olympic gymnast criticism bounces off

this whole debate about the exact age of the chinese gymnasts is, to pass the buck, the fault of the international olympic committee. they need to relax the rule, lower it to 14.

the rules for competing need to be relaxed. in figure skating, no one was complaining about michelle kwan being in senior classes and the alternate to the women's 1994 lillehammer team when she was 14 years old. skating takes just as much time and dedication as gymnastics. so why the double standard?

very likely, a few of the chinese gymnasts are under the tender age of sweet 16. frankly, after visiting hunan province last year, i am just happy thinking of those gymnasts living in the athletic compounds with healthy food and a roof over their head. i am very very sorry for their competition if they are indeed underage, because it gives the young uns an unfair advantage. as nadia comaneci says, "everything is easier when you're younger."

but for american (former romanian) marta karolyi to suggest that a chinese gymnast is underage because she has a missing tooth makes me roll my eyes. do you think it is possible the girl just never received proper dental care like millions of her compatriots? karolyi hails from romania, goodness knows she has her fair of third world experience, so why would she make a comment like that?

her husband, bela karolyi, the man who coached nadia comaneci, has stated in print that while he coached in romania that the country falsified passports so the girls could compete, when they were faced wtih age restrictions. obviously it is done. so, let's make it an even playing field. i reckon those junior gymnasts compete and train just as hard as the seniors do.

in the airport a while ago, it was suggested that sebastian looks younger than his years, because he hasnt lost any teeth and because he is short for his age. should i sign him up for chinese gymnastics? it seems he meets the credentials.

take a look at pictures of kwan as a 16 year old. i think she looks 14..or ?? young. she looks young. but old enough to be a world class athlete.

i am getting off my soapbox because i need to do laundry.

Comments

[Amy]

This subject has been bothering me the past few days. My opinion, and only my opinion is that there is no way all of the girls on the Chinese team are 16 years old. Rules are rules, whether you agree with them are not...and in this case the rules say competitors are to be 16 years old. I really don't care what age the Olympic committee (or whoever makes the rules) decides is proper, but I DO think that EVERY country should follow these rules. And I do not think China has.

[tess]

i agree, amy. if countries have ways of making the playing field uneven, let's even it out. most countries cannot fudge passports (or the media would call them on it), so that's why i say the IOC needs to lower the competing age, so that everyone gets a fair chance.

[Auntie Pammie]

Good morning Tessie. This is your dear old dad not Pammie. She would not be too happy if I changed her heading so I have not made any amendments, however, I digress.
In regards to the issue please be assured IOC members are bending over backwards to fix the problem.
Love to all......Dad

[Meri]

I had a missing tooth during my senior year of high school - had to have the baby tooth pulled because the adult one was impacted. that's not enough evidence for me.

[Coral]

Now, I think if they allowed everyone to compete, that would stop all the hoo ha entirely. If you are ten years old and win, good for you Not likey, but go for it!

Is it not time you did a kid update, one by one?

[Coral]

Oops, likely!!

[Jody]

The age limit used to be 14, only a few Olympics ago in fact, and the Romanian gymnasts were competing at age 12. I don't have any problem, then, with keeping the limit at 16, because at least the cheaters (and Bela Karoli was quite blase about the fact that all the authoritarian countries will falsify passports to get an edge) will have to be a little older.

The intl gymnastics group raised the age limits because of rampant injuries. The littler girls were doing senior-level skills to compete, and permanently damaging their bodies all over the place.

Ice Skating has an age limit, too, and it's been made higher even in Kwan's lifetime, again to address injury problems when young girls try to do senior skills.