Bearing the Weight of Public Opinion
Not so long ago, the parent of a high profile gymnast messaged me to say how grieved they were that I had linked to an article that said such awful things about their daughter. I had, thoughtlessly, linked to a gym blog post on Facebook without looking at the content of the post because this site was one of a few that causes issues with my work computer. Once I read what was said about this gymnast I quickly took down the link and apologised profusely.
One thing this gym mother said in her message was that her gymnast didn’t mind when people said certain things about her performances, or her style, but when it got personal, it upset her.
What I want to know is why do gym fans feel they have the right to say some of the things they say?
So, this weekend alongside many other disappointed gymnasts, Beijing champion Nastia Liukin did not make the Olympic team. On the big night where it counted most the bar routine that meant so much became too much. Despite Liukin’s fall that moment of failure incited as much respect in me for this gymnast as her stellar AA performance in Beijing did. With grace, grit and an admirable sense of responsibility to herself, her coaches and her fans, she got back up and finished the routine- even though her Olympic chances were all but gone. It was truly sad to see the Beijing all around champion run out of time and steam trying to prepare to vie for this team.
At least, that is how I felt.
And after her effort’s tonight and the storm of positive attention, some attitudes may change. But I started writing this piece before the final night of Trials and I think I will go on. Because this is not really about Nastia. It is about the ‘fans’.
In the last week I have been confounded by all the comments that Nastia Liukin is ‘washed up’ and ‘making a fool of herself’. She is what? Twenty? Are you people for real? ‘How dare she keep training?’ these snarky voices cry. How dare she try and train to make an Olympic team after a period of indecision about whether she wanted to be in the sport? What was she even thinking?
Actually, what I want to know is what are you people thinking? Whatever it is, it is the kind of wasted, negative energy that spoils the joy of being a fan of this sport.
During this comeback, Liukin has been accused of all kinds of ridiculousness. My personal favourite, the most laughable, is the one where she is coming back and ‘stealing’ other gymnast’s spots. Who owns an Olympic spot? If time and history have taught us anything, no one, no one owns an Olympic spot on Team USA, not even the current World Champion. So how can it be stolen? Then there is the one where Liukin has been accused of relying on Martha’s love to get her on that team. Are you for real? You’ve got to be pretty dang crazy to believe that Martha’s love will get you on a team. Martha’s love didn’t get Chellsie Memmel on the National team and it sure as heck didn’t get a lot of talented girls on US Olympic teams over the years. Then there are the ‘Nastia is lazy’ accusations because she came to the party late. No, wrong. It isn’t laziness that whips you into competition-ready shape in the shortest time possible to compete for the Olympic team. Sure, I agree Nastia left going back into training too late, but Martha knows that, Valeri knows that, Nastia knows that too. Why keep harping on about it? The more you keep bleating the fact in accusatory tones won’t change the outcome.
I am starting to think this is the problem. Is all this really just about feeling let down? Did you see that beam set at Classics, witness the return of that floaty flic and gorgeous Onodi and think ‘just maybe….’. Did people get all twisted and bitter when they realised that Nastia wasn’t as close as she first looked? Is the recent outcry really just cries of disappointment-turned-to-bitterness?
For many, this sense of bitterness has more of a history than that. One thing that I think really altered public attitudes toward Liukin in recent years is the fact she announced her return to gymnastics at the Tokyo Worlds. The common criticism was that she was stealing all the limelight, hogging the attention away from the other US gymnasts. Oh, wow, get a grip, people. This is how sports publicity works. Who is even to say this was her decision? And you know what? It is more in gymnastics’ (as a sport in dire need of publicity outside of Olympic years) best interest to make this announcement at a major event than it probably was in Nastia’s. Yet people are so quick to believe Liukin is this crazed media martinet, plotting out her publicity path to the Olympics.
Actually, Nastia does this sport great favours by being highly visible. You want NBC to show Nationals, right? You want gymnastics stories to appear in the mainstream media, don’t you? You want gymnastics to become popular enough to attract the coverage and media attention it deserves every year- not just the Olympic year, yes? Well it is public figures with personality like Nastia that make this happen to a sport. You should be grateful for the attention she attracts.
Why is it that while people seem to decry the boring uniformity in gymnastics; to deplore the stock standard media-trained personalities, they then seem to turn around and castigate any gymnast the minute they try to break from the mold (except in very set, circumscribed ways)? And I am not just talking about one gymnast here, but all victims who have had enough success and enough personality to fall prey to tall poppy syndrome. All of a sudden confidence is read as arrogance. Silence is called snobbery. Game face is #$%^& face. Words are put in mouths. Disappointment on the sidelines is ascribed to bad attitude. People are accused of thoughts never once voiced.
And yes, I can still hear the more miserly and bitter among you mutter under your breath, ‘if only she was more humble…’
In her presser after the first day of trials Liukin admitted that she had run out of gas, that she made mistakes, that this wasn’t her best performance. She was classy and honest and dignified. If that ain’t humble, I don’t know what is. She did not say, ‘Oh, it doesn’t really matter, Martha loves me and I am Olympic Champion, so I’ll make it.’ Yet that is what some people seemed to hear. Sometimes I think the high-pitched whine of negativity in some fans’ heads is so loud, they don’t actually hear what is said and just make it up.
I also tend to think people have a really screwed take on what humble means in the gymnastics world. When they say it, they don’t mean they want you to be humble in the human sense of simply being modest. What they really want is some sort nun-ish behaviour. All they want for you is to put your head down, work, say nothing, win meets and smile and reel off your standard post-meet quotes about doing it for the team.
And then they will complain you are boring.
