Olympic teammates Nastia Liukin and Chellsie Memmel chat before the first day of competition at the U.S. Championships in Dallas. AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez
DALLAS -- Olympians Alicia Sacramone and Steve McCain are by far the best commentators at the 2009 U.S. Gymnastics Championships.
Fans at the American Airlines Center can listen to McCain and Sacramone give a live in-house radio broadcast during the senior men's and women's competitions. The broadcast is transmitted via nifty little radios called Smart Bugs, which look like closed flip phones with an earplug attached.
Sacramone, one of the leaders of the 2008 Olympic team, and McCain, who competed at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, are clearly enjoying themselves. In addition to commenting on the routines going on around them, they use the time to swap Olympic experiences, discuss comebacks and generally ham it up.
Here are a few choice soundbites from the past two nights:
Alicia on David Sender: "I'm going to ask him to teach me how to vault."
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Alicia on the sisterhood of the U.S. women's Olympic team: "We can fight about some stuff..."
McCain: "Like what?"
Alicia: "Mirror time..."
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Alicia on using tons of gymnastics tape: "Tape should sponsor me."
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Alicia on National Team Coordinator Martha Karolyi: "I think she misses me a little bit."
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McCain on Alicia's comeback plans: "I love your tenacity."
Alicia: "Do you have a man crush on my gymnastics?"
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Alicia on her fears: "Trampolines frighten me. Trampolines and clowns."
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Alicia on her favorite events in men's gymnastics: "Vault. I like watching floor too."
McCain: "You just like to see if someone is more powerful than you on the men's side."
Alicia (laughing): "Maybe."
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McCain on why he took ballet for six months as a 15-year-old: "It helps guys with their arms."
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McCain on changing up the events: "Guys should never do beam."
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McCain on men performing to floor music: "That would be a disaster."
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Sacramone on scoring: "I'd give my left arm for a 14.3 on bars."
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McCain (watching Nastia Liukin on beam): "My favorite female gymnast of all time."
Sacramone: "I take offense to that."
McCain (amending): "On beam."
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Alicia on Joseph Hagerty: "Joey has the best toepoint for a guy."
McCain reports that Hagerty and Sasha Artemev once had an argument about who has better toepoint.
McCain: "I still think Sasha has the best toepoint."
Alicia: "I still think Joey does."
Comments
This isn't funny stuff. It's stupid stuff. John and Shannon are a lot netter and they actually aren't biased like Alicia is.
haha! love it. i love these little behind the scenes stuff! alicia would so say "man crush"...
aww i wish they were doing the universal sports commentary.
oh come on, it's a little bit funny! Besides, there's room for a little bit of humour in commentary, as long as they know their stuff too and the funny isn't the colour commentator saying outrageously stupid things.
I am LOVING their commentary! Don't forget about "heap-pop-anonymous" and also they were talking about strumpets tonight. But according to Alcia when we met her after the meet, "that was all Raj."
But D, Tim and Elfi are biased too. Everybody's biased, it's human nature. I think these little quips are better than listen to Al.
As for toe point, as much as I love Joey, Sasha has him beat by miles.
roethlisberger was a riot ripping into tim and Elfie. and who were the choices of commentators?
Does anyone know where I can hear the full commentaty?
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