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Last updated: 15 August 2024
I found this one extremely tragic: that poor woman who would have won bronze if it was not for the challenge in the scoring of Jordan Chiles (or rather her coach or coaches).
The pure agony I saw on that gymnast's face was extremely hard to see, even for me, someone who is incredibly empathetic and a strong believer in pity (both of which would be attested by all the people who know me well) and even someone who has suffered a great deal, but who usually does not feel that anguish in the same way that others do.
She broke down into tears and I can't blame her and I don't think anyone who is a kind person could. That will haunt her for years to come. It might encourage her to train even harder for the next time but this will be a really hard thing to swallow.
I felt conflicted too on whether they should have aimed the camera on her. I think they probably shouldn't have though I somewhat understand why they did.
I was also somewhat disappointed that Chiles did not bring it up (at least that I did not hear). I guess it's not expected: she was so excited and they were asking her what it meant to her but still I was hoping she would say something. But perhaps it was also the wrong time (though perhaps not as the other gymnast left the arena - or so it seemed).
But shortly after I saw the results I saw that the Romanian PM is going to boycott the closing ceremony. This to me seems a really bad and wrong-headed approach to the tragedy (and it really is a tragedy).
Not only does this not honour all the Romanians who did a wonderful job (the fact they made it to the Olympic is enough for that!), including the poor woman (you observe I am not naming her) who did a fantastic job (she would have won bronze if it was not a judging error for ANOTHER athlete!) but it is not the IOC's fault!
The fault can be squarely put on the JUDGES! The judges made the error and error it was. They judged Chiles' routine too low. Anyone who has done any amount of gymnastics knows that.
Something else to consider is another athlete had a penalty that was in error: a tenth of a point deduction. The only thing that would have resulted in that would be stepping out of bounds (one foot). But if you look at the video she did not (I also saw it during the routine that she did not but videos in slow motion show she did not). But here's the thing.
If this gymnast or her coached challenged the score she might have also taken the place of other athletes on the podium: including maybe Chiles or even the poor Romanian woman. I don't know the scores of all of them but I do know there was a judging error. But that is on her or her coaches to not challenge it. They should have but they did not. Had they done so this upset might not have even happened.
The fact is the judges made two errors (at least two errors) and only one was challenged. This is how competitions go sometimes. It is not like Romania is the only country this has happened to. This has happened to plenty of nations.
Now this one is absurd. It is not her fault. Again as established it is the judges' fault. But consider this too: if Chiles had not gone last the Romanian would never have been in bronze standing at the end because Chiles would have had her revised (corrected) score there which was higher than the Romanian's (hence why Chiles got bronze in the end). This is an extremely tragic matter of the order the gymnasts went but it the only fault here is the judges: nobody else.
In other words to blame anyone but the judges is absurd and to boycott the closing ceremony is not good. Besides it won't solve anything. It won't make that poor woman feel any better about going from bronze (final or seeming final result) to ending up being pushed down to fourth. Boycotting the closing ceremony is doing nothing and only harming things. Now she might in her emotion (fair enough and totally understandable) appreciate that they care about her but it doesn't do any good anyway. Of course it's also possible (I do not know nor do I really care to get to that) that she does not appreciate it; after all they are very supportive of each other.
It turns out that the Romanian federation was not happy with this. They claimed the Chiles team did not appeal in time. Besides the timestamp showing that they did the fact remains anyway that the judges made an error which anyone who knows a bloody thing about gymnastics would see. But my understanding is that it's not so simple to blame the Romanian federation.
I heard that the Romanians thought the two should each get a bronze medal. That's honourable and frankly it seems very fair to me: the judges made the mistake and it is not the fault of the athletes; the least they could do is amend the mess that the judges made.
But the IOC (or whatever sub-entity that decides this, maybe a number of them) said this is not allowed. That is a real shame and does not reflect well on the IOC. But it's worse than all that.
I rather get the feeling that the Romanian gymnast did not want any of this. I rather suspect that they did this without even asking her. I felt this from the beginning but after seeing her statement (below) it is clear as can be that she did not want this. This is what she wrote (emphasis mine):
Sabrina, Jordan, my thoughts are with you. I know what you are feeling, because I've been through the same. But I know you'll come back stronger.
I hope from deep of my heart that at the next Olympics, all three of us will share same podium. This is my true dream!
This situation would not have existed if the persons in charge had respected the regulation. We, athletes are not to be blamed, and the hate directed to us is painful. I WANTED TO END this edition of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 IN THE SPIRIT OF OLYMPISM, the true value of the world.
