Kohei Uchimura: medal haul
4.30pm–7.15pm
Gymnastics – Artistic Men’s Mednatl Individual All-Around final, Victory eve
Ceremony North Greenwich Arena
on s still ra hold way to u im h his Uc gs o n e 2011 the Rin d gold at th ips h n s u n o r io All-A ld Champ Wor
The
remarkable
Kohei Uchimura B The 23-year-old Japanese favourite who has everything but an Olympic gold efore these Games began, Japan’s Kohei Uchimura was being hailed by his top rivals as ‘unbeatable’ and ‘a machine’ – Britain’s Louis Smith even went so far as to say: ‘There’s no way anyone will beat Uchimura, unless his arm falls off.’ But in Sunday’s qualifications and Monday’s Team final, there Uchimura was – with both arms intact – making startling mistakes that very nearly cost his team-mates a medal. His final performance on the Pommel Horse, with a more-than-shaky dismount, put Japan in fourth place before an appeal squeaked them back to silver. Yet ever since coming second at Beijing 2008 four years ago, Uchimura has gone undefeated in international All-Around events. In fact, no one has even got near him. So it’s a shock to the Gymnastics community that the Japanese star goes into today’s Individual All-Around final ranked ninth overall. At the World Championships in Tokyo last year, Uchimura made history by becoming the first athlete to win a hat-trick of All-Around world titles. On top of that, in the individual apparatus events he made no fewer than five of the six finals. So it’s no surprise that gymnasts such as Germany’s Philipp Boy, who came second behind him in the All-Around competition in the 2010 and 2011 World Championships, have said he can’t be beaten. Characteristically humble, Uchimura’s response to such talk is: ‘I don’t think I’m unbeatable but I appreciate the compliment. For me, I don’t have any strong points. I aim
52 London 2012 – Day 5 Offi Official cial programme programme
to improve everything.’ Personal improvement might not be necessary at this point but a return to form is. Glimpses of his greatness still shone through earlier this week, though. When pushed for a speciality, Uchimura admits that he’s good at ‘sticking’ his landings – a talent that competitors cite as the envy of any gymnast and one of the main reasons he has managed such ludicrously high scores. But he is also quick to highlight his shortcomings: ‘I feel my handstand is not good enough,’ he says. Uchimura was born into a sporting family in Nagasaki and started gymnastics aged three at his parents’ sports club. ‘I enjoyed doing saltos and twists on the trampoline every day,’ he says. ‘If my parents hadn’t had their own gym, I wouldn’t have discovered gymnastics. I’m really grateful.’ By his teens, Uchimura was moving up the ranks in Japan, making his international debut in 2005. But it wasn’t until two years later that he realised an Olympic gold was a possibility: ‘The turning point was when I won the title in the Kohei Uchimura: national collegiate medal haul championships in Olympic Games 2007. Then I was 2008 2008 encouraged. ‘When I was a World Championships boy, I did what I liked 2009 2010 2011 2011 2010 in training – only my 2010 2011 2010 2011 favourite elements. I loved gymnastics
Uchimura fell off the Pommel Horse at Beijing 2008 – twice
Dan Purvis
Joy of six Team GB’s bronze-winning hero talks through all the men’s disciplines
‘I have made some
Floor
‘The Floor is a routine that consists of at least five tumbles and it has to be in a 70-second range. It’s basically trying to cram in the best tumbles you can to get the highest score – but the main thing is just to land everything.‘
mistakes and I will try not to repeat them’ even if I came last. But after I won the national collegiates, I changed my training style to show perfect routines and impress everyone with my performances.’ The next year Uchimura stormed to a silver medal at Beijing 2008, aged 19, despite falling off the Pommel Horse twice. Though such mistakes have become rare since then, his form so far in London is certainly not up to his own personal standards. It is perfection, rather than medals, that he strives for. ‘Sport impresses and encourages us,’ he says. ‘Gymnastics includes many things such as power, speed, energy, aesthetics, agility, accuracy, bravery, elegance… I will show all of that in my performances.’ Japan is hopeful that he will today – and that means not dwelling on past failures. When asked about his chances following Monday’s Team Competition final, he said: ‘I’m trying not to think about it. I have made some mistakes and I will try not to repeat them in the All-Around Competition.’ Should he perform to the best of his abilities, today could be the greatest moment of his career. But the unassuming Uchimura doesn’t want to get carried away. ‘Most people think the result is everything, but I don’t,’ he says. ‘Still, I’ve never had such a moment and I would like to have it at London 2012.’
