The women’s gymnastics all-around competition is composed of four events–uneven bars, floor exercise, balance beam and vault.
Approaching
Speed is key to a successful vault. A gymnast must translate her forward momentum off the springboard to get the most height off the vault table.
Runway: Approx: 82 feet
Springboard
Vault table
Hitting the vault
From the board, the gymnast transfers her momentum into a momentary handstand. She pushes off the vault table, beginning her artistic maneuver.
The vault table replaces the vault horse and will make its first Olympic appearance this summer.
Height: 49 inches
Maneuvers
Each gymnast has an arsenal of maneuvers–named for the gymnast who introduced it into competition–she can perform. Maneuvers are rated by degree of difficulty, with 10.0 being the most difficult. Judges score each vault by deducting points from that rating. Examples of vaults:
THE TSUKAHARA Difficulty 9.8
THE KHORKINA Difficulty 9.9
THE YURCHENCO Difficulty 10.0
Landing
The gymnast must be aware of where the ceiling and floor are during her entire rotation in order to “stick the landing”–landing in a balanced fashion without taking extra steps.
Rules and scoring
Scoring: Scores are averaged in qualifying and in vault finals.
Number of vaults: In the qualifying, the team finals and the all-around, one vault counts. To perform in the individual vault finals, a second vault must be executed. If she is successful in the finals, two more vaults must be executed, and the two scores are averaged.
Deductions: Include a lack of flexibility and stability, and technical errors.
Athletes to watch
Daniela Nicoleta Sofronie, Romania: A leading contender for the all-around title in Athens.
Carly Patterson, United States: Her team ranked No. 1 in the 2003 world championships.
Svetlana Khorkina, Russia: Won medals on the bars and floor exercise in the 2000 Olympics.
200 results
All-around
(G) Simona Amanar, Romania
(S) Maria Olaru, Romania
(B) Xuan Liu, China
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All-time medal standings
Competition began in 1952
USSR/Russia 19
Romania 11
Czechoslovakia 2
East Germany 2
Hungary 2
Sources: Todd Gardiner, IGI Gymnastics; Athens 2004 Organizing Committee;
U.S. Olympic Committee; NBC; Federation Internationale de Gymnastique
– See microfilm for complete graphic. %%
