olympic gymnastics

the main reason i look forward to the olympics every four years is undoubtedly because of the gymnastics.

this year's gymnastics is alright i suppose.
and yes, china is pretty darned good... but my favourite gymnast is from russia. and she didnt compete this year.

not surprising actually, considering that she's 29 this year.
she competed in the last olympics at athens in 2004.

who is she?
she's none other than the drama queen svetlana khorkina.
(who btw, once posed nude for the russian version of playboy ;) )

she's soo brilliant that she's the only gymnast thats had a signature move named after her in all the events. and admittedly she may be a b*tch at times, but she's just soo damned good!

and despite her height being a major disadvantage (she's 5'5) the uneven bars is her favourite event.

2004 uneven bars in Athens olympics

but what i really love about her, is her floor routines.
most other gymnasts just do stunts and pose. they barely follow the music at all.
but she, she actually dances. and thats what i find really riveting.


team finals, 2004 athens

i love the way she dances at 1.07, when she begins smiling. from then on, she just looks soo happy and relaxed, u just wanna root for her all the way :D

here's a look at her when she was even younger, in 1999:

she turns her weakness (her height) into a strength, by looking more elegant than any other short gymnasts can.

lets look at another video taken in 2003:

i just love the ending! :D

and my favouritest video of all!!!

noone else does it quite like her ;)

and i do agree with one of the comments that gymnastics is not as exciting now that she's gone :(

wait, there's one last video!
its not svetlana, its a guy. and i tell u, this is insane!