Horizontal Bar
‘This is probably the most exciting thing for practising but there’s also a risk. It can be quite dangerous, missing the bar or landing on somebody in training – or if you’re taking a risk in competition for a great score and then just missing it. But it’s probably the most exciting to watch.’
Pommel Horse
‘That’s probably one of the most tricky ones, especially under pressure. It’s about staying tight but feeling loose – if you tighten up you can’t really rotate as much. The key thing with Pommel is rhythm and timing, and every hand placement counts. You have to be sure.’
Rings
‘They are always a strong man’s piece. Normally Rings specialists are quite a bit smaller than normal-size gymnasts and a lot more stocky. A lot of athletes just work Rings and not the others, but it’s a good one to watch out for. Some of these men are so strong it’s unbelievable.‘
All set for silver
Parallel Bars
‘The Parallel Bars are probably my favourite piece of apparatus, to be honest. There’s a limitation because of the elements you have to do. You can have up to four on-the-bar moves and you need 10 moves altogether, including the dismount.’
Germany’s Fabian Hambuchen expects to be vying for second behind Uchimura The great Kohei Uchimura may have been below par in the Team Competition, but his rivals aren’t going to be complacent. Fabian Hambuchen, who qualified third for today’s event, reckons the Japanese wonder will be back on golden form today. ‘He will show his best in the All-Around finals,’ says the German. ‘I know how it feels to
come to the Games as a reigning world champion. I came into Beijing 2008 as the world champion on Horizontal Bar and it brought much pressure.’ Hambuchen’s team-mate Philipp Boy, an All-Around World Championships silver medallist two years running, agrees: ‘OK, if he makes a mistake and someone else does a perfect routine, then maybe. But if we’re talking about a perfect All-Around, he can finish with 94 points! I don’t know anyone who can beat him.‘
Vault
‘For the All-Around you only need one vault so normally people go for a two-and-a-half twist, which is a 6.6 for difficulty, but if you’re a Vault specialist then you have to do two vaults with high difficulty. In an All-Around competition it’s really crucial that you land it.’ London 2012 – Day 5 Official programme 53
Gymnastics – Artistic Men’s Mednatl Individual All-Around final, Victory eve
Ceremony North Greenwich Arena
on s still ra hold way to u im h his Uc gs o n e 2011 the Rin d gold at th ips h n s u n o r io All-A ld Champ Wor
The
remarkable
Kohei Uchimura B The 23-year-old Japanese favourite who has everything but an Olympic gold efore these Games began, Japan’s Kohei Uchimura was being hailed by his top rivals as ‘unbeatable’ and ‘a machine’ – Britain’s Louis Smith even went so far as to say: ‘There’s no way anyone will beat Uchimura, unless his arm falls off.’ But in Sunday’s qualifications and Monday’s Team final, there Uchimura was – with both arms intact – making startling mistakes that very nearly cost his team-mates a medal. His final performance on the Pommel Horse, with a more-than-shaky dismount, put Japan in fourth place before an appeal squeaked them back to silver. Yet ever since coming second at Beijing 2008 four years ago, Uchimura has gone undefeated in international All-Around events. In fact, no one has even got near him. So it’s a shock to the Gymnastics community that the Japanese star goes into today’s Individual All-Around final ranked ninth overall. At the World Championships in Tokyo last year, Uchimura made history by becoming the first athlete to win a hat-trick of All-Around world titles. On top of that, in the individual apparatus events he made no fewer than five of the six finals. So it’s no surprise that gymnasts such as Germany’s Philipp Boy, who came second behind him in the All-Around competition in the 2010 and 2011 World Championships, have said he can’t be beaten. Characteristically humble, Uchimura’s response to such talk is: ‘I don’t think I’m unbeatable but I appreciate the compliment. For me, I don’t have any strong points. I aim
52 London 2012 – Day 5 Offi Official cial programme programme
