Tag Archives: gymnastics

Since I’ve been a slacker up to this point and haven’t posted any photos in my updates, I decided to shorten my daily post in favor of some of my favorite shots. So here’s a recap of my ninth day, in nine sentences.

I woke up to the most beautiful day we’ve had since I arrived in Beijing. (Yesterday was first the smoggiest and then the rainiest day yet.) Three days ago, I saw the sky for the first time. Today, I got reacquainted with my old friend Mr. Sun. This afternoon, I watched the two best female gymnasts in the world perform flawlessly in the all-around competition and I’ll just say I’m glad I wasn’t a judge. But it was a neat feeling to know that when gymnastics fans wake up in the morning, they’ll read my story to find out what happened. (Wannabe Mary Lou Alyssa thinks that is awful nifty.) Tonight, I had yet another yummy dinner and celebrated Alison’s last night in China, then partied it up at Club Bud. I’m beginning to get the hang of this place.

Click the link below for more photos.

HERE I AM AT OPENING CEREMONIES …

This morning, I experienced my first Beijing rain (it lasted about 15 minutes and no, it did not clear up the air) and spent several hours watching women’s gymnastics. Check out my story. Plus, few observations …

* The Chinese gymnasts are too small. One girl’s bio lists her at 68 pounds; the average weight of the six-”woman” team is 77 pounds. (That’s 13 pounds lighter than our teeny tiny, 4’9″ Shawn Johnson.)

* The Chinese are equal-opportunity applauders. Sure, the decibels increase when their girls are on the floor, but they are extremely gracious fans. And very knowledgeable of the sport.

Last night, I attended the Opening Ceremonies of the XXIX Olympiad. The first hour was the most amazing feat of choreography, precision, artistry and engineering I have ever seen. This wanabe circus girl was impressed. The athlete precession was long. The torch lighting was the coolest thing I have ever seen. It gave me chills, and my heart skipped a couple beats—this time for the right reason. Read my ESPNTHEMAG.com Cliff’s Notes version here.