Jeez. What an ass. What he said *may* be true but unless they can 100% certifiable prove it, there's nothing that can be done.

It's unfortunate that 3 of the US women made mistakes in the team gymnastics event. So China simply out-performed them, and that's all there is to it. I hope the team can grow to be happy with the silver they got, considering the points they achieved.
That said, it is a bit disgusting to me that so many of the Chinese gymnasts appear to be under the 16-year-old minimum. But I am sure, especially in a country such as China, there will never be a way to prove they were too young to compete.
Let's all just hope for better luck in the individual events.

And as to another sport, cheer on my friends on the Rowing team! I know the 3 guys in the bow of the Men's 8+ (Beau, Matt and Micah, respectively) and they have made it to the semifinals round.:D The M8+ got gold back in Athens, so we're hoping for at least a medal, this time, too!

GO USA!

OH MY GOSH - so happy!!

My friends Sally, Debby and Carrie, after 7 races with 3 to go, are squarely in 3rd - hang on girls!

AND, my friend Anna, after 3 races is in 1ST!!!! She is expected to medal, but the competition is stiff!!!

Keep Sailing Fast!!!!!! WOOHOO!!!

Photo of Anna:

http://www.nbcolympics.com/sailing/p...id=205394.html

It was definitely heartbreaking to watch Alicia fall off of beam while knowing that the opportunity to pass the Chinese was lost and then watching her fall short on one of her tumbling passes on the floor. You could just tell how bad she wanted it but the nerves might've gotten to her. It also makes me wonder other things like how well would the women's team have done if both Chelsea Memmel and Samantha Peszeck were able to contribute more??

Either way I'm very excited that the woman captured the silver.. now i'm hoping for Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin, and Alicia(especially Alicia) to do amazingly well in the individual finals.

Maybe I'm bitter but I was soo happy when Bela Karoli( i'm sure I spelled that wrong) stated that he doesn't feel that the Chinese deserved gold because of age. But like everyone says with a government like China's there's no way that we'll ever know for sure what their actual ages are..

On the bright side the U.S. is STILL leading the medal count!!!!

If it's determined years from now that the Chinese team did have competitors under the mandatory age, could their medal be revoked?

(this may have been discussed at some point in this thread so my apologies if it has)

there is another matter that i do not believe has been brought up here; the type of equipment being used.
the equipment used by the usa teams in training is by different manufacturer than is at the games. has different feels, texture, materials and reactions. if i recall the news story correctly for example the floor at games has more bounce to it.

But their Chinese passports say that they're 16, and we all know that government documents HAVE to be truthful:rolleyes:

I was thinking about the possibility that some of the Chinese girls are under 16 last night, and actually feeling a bit sorry for them. Can you imagine if they are in fact too young? They will have to go through their whole lives living a lie about their age, knowing that they won a medal they didn't technically deserve. The likelihood that it was their choice to lie about their ages (if they have) is slim to none.

I know it's a different culture, but think about it in terms of the US. Your 18th and 21st birthdays are a lie, you "turn" 30, 40, 50 before you actually get there, you qualify for benefits at an earlier age than you deserve. For me the guilt and the need to keep up the ruse would take away all the joy of the medal.

So, I hope for their sakes that they really are all 16.

I thought during the men's competition they said the floor exercise mat was like concrete? They said it didn't have enough bounce and they were worried about injuries.

I really don't like the 3 up and they all count format. I liked the 7-6-5 that the used back in Atlanta (7 total teammates, 6 compete on each apparatus, 5 scores count). The 3 up excludes so many competitors and makes the pressure unreal. It seems that it opens the door for the team who has the best competition, rather than the best team, to win the gold.

I feel the same way as everyone else about the gymnastics event, and really hope that the US ladies can pull it together for the individual events. In fact, I hope they sweep them! In the end, on 12 August 2008, the Chinese gymnastics team (however old they are) outperformed the US team. Now, it's time for the US team to dig deep and wipe the mat with the other competitors in the individual events!

The broadcast froze up for a little while during the uneven bar routines but I thought that was because we had some major thunderstorms in the area.

Unfortunately both Shawn Johnson and Nastia stepped out of bounds.. and the first Chinese girl did pretty well.. I was uber pissed that they cut from gymnastics when China was on the uneven bars to show swimming (yes, I wanted to see Michael Phelps but still I don't think that that needed to be show as it was happening.

It is true the Chinese out performed the Americans but hopefully the Americans take all their "what if's" and wipe the floor with them... btw does anyone know whether or not it's only Alicia, Shawn, and Nastia for the individual? Is Samantha Peszecks olympics over?

I'm more concerned about what they may have had to give up to be part of the gymnastics program. Are they attending school or did they have to give that up for gymnastics? Are they living with their families or did they have to move away to a gymnastics school? If they are under 16, they may be able to get a few more years of gymnastics in, but what will happen to them when they are too big/too old for gymnastics and they are replaced with younger/smaller girls?

I feel like the US athletes have more of a chance at a balanced "normal" life. They practice hours and hours each day, but they still get to see their family. They still get an education, either going to school or being home-schooled. And hopefully, the combination of education and family will help them transition and adjust well to life after gymnastics.

I think, even for girls that are 16, it is an incredible amount of pressure. I cannot imagine the pressure for the Chinese girls if they are really only 10-14. The situation kinda reminds me of child actors that self-destructed after their fame ended...being used by people until they are too old and no longer useful to their handlers, being replaced by newer/younger stars in the spotlight, not being able to have a normal childhood, not getting the education needed to be able to go to college/get a job to support themselves as adults. I really hope that the Chinese gymnasts are able to avoid these pitfalls and grow into well-adjusted adults.