My Olympic Team

Alright so Nationals are over, and the following girls made the new National Team (and also qualified to Trials):

• Jordyn Wieber, DeWitt, Mich., Gedderts’ Twistars USA
• Gabby Douglas, Virginia Beach, Va., Chow's Gymnastics and Dance Institute
• Aly Raisman, Needham, Mass., Brestyan's American Gymnastics
• Kyla Ross, Aliso Viejo, Calif., Gym-Max Gymnastics
• Elizabeth Price, Coopersburg, Pa., Parkettes National Gymnastics Center
• Sarah Finnegan, St. Louis, Mo., Great American Gymnastics Express
• Sabrina Vega, Carmel, NY, Dynamic Gymnastics
• Kennedy Baker, Flower Mound, Texas, Texas Dreams Gymnastics
• Brenna Dowell, Odessa, Mo., Great American Gymnastics Express
• Bridget Sloan, Pittsboro, Ind., Sharp’s Gymnastics
• McKayla Maroney, Long Beach, Calif., All Olympia Gymnastics Center
• Alicia Sacramone, Winchester, Mass., Brestyan's American Gymnastics
• Rebecca Bross, Plano, Texas, WOGA
• Anna Li, Naperville, Ill., Legacy Elite
• Nastia Liukin, Parker, Texas, WOGA

I must say I'm a little surprised with almost all the spots going to the previous National team. Is Brenna the only new girl to make it? Also why can there only be like 4 juniors? Whatever. I want to talk about which of these girls I think will make the Olympic team for London 2012:

Jordyn Wieber, the back-to-back National champ, is a lock for sure. A major injury is the only thing that can stop her at this point. Which I am afraid will happen, I have to admit. And since her worst is bars, which is the easiest event to do while injured (except for shoulders of course), she won't make the team at all if an injury does happen. 

 

Obviously Martha will put the "flying squirrel" on the team. While Gabby's a great gymnast and invaluable on bars, she gets a little more credit than she deserves. Her inconsistency on beam scares me; she seems like the type of gymnast to crumble under the pressure of the Olympic stage. I can see her pulling a McCool at the games. And she was ridiculously overscored at nationals. But yes, no doubt that she will be on this team.

Raisman was the the U.S.'s second all-arounder along with Jordyn at worlds, and I predict she will be our second all-arounder in London. Gabby, while placing second to Jordyn at Visas, was grossly overscored and like I said she's too inconsistent. Like Jordyn, only a major disaster will stop this girl being on that team. Even with her bad (by an int'l elite standards) bars, her consistency makes her invaluable. Martha knows she can count on Aly to hit.

Kyla Ross, while she doesn't get much attention, is just what I think Martha will realize the team needs: someone capable of the all-around with decent bars. These two qualities plus her impressive performances lately should be enough to get her onto the team.

Yes I am predicting that Nastia makes the team. I have estimated McKayla and Nastia, who are both really only useful for one event, to be eachother's biggest competition throughout the process, and probably would have predicted this last spot going to Maroney if it wasn't for her injury. Not that it will actually interfere with her performance, but because her crash on a triple full (even though it was just during podium training) showed Martha that she has consistency issues. That paired with how much faith Martha has professed to have in Nastia makes me think the spot will go to her. In spite of her struggled bars at nationals, I think Martha will give Nastia right up until the Olympics to ready her routine.