Gymnasts. Have you learned yet that you can’t win in the great game of pleasing people’s irrational demands on your personality?
Don’t you dare to take advantage of the opportunity the sport has given you. Don’t even think of taking up some of the fun offers you have had after working your guts off for the better part of your youth and don’t even think for a second of branching out into other areas of your life. Okay, maybe you can get away with those few things as long as you don’t commit the cardinal sin of being indecisive about what you want in life at age eighteen…nineteen…twenty.
No, you cannot be a teenager. You cannot be on the threshold of so many new experiences and eye them hungrily like every other teenager around you. You must know exactly who you are and what you want, including the most important question- are you a gymnast or are you a former gymnast? And never forget you are public property- and sadly, you are the property of the audience of a sport that has an unnecessary share of obsessive, hyper-critical types watching your every move.
How about we drop the snark and move on already? Nastia probably will before some of you do. In my mind Liukin did a great thing in the last couple of months. She showed up. She worked hard. She proved she was still among the US’s top gymnasts. Sure, she was too late to the party, but she knows it. And when she didn’t make it, she dealt with it with grace because she has maturity and modesty on her side. She responded with emotion because she is human. Some of you seem to forget that.
Get hold of some perspective, people. If you can’t let a born athlete try and be an athlete for as long as they would like to without insulting their efforts at every turn, if you can’t let someone be celebrated for their past achievements, then what are you doing following sport? For people who say Liukin has refused to retire gracefully, with her dignity intact, you are wrong. She did more than that tonight.
And it is not Nastia being ungraceful.
Article: Brigid McCarthy
Thanks: Hannah F.
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80 Comments
brynn
i couldn’t have said it any better. i will forever respect Nastia for everything she’s done.
02 Jul 2012 05:07 am (@Twitter)
Sonya Natalia
Remember that a lot of fans are teenagers with no handle on their emotions. Twenty is probably “old lady” to them!
The accusations of “stealing spots” is happening across a lot of sports. Olympic berths are for the best, that is all. I don’t care if the gymnast started last week – if they’re the best, they deserve to go. The “everyone’s a champion” attitude fostered in children’s sport these days is downright wrong.
I just wish Nastia had started training for this earlier. She could have made it.
Being in Australia, I have seen next to nothing of Trials yet, but I have seen a video of her on bars tonight. And, yeah, it made me cry. The first time I saw her compete live, she was that up-and-coming star at 2005 Worlds. I feel like I’ve seen her grow up.
I’m hoping someone puts up a video of her beam routine soon.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
admin
I know how young they are- so why not suggest another way of thinking to them?
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am
KimberlyRose
I wish it were true, that it was all teenagers being "mean girls," but from what I can tell, it's adults. Supposedly grown people ripping on teenagers for not being *their* version of ideal. I'd like to see some of these snarkers get up from behind their computers and try to do what these young women are doing.
02 Jul 2012 04:07 pm (@Twitter)
Bb
Well said.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Christina
Great article- you said it perfectly!!! I love Nastia & admire her for coming back despite the stacked odds against her.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Rachel
Wow, this is great. I hate the focus on the negativity. I stopped reading a popular blog because of the focus on personal insults.
And thank you for mentioning the importance of personalities! Every sport needs them, if you want it to remain popular and thrive. Sports need stories. They need dominant athletes to provide these.
It’s easy to criticize an athlete for everything they are not, for all the times they fail, for not being what you think a gymnast should be. But it is not easy to put in those hours at the gym, sacrifice your body, and handle the extreme pressure these gymnasts are under. Without them doing that, there would be no sport to speak of.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
.
amen.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Queen Elizabeth
Absolutely agree with everything you said here.
Why do people have to be so negative?
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
JOhn
This made me cry! Great article lauren! I for one am guilty of some of the things you said here… I’m sorry Nastia for ever doubting you and thank you very much for the exquisite gymnastics you championed through the years! Your career may be over but your legacy lives on! Thank you! Thank You Queen Nastia!
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
admin
Thanks John. I wrote it- Brigid McCarthy
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am
john
Oooops I'm sorry Brigid I didn't see you name under the article! Anyway thanks for writing this... It's therapeutic for all Nastia fans out there!
02 Jul 2012 12:07 pm (@Twitter)
Olivier C
Great article. Actually I dont get why so much people are that mean with Nastia… I started to think that it was just because she is blonde (lol!). No seriously that was getting unreal… With all she done for the sport. Escpecially when u talk about to gymnastic to get attention. My mum, my friends, there is almost just Nastia they remember and appreciate, for her beauty, her line, and because its seems that she float… Well anyway. I hope her the best whatever she decide now.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
:-)
Thank you for saying this! Honestly I have been sick over the crap she has taken since Classics. Alot of bitter Memmel fans trying to make it like Nastia is the devil’s spawn and Chellsie hates her. I love Chellsie but they need to let it go. We know very little about what happened except hearsay. It was not Nastia’s fault Chellsie didn’t get in….she went in and did enough to earn her spot to Visa’s. Gymnastics fans can be bitter and tend to look for a scapegoat…apparently Nastia was the one for them this time. In 07 at worlds it was Alicia for her not being happy she lost FX to Shawn, 08 it was Asac again for her falls when really the whole team blew it.
Everyone needs to remember when they say things that the person they write about might just be reading it. Wishing someone ill will is childish and immature for anyone on the internet…even a 12 year old should know wishing something mean spirited is wrong.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Blythe
Bravo, Brigid! You tell ‘em!
02 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Jen
You rock. Great article.
02 Jul 2012 07:07 am (@Twitter)
Stacie
THANK YOU. That so needed to be said.