to improve everything.’ Personal improvement might not be necessary at this point but a return to form is. Glimpses of his greatness still shone through earlier this week, though. When pushed for a speciality, Uchimura admits that he’s good at ‘sticking’ his landings – a talent that competitors cite as the envy of any gymnast and one of the main reasons he has managed such ludicrously high scores. But he is also quick to highlight his shortcomings: ‘I feel my handstand is not good enough,’ he says. Uchimura was born into a sporting family in Nagasaki and started gymnastics aged three at his parents’ sports club. ‘I enjoyed doing saltos and twists on the trampoline every day,’ he says. ‘If my parents hadn’t had their own gym, I wouldn’t have discovered gymnastics. I’m really grateful.’ By his teens, Uchimura was moving up the ranks in Japan, making his international debut in 2005. But it wasn’t until two years later that he realised an Olympic gold was a possibility: ‘The turning point was when I won the title in the Kohei Uchimura: national collegiate medal haul championships in Olympic Games 2007. Then I was 2008 2008 encouraged. ‘When I was a World Championships boy, I did what I liked 2009 2010 2011 2011 2010 in training – only my 2010 2011 2010 2011 favourite elements. I loved gymnastics
Uchimura fell off the Pommel Horse at Beijing 2008 – twice
Dan Purvis
Joy of six Team GB’s bronze-winning hero talks through all the men’s disciplines
‘I have made some
Floor
‘The Floor is a routine that consists of at least five tumbles and it has to be in a 70-second range. It’s basically trying to cram in the best tumbles you can to get the highest score – but the main thing is just to land everything.‘
mistakes and I will try not to repeat them’ even if I came last. But after I won the national collegiates, I changed my training style to show perfect routines and impress everyone with my performances.’ The next year Uchimura stormed to a silver medal at Beijing 2008, aged 19, despite falling off the Pommel Horse twice. Though such mistakes have become rare since then, his form so far in London is certainly not up to his own personal standards. It is perfection, rather than medals, that he strives for. ‘Sport impresses and encourages us,’ he says. ‘Gymnastics includes many things such as power, speed, energy, aesthetics, agility, accuracy, bravery, elegance… I will show all of that in my performances.’ Japan is hopeful that he will today – and that means not dwelling on past failures. When asked about his chances following Monday’s Team Competition final, he said: ‘I’m trying not to think about it. I have made some mistakes and I will try not to repeat them in the All-Around Competition.’ Should he perform to the best of his abilities, today could be the greatest moment of his career. But the unassuming Uchimura doesn’t want to get carried away. ‘Most people think the result is everything, but I don’t,’ he says. ‘Still, I’ve never had such a moment and I would like to have it at London 2012.’
Horizontal Bar
‘This is probably the most exciting thing for practising but there’s also a risk. It can be quite dangerous, missing the bar or landing on somebody in training – or if you’re taking a risk in competition for a great score and then just missing it. But it’s probably the most exciting to watch.’
Pommel Horse
‘That’s probably one of the most tricky ones, especially under pressure. It’s about staying tight but feeling loose – if you tighten up you can’t really rotate as much. The key thing with Pommel is rhythm and timing, and every hand placement counts. You have to be sure.’
Rings
‘They are always a strong man’s piece. Normally Rings specialists are quite a bit smaller than normal-size gymnasts and a lot more stocky. A lot of athletes just work Rings and not the others, but it’s a good one to watch out for. Some of these men are so strong it’s unbelievable.‘
All set for silver
Parallel Bars
‘The Parallel Bars are probably my favourite piece of apparatus, to be honest. There’s a limitation because of the elements you have to do. You can have up to four on-the-bar moves and you need 10 moves altogether, including the dismount.’
Germany’s Fabian Hambuchen expects to be vying for second behind Uchimura The great Kohei Uchimura may have been below par in the Team Competition, but his rivals aren’t going to be complacent. Fabian Hambuchen, who qualified third for today’s event, reckons the Japanese wonder will be back on golden form today. ‘He will show his best in the All-Around finals,’ says the German. ‘I know how it feels to
come to the Games as a reigning world champion. I came into Beijing 2008 as the world champion on Horizontal Bar and it brought much pressure.’ Hambuchen’s team-mate Philipp Boy, an All-Around World Championships silver medallist two years running, agrees: ‘OK, if he makes a mistake and someone else does a perfect routine, then maybe. But if we’re talking about a perfect All-Around, he can finish with 94 points! I don’t know anyone who can beat him.‘
Vault
‘For the All-Around you only need one vault so normally people go for a two-and-a-half twist, which is a 6.6 for difficulty, but if you’re a Vault specialist then you have to do two vaults with high difficulty. In an All-Around competition it’s really crucial that you land it.’ London 2012 – Day 5 Official programme 53