Clearly she did not want this but the officials didn't bother to ask her. The fact both athletes are facing hate shows also that it's not what they wanted. It is entirely unfair to them; they did NOTHING wrong but the world is divided over them when they should be RALLYING BEHIND THEM BOTH! They should also be criticising, if criticise they must (and I guess I'm one of those who see this and am), the people going behind the two poor women's back and making a real tragedy (and against the spirit of the Olympics) even worse.
On the guano site someone with the 'name' Daily Romania wrote the following to Chiles, who simply was upset that some people can never be happy for someone:
You are aware that you won by cheating right? That medal belongs to ..
This person is an idiot. I am not even going to apologise for saying that. They truly are an idiot. They don't know what the hell they're talking about and the fact that the Romanian gymnast did not want this shows even more how ridiculous it is - how ridiculous this person is. There was no cheating. The judges were in error; they made the mistake that led to the medal change. Nobody else.
Finally there is this. Let's say the Romanian gymnast gets it. Who cares? She doesn't want this to happen to Chiles (which makes it all the more ironic and shows even more stupidity by the people who accuse Chiles of cheating) so it's permanently marred. She won't get to appreciate it like she would otherwise.
And let's say Chiles got it back. Do you think she's going to enjoy it as if it happened like it should have (the judges didn't make their mistake)? Of course not.
The bottom line is that the officials, starting with the judges, made a horrible mess of things and the gymnasts are being blamed for the officials' childish quibbles. Instead of doing the right thing the officials would rather do things that lead to more pain for both athletes, neither of which want the other one to suffer.
Let me make this very clear. There was no cheating. The judges were in error and anyone familiar with gymnastics knows this. Then after the mess the officials went behind the athletes' backs and made a huge bloody mess of the ordeal, leading to hatred being directed at both of them. This is not what the Olympics are supposed to be about but they don't seem to care. Indeed they even said that once they made their decision there is no going back EVEN IF EVIDENCE SHOWING THEY ARE WRONG IS PRESENTED (never mind the fact the US team was not given enough time). That is ridiculous.
It was reported that the Chinese swimming team had been caught doping. This should be grounds for disqualification and if nothing else makes any winning they make suspect.
The Americans complained that they were not being disqualified but the officials told them that if they kept it up America would lose the next Winter Olympics location (in America). This is insane.
This is just wrong. When a team dopes they are not winning; it is the drugs that are enhancing them. One Chinese man defended it and claimed they are the best team. I have some questions to that man.
First of all: if you're the best time why do you have to rely on drugs? The best team does not need drugs because they're the best.
Even more significant is if you're the best team why did you lose so many races? The best would win the most races. It is an insane lie. The fact is other teams were better than you because you're NOT the best team! Claiming otherwise is either lying or else extremely arrogant (and maybe a bit deluded. Or perhaps you think you're diving and not swimming?
Okay so if an athlete is caught doping their medal is taken away. Now new athletes are given the medal that they rightly deserve. But so what? They have a medal: who cares? They don't have that feeling of winning, they don't get to stand on top of the podium, hear their anthem and whatever else. THEY WERE DEPRIVED OF THAT because some jerks were doping!
The shame here lies not only on the Chinese swimming team (whether it was athletes directly or not is hard to know but the fact one defended it suggests they at least knew about it) but also on the officials who told the Americans to stop talking about the CHEATING.
This one touches me more personally because I have my own demons and I know what it's like to be called weak despite the fact the arseholes who say this would not stand personal difficulties for a nanosecond!
In 2021 Simone Biles had the twisties. This made her withdraw from the US Gymnastics team final. This was after a botched vault. Let me remind people that she does the hardest vault in the world. It is even named after her as she was the first woman to do it on vault.
Anyone who does not have their head up their rear could see that it would be DANGEROUS for her to continue. She could have broken her neck! Would that get the medal? Of course not. It might paralyse her though: lot of good that would do.
There was a mental disconnect with her body. Competing would be the worst possible thing especially with such a hard vault.
The fact that she was still able to compete on the balance beam AND WIN BRONZE shows how STRONG she is and how she is NOT A QUITTER! Yet some ruddy gits called her a quitter. They also show their EXTREME IGNORANCE about the balance beam. Let me make it clear to these ignoramuses.
THE BALANCE BEAM IS ONLY 4 INCHES WIDE! Do you not understand just how significant this is? If she was having the twisties the fact she was still able to compete and win bronze on the balance beam says a great deal about her ability. Only an arrogant fool would think otherwise.