02 Jul 2012 07:07 am (@Twitter)
Holly
There’s been a lot of nastiness in gymnastics for years, but the internet has made it even worse. Rather than snickering among fans in stands, or cattiness at local meets, it’s become a public, global thing — out there for everyone to participate in, if they so choose, and readily available for the gymnasts to see themselves. It’s certainly not limited to Nastia, which is obvious simply by looking at how some of the top blogs discuss several of the American gymnasts. The problem is easily seen – it’s far harder to know what to do to fix it, besides simply choosing not to participate in the behavior, limiting which blogs you visit and calling people on it when appropriate. I suppose it’s not all that different from any other type of internet trolling or viciousness about any other sport, activity, person, etc. but it seems all the worse because it’s done by people who ostensibly “love” the sport of gymnastics and it’s directed against a group of young women who, on average, are between the ages of 15 to 20.
The reality is, not everyone will love every gymnast. There are certain gymnasts that I am not a huge fan of — whether it be a personality thing or simply an issue of not being able to connect to their gymnastics. I think we all do that – we all have our favorites. But I don’t write about it online, I don’t say it anywhere it writing and if I attended a meet I wouldn’t say it there either. And I always try to remind myself that these are young women – they have bad days; they are still growing, evolving and changing; they don’t always know how to handle huge emotions. Most of them are kids feeling a level of pressure that most of us will never feel in our lives.
I do think many of these women are “public property” of a sort. I think it’s part of the package when you go to the Olympics and especially when you take sponsorship deals that put your face everywhere. But that doesn’t mean they don’t each deserve dignity and respect and it doesn’t make some “fans” behavior appropriate. This is a well written article that makes an excellent point. I’ve always appreciated that the Couch Gymnast does not engage in such behavior and does not permit others to do so on the site.
02 Jul 2012 07:07 am (@Twitter)
AmyFan
And of course, now we’re hearing about how Jordyn leads the I-Hate-Gabby clique with Aly and McKayla.
Sigh. These girls can’t win.
02 Jul 2012 08:07 am (@Twitter)
Layla
What? I've never heard this.
02 Jul 2012 03:07 pm (@Twitter)
Abby
Wait, what? This is a thing now? Where did this come from?
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm
jazz
She had a good run. She really wasnt expected to make this team anyways cause she’s been having problems on bars for while..She was at her peak in 2008 and what she did back then would be enough to keep her happy for a long time. I dont think she’s to upset.
02 Jul 2012 08:07 am (@Twitter)
Kate
Well said. It’s not just gymnastics or sports. Unfortunately, the internet seems to breed cruel comments. I’ve seen in on youtube videos for singers, actors, and even just random people posting their own videos.
It’s sad, though. Even if someone doesn’t like a particular gymnast’s style or the results of a competition, to attack them personally, when so many of them are young girls, and all of them have sacrificed so much for their passion and their dreams, just seems cruel and heartless. They must see some of these comments. I can’t imagine being personally attacked by a stranger, over something I had no control over.
02 Jul 2012 08:07 am (@Twitter)
lily
ummm yea….it is because she thought 8months of training would outdo 4years that other gymnasts have done of training, hard work, and dedication. I do think she was graceful, I loved nastia more than shawn johnson…but…it was simply arrogant to think she could do that. Sacremone…yes…she trained hard for four years, she fell off the beam in beijing…she wanted a comeback…she’s 24…THAT is breaking the mold. Liukin was chasing fools’ gold and that is what everyone was annoyed about…her airtime and shining the light on her flawed performances took airtime I would have liked to have seen given to Price and Finnegan. Sometimes its not about “a mold” sometimes its just about what’s fair and realizing the world shouldn’t give you a free pass to London because you won gold in beijing with only 8months preparation…so yea…I’m a teenager…but I’m not stupid…and I have a right to be a little “ugh…really?” over it.
02 Jul 2012 09:07 am (@Twitter)
Rhanda
Alicia took a year off after the 2008 Olympics, so she trained for three and not four years. I'm with Brigid: everyone knows Nastia left it too late. Nastia knows. Marta probably knew the whole time. It's time to move on.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
Mia
No eight months wasn't long enough and Obviously she thought it could be but she was also under a lot of pressure to come back. She was asked about it almost daily, and it was never an if, it was always a when are you coming back question.
Maybe she was in o Ed her head. She remembers training before and that things were far easier. She hadn't trained before as a 20 year old, who was not in perfect shape. She probably still felt fit but being fit and being gymnastics fit are not the same things. She underestimated what it would take, how fast her body could get back into top form, and she isn't going to London. So how is she demanding anything be hand to her? She handled herself with dignity and grace last night. Not once did she say she deserved it because she is the Olympic champion? Maybe she thought if she did it before she could do it again. If the Olympics teach you anything it is that dreams
Nobody handed her anything except attention, and as the Olympic all around champion that's expected. You heard the crowd in that arena and at nationals. They were screaming and cheering for her even when she was just up to touch the floor or vault and not compete. They showed her on television because there are a lot of fans who love her and wanted to see her. Maybe you didn't but many people did and if they hadn't the outcry would have been huge.
And the drama of an Olympic champion trying to make a comeback is too much for television not to show it. Tv is a business built on emotions. It is why Tim and Elfi are always trying to create drama like Jordyn having bar troubles(hopefully that is the last we hear of that after she hit four for four over nationals and trials).
Nastia never acted in my mind like she expected to get a free pass.
