Sunday, December 12, 2010

Oh What a Feeling

The stars were out for the Toyota Cup in Japan this weekend.

Australia has not yet fared as well as hoped in the first round of apparatus competition.

Tom Pichler managed a 7th on floor (14.750) and Prashanth Sellathurai a 6th on pommel (13.625, sounds like there were problems there).

On the women's side, Lauren Mitchell fared better with a 4th on bars, while Larrissa Miller was pipped into 6th.

Edit: Lauren won beam! With 15.200 over Mustafina. Congratulations, Lauren!

Read more about her competition season wrap-up here.

"I'm relieved that I was able to perform well and that I finished the year really well," Mitchell said from Tokyo.

"Today was like a worlds final so I went into the routine with the mind set to put it all out there and see what result that would bring.

"After all the travelling it is really important to know that I can do it under any circumstances. It is very satisfying to finish the year with a win."

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

gosh I am so impressed with her consistency and clear head. She was all over the place in 07/08 and then it was like she magically became a rock, American style.

Anonymous said...

Nothng magic about it - the hard work paid off. It takes time to be come consistent. Also - she is nothing like the Americans.

Anonymous said...

I think you need to read people's posts before you respond. I don't think the OP is implying that Lauren is like the Americans in style, just in terms of their supreme consistency.

Also, fact is that some gymnasts will never become consistent, and other gymnasts will be consistent from very early on in their careers. It's not always down to how many reps you do in training, mentality plays an even bigger part.

Anonymous said...

Well said anon 2.16 pm. Too many posts here are from people who jump to attack without bothering to properly understand what they are responding to. The tone too is often nasty.

Eliza Brebner Griffin said...

I think it all just goes to show how Australia has plenty of talented gymnasts; they just need to work hard and have the opportunity to practice in high pressure international comps. Without pressure there would be no diamonds. High quality and regular competition experiences domestically and internationally produce gymnasts who can take the heat. Yay for Lauren for breaking through! :)

Anonymous said...

I think the key is certainly international experience - the girls at elite level are all talented and all work very hard but i think it is so important to get more competition experience OS and even more compeitions here, Australian Championships and National Clubs is simply not enough - we need to have at leaset another major comp in the year.