Most Americans and I had never heard of the Yurchenko double pike in gymnastic vaulting events until last Saturday at the U.S. Classic in Indianapolis.
Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in history, knew what it is, and she knew she could do it.
It did not matter that no woman had accomplished the move in competition.
It did not matter that the woman the move is named for, Russian gymnast Natalia Yurchenko, never attempted it in a competition.
It did not matter that Biles had not competed in 18 months.
And it also did not matter that she knew judges would not reward her for conquering the dangerous maneuver.
Biles went for it – and got it.
She first had to head down the runway in a full-out sprint. Then, she launched into a roundoff back handspring onto the vaulting horse. Then, she elevated high enough to give herself time to flip twice in a pike position (body folded, legs straight) before landing on her feet.
Ae you kidding me?
She stuck the move, with the only flaw of having a bit too much momentum as she landed.
The judges only scored her 6.6 – in the range of her two other vaults – ignoring the skill and daring it takes to attempt the move.
“I feel like now we just have to get what we get because there’s no point in putting up a fight because (judges are) not going to reward it,” Biles told reporters after the event.
The International Gymnastics Federation sets starting values for new vaults done in competition, so Biles’ frustration is aimed at that organization too.
“We just have to take it and be quiet,” she said.
When asked ‘why try the dangerous vault if there is no reward,’ Biles said:
“Because I can.”
Biles’ talent level is so much beyond her competitors that international judges are going out of there way to keep them closer to her scores, she explained.
“(Judges and the Federation) don’t want the field to be too far apart. And that’s just something that’s on them. That’s not on me,” she said.
“They had an open-ended code of points and now they’re mad that people are too far ahead and excelling.”
Biles will keep on excelling, with her next stop scheduled for June 24-27 at the U.S. Olympic Gymnastic trials in St. Louis at the Dome of America’s Center.
The last thing Biles and the national team need is for her to be injured shortly before the Olympic Games open in Tokyo. She might shelve the Yurchenko double pike, especially since she will not need to display it to earn her place on the U.S. team.
But I would not put it past her – because she can.
The Reid Roundup
A license plate honoring the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City is now available to Missouri motorists. State Rep. Barbara Washington (D-Kansas City) sponsored the bill, which grants the right to request the plate with a $10 donation to the museum… Lee Evans, the record-setting sprinter who wore a black beret in a sign of protest at the 1968 Olympics died on May 19, 2021 after suffering a stroke while coaching in Nigeria… Michael Porter Jr., of the Denver Nuggets is nominated for the 2021 NBA’s Most Improved Player award. Free of injuries for the first time in his three-year career, Porter averaged 19.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game…Former L.A. Ram running back and Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson says race is a factor in the Jacksonville Jaguars and coach Urban Meyer signing Tim Tebow as a prospective tight end – while Colin Kaepernick remains blackballed. “It’s “bullsh*t” that Tebow switched positions and the college coach he won national titles with wants him to help build a culture?”… Jon Cooper, head coach of the defending NHL champion Tampa Bay Lightning, started three Black players on the opening shift of the team’s final game before the playoffs on May 10. “First of all, they’re all in the NHL for a reason. They deserve to be here and have worked their tails off,” Cooper said of Daniel Walcott, 27, Mathieu Joseph, 24, and Gemel Smith, 27. It was the first time an NHL team has started an all-Black line.