It should also say something about why she had to pull out: as already alluded to: the danger involved. And here's the thing ...
The only reason people would call her a quitter is they are upset she did not get a medal but upset for selfish reasons. Let me make it clear: you did fuck all to get her there; she did the work, not you. The medal is not yours. Pull your head out of your arse and stop trying to take credit for something you had no part in doing. Instead try and have some compassion for a fellow human being and in all likelihood the same nationality as you.
Of course the fact she is black would hint at maybe there is more to it: find any reason to criticise her for her supposed weakness since she's a different colour. It might not be in all cases but the fact is the country was not only built on and by but founded on racism. Anyone who thinks otherwise needs to open a real history book and try reading it.
But of course those people would not be able to see it anyway and there is another problem too, another source of the criticism.
The fact is mental illness is considered a sign of weakness. People - and especially men (and I doubt though I do not know for certain that any of those vilifying her were women) - are taught to not show emotions, that it is a weakness. Generations ago people were taught to not admit to mental illness. That has only recently been improving but it's not enough and probably never will be enough. The church has a lot to do with that in the earlier days but what it does now I don't know or care. Let me make something clear though, to these people who think seeking help is weakness.
The ones who are weaker are those who cannot admit they have a problem and seek help. And anyone who claims that this is not a problem is fooling themselves. Men are especially bad with this. Men are notoriously bad when it comes to asking for directions as they think it shows them not as significant or it shows them as inferior or something even though nobody is perfect. There are many memes and jokes about this. I have made my own joke about it in fact and although it borders on the absurd it is a bloody good and valid point. It goes like this:
Why could the woman not find her husband even though he was on the phone with her?
Because he was too embarrassed to tell her where he was: at the lost property (or if you're American: lost and found).
You can call that unrealistic but it's satire: it's meant to be absurd as it's meant to mock absurdity. It is absurd and idiotic to not ask for help when you need it. And everyone needs help from time to time. The only people who do not need help in their entire life are those who don't do anything at all: in other words those who do not live. Anyone else who thinks otherwise is someone who is lying to themselves. They might be a narcissist or they might not but they have are too weak to admit they are not perfect.
Ultimately it shows a GREAT STRENGTH to seek help and express it and show emotion.
Here's another funny thing though. Showing your vulnerabilities is attractive. It's kind of amusing when one considers how they think their perceived strength is actually weakness and unattractive. Being with someone (whether romantically with or otherwise) who is unable to express what is bothering them or how they are feeling is annoying (especially if they are angry or upset with you) and not many want to deal with someone like that (and 'deal with' is the right way to put it).
Anyone who talks badly about other people who are clearly going through a hard time needs to look at themselves rather than focus on other people they know nothing about. Even people like me who have a high degree of intuition and perception and knowledge and experience cannot know EVERYTHING that is going on in everyone's life. It is impossible.
Maybe their plate is paper and yours is made of stone (though anyone thinking that they are better than others certainly don't have stone plates). You don't know.
I knew something was wrong with Simone Biles back in 2021 though. I could see it in her face and body before she had her vault error. So could other people. Why couldn't you? I have some answers to that but this is a rhetorical question (spoiler though: it's because you especially do not know what is going on in others' minds or lives).
Stop judging others and start addressing your own concerns. It'll do you good, not bad, and you won't come across as unkind.
Finally there is this. If Simone is a quitter how the hell does she have more medals than anyone else? How does she have FIVE elements named after her? How can she BE ONLY 4 FOOT 8 INCHES AND GET HIGHER THAN BASKETBALL PLAYERS?
The fact is she not a quitter but you might be (or at least you're unwilling to look at your own problems which you have because everyone has, no matter what kind of problem it might be). You could not come close to what she has done. Gymnastics is NOT easy! How do I know?
BECAUSE I USED TO DO IT! I always wanted to do a flip but having glasses made it harder but it's not easy anyway and I probably never could have done it even if I did not have to wear glasses (I wore something that kept glasses on but it did not feel like enough).
I was however EXTREMELY GOOD at rope climbing. I was quite fast and as fast as if not faster than anyone else in the gym (at the times I was there). But these people who criticise the most decorated athlete who does things NOBODY ELSE DOES are fooling themselves if they think they know what they are talking about.
I could not have come anywhere near as good to her even without asthma (a big problem but that was NOT the deciding factor). But guess what? Neither could you so stop judging her.