Romanians take early lead at Tokyo worlds
Source: Agencies |
October 8, 2011, Saturday
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Print Edition
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HOPING to return to the podium after finishing fourth last year, Romania scored 227.228 points yesterday to take the early lead in women's qualifying at the world championships in Tokyo.
Australia was second with 221.846 points. But there is still another day of qualifying to go, and the United States, defending champion Russia and China all compete today.
At least the scoring starts over in Tuesday's team finals. The top eight teams at the worlds secure spots at next year's London Olympics.
The lone bright spot for the Romanians was triple Olympic gold medalist Catalina Ponor. Six months after coming out of retirement, the 24-year-old Ponor posted the highest score on balance beam, a 15.0 that should put her in the running for the event finals.
Romania was the world's gold standard after the Soviet Union broke up, winning five straight world titles from 1994 to 2001 as well as the team gold medal at the Sydney and Athens Olympics. Romanians also won three of the five individual titles in Athens, and they would have swept the all-round titles in Sydney if Andreea Raducan hadn't been busted for taking cold medicine.
But longtime coaches Octavian Belu and assistant Mariana Bitang stepped down in 2005, and the program quickly fell into disarray. A year later, Romania failed to win a team medal at the worlds for the first time since 1981.
Belu returned last year, but the Romanians are clearly still a work in progress.
Ana Porgras, expected to contend for an all-round medal after finishing fifth last year, wasn't even the top Romanian after mistakes on three of her four events. She bounced out of bounds after getting too much power on her last tumbling run, and fell on her uneven bars dismount.
Australia was second with 221.846 points. But there is still another day of qualifying to go, and the United States, defending champion Russia and China all compete today.
At least the scoring starts over in Tuesday's team finals. The top eight teams at the worlds secure spots at next year's London Olympics.
The lone bright spot for the Romanians was triple Olympic gold medalist Catalina Ponor. Six months after coming out of retirement, the 24-year-old Ponor posted the highest score on balance beam, a 15.0 that should put her in the running for the event finals.
Romania was the world's gold standard after the Soviet Union broke up, winning five straight world titles from 1994 to 2001 as well as the team gold medal at the Sydney and Athens Olympics. Romanians also won three of the five individual titles in Athens, and they would have swept the all-round titles in Sydney if Andreea Raducan hadn't been busted for taking cold medicine.
But longtime coaches Octavian Belu and assistant Mariana Bitang stepped down in 2005, and the program quickly fell into disarray. A year later, Romania failed to win a team medal at the worlds for the first time since 1981.
Belu returned last year, but the Romanians are clearly still a work in progress.
Ana Porgras, expected to contend for an all-round medal after finishing fifth last year, wasn't even the top Romanian after mistakes on three of her four events. She bounced out of bounds after getting too much power on her last tumbling run, and fell on her uneven bars dismount.
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