If nastia's attempted comeback shows anything it is just how brutally hard this sport is, how physically fit and strong you have to be. It has no mercy.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
CeCe
Nastia doesn't decide what airtime she's given. That's NBC and the powers that be and she certainly didn't expect a free pass to London. She and everybody else knows Marta's not stupid and doesn't just hand out Olympic tickets for the heck of it. Yes, she was chasing fools gold but why be angry about it? She had this burning desire within her to give it a shot and she obviously didn't give herself enough time to do it and if anything that was the riskiest part because it means there was a greater likelihood of failure and even still she wanted to do it. It's her prerogative.
02 Jul 2012 03:07 pm (@Twitter)
Eliza
I don't think Nastia ever said that she was going for the gold or that she was sure to make the Olympic team! She just wanted to give it a try and see how it goes. That's her right!!
02 Jul 2012 07:07 pm (@Twitter)
kendo
Nastia was not ready for that level of competition, and it did bother me that she was at Trials when she was nowhere near ready. There was no good way out of that situation, and my heart dang near broke for her last night. I certainly didn’t want her on the team, but I did want her to hit. That’s all a gymnast wants and deserves– to do her best. The ovations were great, though. I doubt she will, but I’d love to see her continue to compete next year…
02 Jul 2012 10:07 am (@Twitter)
Eliza
I wholeheartedly agree with this article!! I admire Nastia even more than before, because she gave her best!!
02 Jul 2012 10:07 am (@Twitter)
L
It’s strange, but people will just hate Nastia for no good reason. It’s like how so many people will hate Jennifer Love Hewitt and not be able to explain why.
02 Jul 2012 01:07 pm (@Twitter)
Vanessa
I feel like sometimes we forget that these gymnasts are human beings and have feelings just like everyone else. This article was beautifully written and brings up some excellent points that I think are hard to realize until you take a step back and get back to reality. In the end, every single gymnast that we love or hate is still a human being. I know that I am guilty of saying snarky things sometimes in regards to a gymnast, and I think all fans are guilty of this. But we are also capable of reading an article like this and getting some perspective. At the end of the day, we all love this sport and the athletes and we need to treat everyone with respect. If you don’t agree with something, there is a respectful way to discuss or debate your opinion with someone without being rude or mean to others.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
Joanne
I’m one of those that was unhappy to see her at trials. She had a lousy Nationals and in my head she did not deserve the invite. That she decided to come back just 8 months before the Olympics struck me as more than a bit arrogant. She WAS good, but she was gone for 3yrs. Eight months was NOT enough to get into world class shape and it showed when she couldn’t put a full UB routine together. Yeah she was a great competitor and yeah, I had tears seeing her fall last night, but I actually felt worse for Bross. And I never cared for Bross’s gymnastics. Nastia can still come back, she’s just gonna have to pay her dues in practice in the gym, like everyone else.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
Kay
People can say what they want about Nastia’s bars and the media circus around her, but when it comes down to it she pulled out an awesome beam routine at the elite level in less than a year’s worth of training. That in and of itself is impressive. I hope she can look back on that and be proud instead of wondering what-if.
So what’s to be done about the media circus surrounding elite women’s gymnastics? There’s so much pressure put on our elites while they’re also navigating the tough waters of being teens and young adults. This Olympic cycle it seems the media is ever present, mostly because of social media. You can’t hate on a gymnast or her family taking advantage of it by going pro to pay for all that training. But you have to wonder if it’s just too much to expect a young woman to not just be the best at their sport, but also to be an ambassador of the sport and their country. Without the media attention and expectation of being this super-human role model, gymnastics is a tough sport. So, yea, it’s not the fans’ place to pile on to that. Sure we, as fans, have expectations, because we’re human and as susceptible to the hype as anyone else, but it’s important to remember these are real people who have real lives off the mat.
On the flip-side I have to wonder how freaky it has been for the gymnasts and/or their folks to see that so many people believed they were a lock for the Olympic team prior to the trials. How to you prepare when people already “know” you’re on the team? How do you cope if you don’t make the team after all that? What’s it like for all that media attention to suddenly go away because you missed a skill?
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
kat
You make some excellent points and I agree with most of what you’ve said. However, your attitude and the way you address these fans (who are also, by the way, your readers) comes off just about as nasty and immature as the behavior your accusing anti-Nastia fans of.
I get it if you’re annoyed by people’s comments and opinions, and I understand the desire to go off on a rant, but you lose a lot of credibility when you write this way. Why not write a well-reasoned article about Nastia rather than sinking down to others level and telling people to get a grip? You have so many wonderful articles on this site. Up until now it had reflected an impressive style much closer to real journalism as opposed to the other ranty, informal, gym blogs out there. But I guess it’s your blog. You can do what you want with it.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
Beth
It's about being fed up. Some people need to hear a little nasty to realize how nasty they are being themselves.
03 Jul 2012 01:07 am (@Twitter)
Anon
I fell off the Nastia bandwagon a couple of years ago. She literally spent two or three years teasing people about whether or not she would come back. Whereas Memmel simply got back in the gym and did her thing. When she did announce a comeback, it was on the night that the girls won gold in Tokyo, which struck me as extremely tacky and classless. Beyond that, I don’t think she earned her spot at Nationals. I feel as if she was gifted with the spot due to her reputation and her father.
02 Jul 2012 02:07 pm (@Twitter)
LD’s Mom
“With grace, grit and an admirable sense of responsibility to herself, her coaches and her fans, she got back up and finished the routine- even though her Olympic chances were all but gone.” You couldn’t describe it any better.
