Artistic gymnastics is alive, well and Russian!

Viktoria Komova, watched by podium coach Maria Nazarova yesterday

Artistic gymnastics is all about amplitude, flight, grace and elegance, expression.  The way the gymnast leaps and somersaults and twists in the air, performing acts of incredible strength and skill but making them look like effortless works of art. The way the gymnast pauses mid-air and makes complex movements with, apparently, all the time in the world.  Let's call it virtuosity. 

In the North Greenwich arena, yesterday afternoon, spectators were treated to a brilliant exposition on the sport of gymnastics by a team of feisty young Russians who have come to London determined to make their mark in the history of the sport.  It is twenty years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, whose gymnastics legacy they embrace. The sport has since moved on, and is now principally the domain of bouncy, synthetically smiling teenagers who bow down only to the sport's Code of Points and their coaches' instructions. For them, the sport might just as well be renamed 'sporting gymnastics' (ironically, a direct translation of the sport's name in the Russian language).  But for the Russians, the requirement is still 'artistic gymnastics'.  They just can't wash the need to be beautiful out of their perfectly tinted hair. 

Russia is a thorn in the sport's side in this respect, even if the international governing body, the FIG, recently declared 'We are missing out on the beauty of gymnastics'.  The team's tendency to take risks and stretch every move to the max - ('amplitude' - watch Viktoria Komova in particular) - runs directly against the current sporting maxim of reliability and consistency encouraged by a lifeless, one dimensional Code that provides little scope to reward artistry.   It also has a tendency to provoke the kind of errors that incur deductions large enough to deprive them of gold medals.  Compromise is not a word in the Russians' vocabulary.   1992 Olympic Beam Champion Tatiana Lyssenko recently explained the Soviet maxim that has become so much a part of Russia's gymnastics ethos:

'No matter how safe you play it, there’s never a guarantee that you will not make a mistake. And taking risks like that was part of our team philosophy: the idea that if you could do something, you should do it—you should show it to the world. It wasn’t about playing a game of points or determining how to use the Code to your advantage. It was about showing the best gymnastics that you could in a pure sense..'

So when they come to a competition like the Olympics, Russia's competitive status is frequently a bit questionable, The errors that are often induced by their take-it-to-the-max approach are penalised by the judges, but without a corresponding bonus being applied for the added artistry and risk they bring, that induces a higher likelihood of error.  Just because they are trying to do more, and represent the sport in all its dimensions. It's not fair.  It's almost as though the FIG would rather not enjoy the artistry of gymnastics any more, despite paying lip service to the opposite view. 

How many errors can you see? - USA gymnast Alexandra Raisman in flight

The reality of the situation can be seen a little more clearly by observing what is happening currently to the American team, where team stalwart Alexandra Raisman has controversially ousted 2011 World Champion Jordyn Wieber from the all around final.  Many are characterising this as a weakness in the sporting rules that limit participation in finals to two gymnasts per country.  This is certainly one way of looking at the problem.  Another way of thinking is that the FIG and what I call the American school of gymnastics has finally eaten itself and got the gymnastics it deserves.  Raisman has avoided penalty for her many gymnastic deficiencies for too long.  The Code ignores her complete dearth of artistry and amplitude; it is blind to the countless errors in form that characterise her work but which are presumably too countless to begin deducting for.  The fact that she has qualified for floor final in first place is a travesty; even from several rows back in the North Greenwich arena her pagoda legs in tumbles, lack of toe point, and mangled lines in flight throughout were glaringly obvious.  But Wieber, a much better gymnast, made errors such as stepping out of the area, ones that have a specific and clear deduction in the Code, that Raisman did not suffer.  It was easier just to stick to the Code, to avoid making a value judgement and giving Raisman the lower scores she deserved, and so America, the FIG, the world has ended up with monstrous gymnastics at the top of the sport. 

There is a ground swell of support for the concept of artistry, and against the FIG's Code of Points, amongst gym fans and commentators, although not many will say so publicly.  After all, the athletic Americans, the enthusiastic Brits, the energetic Canadians, all stand a better chance of winning if artistry is side lined.  Some of their gymnasts might make a nod in its direction, but their teams are generally more athlete than artist, and it's easier to coach if there are strict, quantifiable rules rather than the qualitative, subjective guidelines that are necessarily a part of an artistic sport.

Anastasia Grishina in a daring somersault during yesterday's qualifications

So the only way that Russia will win any gold in the women's gymnastics competition in London this week will be by complying with the judges', and the Code's, limitations and adding sufficient athleticism and reliability to their already recognised arsenal of virtuosity.  They will not have to be a little bit better than their closest rivals (probably America) if they are to win ... they will have to be out of this world.

In yesterday's qualifications, they weren't quite out of this world ... but  getting there.  And with the American team looking a bit rattled, and riddled with internal tensions that result from their largely individualist training system, it's possible that the fight for gold might be tighter than many have predicted. 

This Russian team is spirited, strong and close.  The personalities are intriguing.  Their performances are solid, beautiful and artistically diverse.  They put the air-kissing, cosmetically smiling, endlessly rehearsed American team to shame with their spontaneity and mutual concern.  They deliver an arsenal of difficulty and upgrades that the world hasn't seen from them before, but still have more in the tank.  And then there is the charisma.

Ksenia Afanasyeva performs to a rendition of the theme from James Bond

A key measure of any team's success, according to coach Leonid Arkayev, who presided at the top of Soviet and Russian gymnastics for over 30 years, is the breadth of its involvement in competition - has your team qualified competitors to every event final?  Just as this was true for the resurgent Russian men, it has proved true for the women, who really did themselves justice yesterday.  They finished a relatively close second to the Americans in the team standings (181.463 to 180.429) despite a wobbly floor routine from Komova and a less than usually brilliant bars routine from youngster Anastasia Grishina, who was looking a bit strained at her first Olympics.  Their top two gymnasts - Komova and Mustafina - finished in first and fifth places respectively in the all around, and look likely to compete for medals there.  We also have a host of Russians represented in the all important event finals : it will be a surprise, therefore, if Russia repeats its awful experience of four years ago, and walks away from these Games empty-handed.

Aliya Mustafina, watched by youngster Grishina on beam yesterday

You can read the full results of the competition here; and for ease of reference, here are details of the Russian qualifiers to event finals :

• Maria Paseka landed the all important Amanar vault and added to it with a Mustafina, qualifying in third place for a vaulting event final that no one really expected for Russia!
• Viktoria Komova and Aliya Mustafina qualified for uneven bars final
• Viktoria Komova and Ksenia Afanasyeva really shone on beam, finishing in second and 7th place and hence qualifying for the final there.
• Aliya Mustafina will join Ksenia Afanasyeva in a floor final that will surely be a highlight for Russian fans.

Upgrades shown by the Russians include a double-double on floor from Grishina; a double double dismount on bars from Komova (and Mustafina was back to sticking her 1.5 twisting double dismount); Amanars from both Komova and Paseka;  a double Arabian dismount on beam from Komova.  

Sadly, the Romanian team had a difficult qualifying round and finished fourth as a team, with many expected finals qualifications out of kilter, but I'm guessing that they will be much better tomorrow and might even compete for gold as a team if the top two teams have errors.  It was great to see the British team finish in 5th place, unprecedented for them, and home hero Beth Tweddle qualified for bars final in first place.

Good luck to all gymnasts in Tuesday's team final!!

Pictures are courtesy of the Russian Gymnastics Federation.