If you're good enough, you're old enough. This must be a gymnastics-specific rule, yeah? Because Tom Daley is 14 and is diving for GB.
Well what about other countries who might have better gymnasts that don't qualify because they are too young? Plus He Kexin didn't even beat that Nastia girl on the uneven bars, she just won that weird tiebreaker (said so in the article). :[
But what is the advantage that she has by being underage? Also, if the situation were reversed (USA sent a 14 year old that won medals), would you guys still feel the same way? Or would you be more along the lines of "what's the big deal?"
The advantage is that other underage kids who follow the rules aren't competing then. I don't want to win any medal in that cheap fashion.
Flexibility, mainly. As girls grow older (and begin to fill out, especially in the hips), they start to lose their flexibility and cannot perform the same routines a younger girl can perform. It's an unfair advantage. Then there is the mental aspect. A 14 year old is less likely to understand the magnitude of the Olympics than an 18 year old. They don't feel the same type of pressure as someone who is an upperclassman in high school.
Ok then, if 14 year olds are the best gymnasts, why aren't they allowed to compete in a competition that's supposed to determine the best in the world?
Well let's say they normally aren't, the Chinese team still broke the rules. Another talented 14 year old still did not have the chance to participate, etc. They're screwed any way you look at it. The only reason nothing will happen is because the IOC sucks.
I don't know. I didn't make the rule. It's a stupid rule, in my opinion. But that's not what the argument is about. It's about the fact that China cheated by sending at least 2 (maybe 3) underage gymnasts to the Olymics, while other and more honest countries, like the US, followed the rules and held back some gymnasts of their own. From what little I know of America's gymnastics situation, we had a few outstanding athletes that we didn't sent to Beijing because they missed the age cut-off by a few months. The US and most other countries followed the rules; China didn't. That's the issue.
Also, from what I understand, the age limit is also there for the girls protection. Since they're still growing, they could end up having some long term health issues with the beatings their bodies take while doing their exercise/routines in the gym.
So JCB, how much time did you spend studying the flexibility of 14 year old girls vs 18 year old girls?
It's hacking to look at cached pages? I feel bad for the girl. She was probably forced by the government to compete. Either way, she loses.