I’ve never been a huge Nastia fan. Didn’t have any real beef against her, but was always more drawn to Shawn. However, watching her compete this weekend brought tears to my eyes, and I was overwhelmed with respect for her. She is a class act, and she should feel proud of how she is ending her career. Luckily the fans in the arena were the good kind of fans – supportive and very aware of how much she deserved to be praised.
02 Jul 2012 03:07 pm (@Twitter)
Angie
Thanks for a well-written article! You said everything I have been saying for weeks.
02 Jul 2012 03:07 pm (@Twitter)
Cee
PREACH. IT.
Sometimes I think Nastia’s conventional beauty is what incites this incredibly bitter, personal nastiness–what I call the cheerleader effect. She’s thin and blonde and successful so of COURSE she’s a b****, she deserves whatever people throw at her since she has so much already. People, please. She’s an incredibly hard worker and she was a hero in Beijing (please nobody bother to school me on what a hero is). She has given her best to her country for over four years in service of the sport she loves. For that same love and in the spirit of the Olympics she wanted to try for one more shot–when, I point out, she could’ve just played it safe, continued to rake in the endorsement bucks and not risked failure on national TV. But she didn’t–she wanted to try one more time. What is not to admire in that? She’s brave as h*ll.
Sometimes gymnastics fans are as bad as figure skating fans–everything seems to be very bitter and personal to them. I get having favorites–I have mine–but none of us know these people. There are some very strange and creepy blogs and fans out there that ascribe all sorts of wild motivations and agendas to these amazing athletes that undermines their incredible accomplishments.
02 Jul 2012 04:07 pm (@Twitter)
lily
No one cares what Nastia looks like. I make my living as a model, blonde hair, blue eyes, size 00, and 5 foot 10...anyone who is justifiably a little miffed just thinks its arrogant to expect to go to an Olympic Trials when you have only been training for eight months and to get into that trials when you can't complete a full bars set. Period. Anyone who brings looks into this is very, very shallow. And this comes from someone who spends her day around nothing but shallow people.
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm (@Twitter)
Samantha
As a former gymnast and avid gymnastics fan, I couldn’t agree with you more, Brigid. I couldn’t believe how different, how gorgeous Nastia’s gymnastics looked next to everyone else’s, even with mistakes and not being ready. I respect power gymnasts too, but I admit, I had forgotten that gymnastics could look THAT beautiful. It was breathtaking. I was so proud of her for making that bars dismount and then the beam routine after the bars fall. And I didn’t even realize until that last moment where she raised her hand to the crowd in farewell that I actually had tears running down my face. It was one of the most powerful, and human gymnastics moments I’ve ever had the honor to witness.
Above all, I was so proud of those fans in that arena for the way they cheered and honored her and called out her name and gave her such a beautiful ending. It made me proud of the sport I love.
02 Jul 2012 04:07 pm (@Twitter)
mariel
well said, nastia will always be a great champion!
02 Jul 2012 04:07 pm (@Twitter)
Alice
I wholeheartedly agree. I left the sport about a decade ago and sort of never looked back but this Olympic trials peeked my interest and, as I am out of the country, I was following along online and I was SHOCKED by some of the comments I was reading from live bloggers and other online commentators. I guess things have changed in the past decade but I still can’t believe the amount of negativity and criticism. All these athletes at the trials are incredibly talented and are so so deserving of our respect just for being at the trials at all. (And although some of these fans maybe teens, that’s no excuse. Being a teen doesn’t give you a free pass for cruelty and character assassination.)
02 Jul 2012 04:07 pm (@Twitter)
Kim
In my opinion, Nastia’s VERY late comeback attempt seemed so half-assed and blasé (seeming) that it was a kind of flippant insult at the new girls and old girl who have been working their tails off the last few years to get to the position she had previously obtained. Here we have Shawn Johnson, Alicia Sacramone, and Rebecca Bross (amongst others) who had been burning it up to get past their injuries for a long, long time and then here comes Nastia with a kind of “OK, I changed my mind. I want to play too!” attitude. I feel it kind of demeaned the progress and effort put forth by the girls with the more definitive Olympic mindset. I’m all for “old” gymnasts making a go at a comeback, but thinking that you’d be up to Olympic caliber after a few months of training demeans the sport of gymnastics and the Olympics itself. Nastia was an incredible gymnast, and if she’d begun her training way earlier she probably would have nabbed a spot on the team. However, to me, her thinking that so little time was needed on her part came off as egotistical. I doubt she cares so much what I or any other anonymous internet complainy-pants thinks, she was a great athlete and there’s plenty more great things ahead of her.
02 Jul 2012 05:07 pm (@Twitter)
Lauren
I could not have said it better myself. This is exactly the reason why I had such a bad taste in my mouth when it came to Nastia over the past year. She may have come off as humble in interviews but her actions spoke otherwise, and actions always speak louder than words. I truly feel that the way she approached her comeback was disingenuous and arrogant, and yes, her actions did upset me as a gymnastics fan. I was also, however, careful to keep my thoughts about it to myself. I think the problem facing every aspect of life in the public eye these days truly comes down to the fact that there is no accountability when the internet lets you be as nasty as you wish while simultaneously being as anonymous as you wish. There's simply no accountability. I give Nastia more respect for what I felt to be public arrogance than I do to those who delight in being anonymous bullies.
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm (@Twitter)
Beth
You seriously think it was egotistical? Think about what you're saying. Before Beijing this dedicated girl had been training for like 16 years straight!!! She had never given herself a break from the sport. This was new territory for her. Of course she's going to underestimate the amount of time it would take. She's human.
03 Jul 2012 01:07 am (@Twitter)
Kim
Yes...BEFORE Beijing. That was then and this is now. No one will ever convince me that "I thought that I could help the team more with a few months of training than the girls who have been working their butts off the past three years could" is anything but a product of arrogance.
