So, I had hoped not to rant any more on this blog, but I certainly have to today. Because a terrible injustice has been done to my Anna!! My Anna Bessonova, queen of rhythmic gym! Well she's not -my- anna per se, but she's my FAVOURITEST gymnast of all time, possibly even more so than Khorkina. And today, she was yet again denied her Olympic gold.
Why I love Anna is because she's full of grace, elegance, poise, and her routines are always creative and a joy to watch. And unlike some gymnasts of old, coughKABAEVAcough, she infuses some artistry into her routines even whilst maintaining high technical prowess. And apart from her at times ridiculously fast ribbon routines, she is always so composed during competition that she really makes everything look so incredibly easy when in fact it's the complete opposite of that.
Whilst I must admit that Kanaeva was truly a class act today (and I totally support her too but more later), I completely think that Anna DID NOT deserve to be placed behind Zhukova in any of her routines. Anyone who watches gym will be able to tell you that anna's routines were clearly stacked with more difficulty, and better executed. In fact Zhukova kept falling out of her pirouettes, and she definitely didn't have the flexibility required to consider the pirouettes as "completed skills". Her legs were barely, if ever, even 90degrees on those. Are the judges blind??? Or just BIASed???
Anna, on the other hand, obviously oversplit on all her leaps and balances, and because she didn't make any big mistakes today, she should have scored above 18 for all. After her 17.9 on rope, Anna was visibly upset and I think eveything sorta went downhill from there. I've seen her perform her hoop routine many times before and she somehow didn't quite do it today with the same confidence and coolness that she usually does. That being said, she didn't deserve the kind of shit that the judges were soon to give her, especially with the 0.05 adjustment on her clubs routine. Like, what was that about??? It was so obvious that the score was too low. Even the audience knew it and was in a total frenzy after her last 2 performances. Anna had to get up twice whilst to wave and bow because the cheers were crazily loud whilst the judges were still deliberating on her ribbon score. Even Kanaeva didn't get that kind of reception! That certainly says something, doesn't it ;)
So anyway, I have to end with something nice, and I can't think of anything nicer than Anna's 2005 gala, in which she choreographed a hoop routine to the theme of swan lake. It was non-competitive, so it's not full of anything too technical, but she really had freedom to create a routine which was breathtaking. And indeed she did :) Check out the 7 consecutive split leaps and how she rotates the hoop on her raised and flexed foot towards the end. Humanly impossible! The video quality is poor and her tutu is a bit ridiculous, but you must admit that Anna is truly queen. Enjoy:
