we think of? Here are a few ideas:
1. Aliya Mustafina, vault, 2010 Russia/Sweden/Spain/Netherlands friendly: Rather tall (I'd put her at 5'2" or so), and long legged, Aliya Mustafina seemed an unlikely candidate to join the Amanar club. But she blew everyone away with the power and distance she gets on her Yurchenko 2.5 vault. The effortless landing made her an instant favorite to win the World title, which she did, proving her Amanar was no fluke. Just for good measure, in Rotterdam she unveiled another new vault -- a roundoff, half on, front layout full off -- just because.
2. Tatiana Nabieva, bars, 2010 Japan Cup: Every year, Nabieva does something new and wild at the Japan Cup. In 2009, she made you believe for a second that she was the first woman to do a Yurchenko triple on vault. In 2010, we all blinked at her enormous toe on, layout Jaeger on high bar, which she connects to a Pak salto on occasion. Nabieva has now done this routine -- and caught her release -- about 10 times in competition. But the first was the gutsiest routine of the year, in my opinion.
3. Kohei Uchimura, vault, 2010 Japan Cup/World Championships: In my opinion, the most perfect piece of gymnastics done in the past 10 years, Uchimura's Yurchenko 2.5 was perfectly stuck at the Japan Cup in July. And just in case you thought it was an aberration, he did it again during team qualification at the World Championships. Then, he beat all by doing a triple-twisting Yurchenko AND a Dragulescu at the Japanese Nationals as a follow-up. They call him Superman. There's a reason.
4. McKayla Maroney, vault, 2010 U.S. Junior Championships: The 14-year-old from California has taken a good thing and made it better. No, perfect. Her stuck Amanar on day two of the U.S. Junior Nationals is the best this still relatively new vault has ever been performed (except, perhaps, by Uchimura).
5. Katelyn Ohashi, beam, 2010 U.S. Classic: OK, so Ohashi falls as much as she hits. But this exciting routiune (stretched layout full!) is made more special by the precise presentation she picked up at GAGE, where she trained until last fall.
6. David Belyavskiy, floor, 2010 World Championships: If we needed any more proof that Belyavskiy was the next great Russian men's gymnast, he convinced with his double full in back out pike and Arabian double front half out side pass at the World Championships.
7. Cale Robinson, floor, 2010 U.S. Junior Championships: There's no video of this routine that I know of. So you may not have heard of this guy...yet. But his tumbling is world class, especially for his age.
8. Jonathan Horton, pommel horse, 2010 U.S. Championships: For his entire career, Jonathan Horton has been a five event gymnast who does pommel horse to get enough points to win or be up there in all-around competitions. This year, he has gone back to the gym actually determined to conquer "the pig." He's never going to win a World title on it, but he showed marked growth on the event this year. Smart move, given that one of his nearest competitors, Fabian Hambuechen, has not shown the same.
9. Chris Brooks, floor, 2010 American Cup: After years of injuries (and more injuries), a healthy Brooks made a big statement with his first routine in his first major international meet. More of that in 2011, please, Chris.
10. Sebastian Krimmer, high bar, 2010 World Championships: Like Robinson's floor, this is a routine I can't find on Youtube. But take my word for it, it's marvelous -- the man is taller and thinner than Fabian Hambuechen, but his skills are just as wild. And there should be plenty of opportunities to watch it in the coming year.
Your take: What was the most memorable routine of 2010 for you? Please leave a comment!
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Comments
Becca Bross, world championships AA beam. I know she fell, but her fight to stay on was pretty memorable.
Tatiana Nabieva's bars is the BEST THING that happened in 2010! It was incredible to watch her first unveil her new skill!
Ana Porgras, beam, always
Matties floor at Visas without a doubt
uhh And Alicias Beam in WC EF
Great list. But no love for Komova?
Komova amazes every time she steps on a mat. She's the most complete package gymnast in the world at the moment, IMO. But when I think of the major routines of this year, no, for whatever reason, none of hers come to mind. They're all spectacular, of course. But though all of her routines are wonderfully performed, in my mind they do not stand out in comparison to Nabieva's incredible bars release, Mustafina's incredible new vaults, Maroney's perfect Amanar, etc. The problem is that most of Komova's skills have already been done -- and done really well -- by other people. That is not meant to take anything away from her gymnastics, but it also means she doesn't make this list. Next year, however, I'm sure it will be different. -- Blythe
Question, isn't this UB half twist transfer from lower bar to higher bar (performed by Mustafina at the worlds) named after Komova? I am not sure but I thought I read that somewhere.
Galaxy -- Komova's and Mustafina's transitions are actually not the same skill. Mustafina's is a toe-on Shaposhnikova half, while Komova does her Shaposh-half from a piked stalder and doesn't put her feet on the bar.
I don't believe Komova's has been submitted to be named after her, unless she did it at the Youth Olympic Games. (But I'm not sure athletes were allowed to submit skills to be named at the Youth Olympics, however.) Normally Komova would have to wait until she was at a Worlds or Olympics in order to submit the element to be named for her. If healthy, she should get that chance in 2011.
-- Blythe
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