03 Jul 2012 09:07 pm (@Twitter)
KK
You don't think she just realized she had such a passion for the sport that she wanted to give it another shot? That doesn't make her egotistical in my book :\ she just realized this is her last shot, so she better give a try. She was clearly good enough to make it that far. They didn't just throw her out there and say "Oh you won last time? Immediately to the trials you go." Have compassion. Humanity needs to retain it.
04 Jul 2012 01:07 am
Ashlyn
Wonderful article Brigid!
“Whatever it is, it is the kind of wasted, negative energy that spoils the joy of being a fan of this sport.”
AMEN!
02 Jul 2012 05:07 pm (@Twitter)
Alicia
I will admit that I had my reservations about Nastia’s comeback. However, last night she showed what a true champion she is and she brought me to tears. I’m so incredibly proud of her for getting back up there when it looked like she wanted to quit.
02 Jul 2012 05:07 pm (@Twitter)
sara
I mean I love her and all but I don’t think she should be applauded for trying to get on the team in under a year because that’s disrespectful to the sport and the other girls who have trained for this longer. Also smart, gymnastics people weren’t mad she could’ve stolen a spot, because like you said, no one owns a spot on the team. What people have a problem with is they accepted her petition to trials despite her messy routines. I know she’s AA champion etc but no one should get in on special treatment, and if they do, the governing body should at least be a little more transparent. Also, what love for Chellsie? Chellsie fell, yeah, but she had three other events. If they’re going to allow Nastia to end her career in dignity too, do it for Chellsie as well because she wasn’t going to take anyone’s spot in Nationals.
Also, where was the indignant post defending Shawn Johnson when people were saying the same/far worse things about her?
02 Jul 2012 05:07 pm (@Twitter)
brynn
Her wanting to give the Olympics another shot isn't disrespectful to anybody. She wasn't doing any of this for anybody, or to take somebody else's spot away or anything like that. Nastia is well aware of the time and hard training it takes to make it to the Olympics, she proved that four years ago.
Her petition to trials was accepted because her best event is the event that the US needs the most help on. They didn't accept her because she's Nastia, they accepted her because she had the potential to help the team. Chellsie didn't, and that was pretty clear. Nastia ended her career at the trials because thats how it went down. That wasn't planned by anybody, it just simply happened that way. Chellsie's career ended at nationals because again, thats simply how it happened.
02 Jul 2012 10:07 pm (@Twitter)
sara
I don't mean taking a spot from anyone. What is disrespectful is that if she REALLY wanted to make a shot out of it, she would've started training earlier. Other girls made less mistakes, other girls can land elite-level dismounts but they weren't put through.
"Her petition to trials was accepted because her best event is the event that the US needs the most help on." It's very obvious her best event is no longer her best event. She hadn't trained it enough. It should have been evident, she and Valeri should've been upfront with Marta about it.
Chellsie's career ended at Classics, because they didn't allow her to petition to Nationals. And I don't know how you can say she couldn't contribute on the team, because she had a floor and bars routine planned (and she isn't a slouch on bars either) as well. We just never saw it but she was training all those things, it's on USAG's YT.
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm (@Twitter)
Beth
Haha, just called yourself out. Pretty obvious by your last comment that you were a Shawn fan and not a nastia fan. Still bitter 4 years later? How sad.
03 Jul 2012 01:07 am (@Twitter)
liz
I personally feel Shawn is the bigger media hog than Nastia. I will, however always have respect for: Nastia, Alicia, Chellsie and Shawn for all they have done for the sport. But, I think Alicia was the only one that deserved the invite to trials. She and Chellsie went out with the most grace!!
03 Jul 2012 10:07 pm (@Twitter)
Alex
Hear hear!! Well-written piece! Gymnastics fans are as obsessive about the sport and the athletes as any rabid fans but often we are too quick to jump to conclusions or judgments about these girls we know inside and out. What we have to remember is that, in many cases, these are young girls and these are trained athletes who have worked their entire lives to get where they are today. It’s refreshing to see a girl who breaks the mold of the sound-bite girl who is always ready to give a stock answer (think Sacramone, Khorkina, Liukin…). These girls keep it real! Same goes for Komova. I’d rather see real girls with real emotions than deer-in-the-headlights interviews with non-answers. Regardless of how you feel about these girls, you have to give it up to someone who can put her entire life and career on the line in front of the world.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 pm (@Twitter)
RaLa Mu
Nastia and Becca made me cry last night. Watching them over the years and knowing the drive inside broke my heart when they had such a rough night last night. I just want to hug Bross. What a fighter.
02 Jul 2012 06:07 pm (@Twitter)
Full Twist
Fantastic piece Brigid, absolutely fantastic.
02 Jul 2012 08:07 pm (@@full_twist)
CeCe
It was painful at times watching her compete as unprepared as she was. Perhaps she just underestimated how long it would take to get back in shape and/or hoped for some kind of 11th our strength to compete. Probably a bit of both. What did happen is that she showed everyone just how classy and determined she is. Yes, she did get further along in the process then she probably should have based on her name alone but I think she earned it and the bottom line is that name alone would not get her on the Olympic team. She fight like heck for what she wanted and didn’t get it but she still went out like a champion in my book.
02 Jul 2012 09:07 pm (@Twitter)
SK
Should anyone on this website speak about how the fans vilify certain gymnasts when this website has a column entitled “The Bad Girl Files”?
02 Jul 2012 09:07 pm (@Twitter)
Camelia Lenart
Congratulations Brigid. It was a superb, objective, well-written article. I admire your sense of reality and the ability to put it in words. Unfortunately, not only (some) teenagers behave without elegance and respect towards others, including gymnastics stars.
All my respect Nastia, and all my respect Brigid.
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm (@Twitter)
pretzels
Preach your heart out.
02 Jul 2012 11:07 pm (@cheddarpretzel)
Laura Marcella
Love love love this post!!! It was a real treat seeing Nastia perform again. I’m so sad to think of a gymnastics competition without her in it. Her performances last night, and the past three competitions, have been absolutely gorgeous. When she got back up on the bar last night, I could’ve cried with pride that our country is home to such an incredible champion!! She’s the most exquisite beam and bars worker. Still! After four years and very little training time! I’ve admired Nastia since her junior days in 2003, and I’m so so glad she had such a fantastic gymnastics career. I hope she knows how grateful and excited true gymnastics fans were to see her back out on the competition floor! Long live the Queen of Gymnastics!!!
03 Jul 2012 12:07 am (@LauraMarcella)
Beth
BRAVO, Brigid. It’s about time someone called these people out. I have actually been waiting for one of you to put this into perspective for people. In the aftermath of the chellsie controversy, I posted several comments on popular blogs, in defense of Nastia Liukin, who was getting massacred by people, and I was shocked that not many people agreed with me (at least it felt that way). Thank you. It needed to come from someone like you who can spell it out so clearly. Obviously there are some people who will not change because they enjoy being judgemental way too much but at least someone had the guts to call them out! Btw- I wish all the people who are so bitter about this sport that they cant even appreciate an olympic champion would just STOP FOLLOWING THE SPORT.
03 Jul 2012 01:07 am (@Twitter)
Anna
Brigid, this is a wonderful, thought-out and well written article. And about time somebody called people out on all the nastiness! Nastia has been such a class act this entire process – she garnered so much respect from me for NOT giving up, even when she knew she probably couldn’t pull it off, she was still in the gym, and she was training and that’s quite commendable. I had tears in my eyes, and even started crying at one point – to see that moment when she finished her lovely beam routine and everyone stood up, and she had tears in her eyes – one of the most beautiful and human moments in gymnastics. And seeing her look up at the sky when the confetti poured down – it was so honest, and human, and nearly made me cry again. Awesome article – I couldn’t agree more!
03 Jul 2012 02:07 am (@Twitter)
dario
i’ very happy abour this post….and i hope people can understand this is not just in usa gymnastics…this whole thing komova vs wieber (just for example) is getting me crazy …gymnastics and sports in general are not just about win or lose, is about be better in everything about you, grow phisically, mentally, and in your soul, so is stupid make this gorgeous sport into a headious talk show just becsuse u dont like someone’s style, origin, facial expressions or whatever…letas try to be better persons and stop thinking in that way maybe that will become this world a better place for everyone
…..greetings from Mexico
03 Jul 2012 02:07 am (@Twitter)
Komova
If a gymnast is going to read about themselves then they have to be prepared for the fact that some people are not going to like them.
These parents need to grasp reality. If you go online and look up your daughters name then be prepared to have the whole truth written. The whole truth is not always positive.
Those parents did themselves a disservice by taking away someones free speech.
Nastia is being called out because she announced in the middle of worlds her comeback and even if she didn’t do it to get attention she did take away their hard work. She either didn’t care that she did it or she was oblivious to what she was doing. Either way it was ignorant.
I say she did it on purpose. She went out of her way to do an interview at Nationals telling the world she didn’t want to take away any of the glory from the gymnasts and only a few short months later she did exactly that.
Nastia keeps announcing to the world that she did this comeback for herself yet she was still in contention for the team even though she messed up every single routine she competed at Nationals and Trials but one. She knew she was still in contention and she blatantly lied to everyone saying differently.
You apparently don’t like free speech so I doubt you will allow this post to exist but it does not change anything.
03 Jul 2012 03:07 am (@Twitter)
admin
Have you noticed not ever comment is in agreement with what I said? I censor articles that are nasty or feature swearing, sexual innuendo or are the fourth, fifth etc pointing out of a mistake. Negative comments like yours the readers are perfectly able to make up their own minds about.
03 Jul 2012 04:07 am
Cee
Oh my Lord. No, no one is trying to abridge your Constitutional right to free speech. Is this grade school with the "it's a free country" argument? This is not about legality--ti's about graciousness and class. It is about the online gymnastics community and how we treat our own, the elite athletes who excel at the sport we claim to love. If your argument is "hey, it's a free country" you really don't get it. You can criticize an athlete's actions without getting personal. Blatantly lied? Ignorant? You're ascribing an agenda to her that you don't know actually exists. You don't know her--none of us (or few of us) know these people, and for you to take her actions SO personally--your tone suggest genuine anger and betrayal--is a little weird. If you think she's trying to pull focus from the other athletes , then I suggest you not pay attention to her.
03 Jul 2012 06:07 pm (@Twitter)
Komova
Wanting a spot on the Olympic team is not disrespectful but showing up with no dismount and not hitting one bar routine at Nationals or Trials is disrespectful.
Nastia did not put in the work and you cannot deny that. No one can deny it because Nastia admitted on live TV that she did not show up to Nationals with a dismount on bars. If you don’t show up with a full routine and still expect a chance to compete at Trials you don’t deserve the spot.;
03 Jul 2012 03:07 am (@Twitter)
Anonymous
I have neither admiration nor vitriol when it comes to Nastia, just bafflement. I could understand continuing to train even after it became clear that the Olympics weren’t going to happen – more power to those athletes who keep going just for pure love of the sport. However, Nastia’s bar routines these last three weeks were absolutely terrifying. She is extremely lucky not to have suffered a catastrophic injury. At some point, it’s up to the athlete (and coach – ahem, Valeri?!) to know his/her limits and recognize when it’s not safe to continue. For that reason alone I can’t really stand behind this comeback effort, and wouldn’t want my level sixes and sevens imitating it.
03 Jul 2012 05:07 am (@Twitter)
Bea
Preach it! I cried when Nastia fell, not because that was the end for her, but because getting right back up & finishing is truly classy AND badass. Everything she said afterward was classy, honest & supportive. Good for her.
Even her reason for being there was classy- the US Team is shallow in bars & that used to be a specialty of hers so she might help the team. She didn’t get there. Oh well. She admitted that & was incredibly graceful about the situation.
And I laugh in the face of anyone calling her lazy. You try getting into Olympic ready condition in a shortened amount of time after your body has changed. Then tell me she’s lazy, I dare you.
03 Jul 2012 06:07 pm (@Twitter)
shel
Loved this article. It has broke my heart to read and hear all the negative press Nastia has gotten.
Nastia has stated on many occasions that she was attempting the comeback to contribute bars to the team. At worlds last year it was quite apparent that the US can not keep up with Russia and China on bars….perhaps that competition was the very evidence needed to get Martha to convince Nastia to comeback for the team.
It definitely was a long shot, but as they repeatedly stated she was on a specific timeline for the training and was not expecting to be ready at Visas. unfortunately she obviously could have used a couple more weeks…But with that I bet she would have been very successful at trials.
I so wish it would have turned out differently for her…The beauty and grace in her lines is breathtaking and, although I love the entire team, it will definitely be missing something without her.
Oh…and I thought Chellsie was ripped off too…but that had nothing to do with Nastia. The fact is, Nastia could have really contributed on bars, and I don’t really think Chellsie would have had a shot mostly due to her history of injury.
Thanks again for writing this Brigid!
04 Jul 2012 12:07 am (@Shel CD)
Joanne
Some of them are calling Nastia out on the arrogance of thinking she could get back into medal winning shape in just 8 months when it took her YEARS to make it to Beijing. That I can get behind myself. I don’t know how she thought she could do that. Sacramone, Sloan and Johnson all came back earlier and worked for it longer and not one of them made it either. I think that bothered me the most, the thinking she could do it in so short a time. I also think she did get some slack cut at Nationals because of who she is, and the trials invite was not earned, but given based on past efforts.
I will however give her props for how she ended it at the trials. She showed great dignity and I hope her future is as bright has Olympic experience 4yrs ago was.
04 Jul 2012 12:07 am (@Twitter)
ann
Fabulous article, Brigid! It’s about time someone addressed this negativity.
I have so much respect for Nastia after this past weekend. She could have withdrawn, announced retirement, used her shoulder as an excuse (which does have tears in the labrum and rotator cuff), but she went out and finished what she started. She’s a fighter, not a quitter and deserves admiration.
04 Jul 2012 06:07 am (@Twitter)
Kim
My compassion lies with athletes like Sloan and Bross who worked so hard to achieve their dreams and were halted by injury. It does not lie with the former athlete who was too busy designing hideous pink leotards to make an honest attempt at a comeback.
04 Jul 2012 08:07 pm (@Twitter)
Meghan
I would like to start off saying that I am a big Nastia fan. In Beijing she was unbelievable and her artistry is something to be admired but I was frustrated that Nastia didn’t come back sooner. I’m pretty much over it because as it has been said, there is nothing that can be done about it so why think about it any longer.
But I do think the anger is being misplaced on to Nastia
People are upset that she made it to trials. If you look at her scores, truthfully she doesn’t fully belong. I understand that she was amazing 4 years ago but if you are being judged on what is being seen it should only be that, not your old reputation. But, it isn’t Nastia’s fault that she was allowed to continue it was the Olympic Selection Comity. So if people have a problem with Nastia I think they are just unsure who to place their anger towards.
I was angry for a little bit, but when I thought it through after a few hours I realized this was not at all in her control.
And people that are upset that she is in the limelight are ridiculous, someone from this Olympic team is going to do the same thing if the win some gold medals. It is just the nature of people to 1. make money and 2. get their name known. And as said in the article the name being known is big for getting an audience for gymnastics!
05 Jul 2012 04:07 am (@Twitter)
mimiiii
personally, im more upset at the comments directed at mckayla and the “injustice” that was done to elizabeth price by marta.. that mckayla had essentially stolen elizabeth’s spot, and how mckayla didn’t deserve ebee’s spot on the team by 1 in 4 year gym fans who believe AA is the be all and end all of gymnastics. yeah, let’s leave home a practically guaranteed EF gold medalist for a gymnast who had admittedly 2 great days but who doesn’t really contribute anything outstanding to the other 4 girls scores (read: sarcasm).
also more upset with seeing rebecca bross lose it on bars. it was unbelievably devastating to watch. and then not even see her go out on bars with a stuck patterson (finally) and leave on a high note.
with regards to nastia – im a fan of her gymnastics, have been for awhile. while it was lovely to see her perform again, i think the fact she got by on past performance (let’s face it, she did – her scores were nowhere near the other girls) is a bit dubious/strange. i don’t understand why she didn’t attend the camps and really put in the training required to get her routines up to scratch, it all seemed rushed and.. not half-hearted, but less effort somehow (despite all her years of training previously). but she went out admirably and with grace, winning (and maintaining) the respect of many people.
14 Jul 2012 04:07 am (@Twitter)