Someone explain to me about the Japanese gymnastics today

[scrummyyummy]

Someone please explain. I don't understand why the Japanese were 4th and then got silver because they complained to the judges? The papers are making out they complained so the judges changed the score and a lot of people's comments on these papers are the Japanese are bad losers but I don't understand why the judges would change the score just because of complaints? Surely they wouldn't be so easily swayed? Were the judges at fault in the first place? There weren't any protests from Team GB or the Ukranians about the changes which makes me think perhaps they knew the judges were wrong in the first place? I'm not really getting this.

[ummmm]

The judges were at fault. They incorrectly deducted points (I think) and when the error was corrected it put them into silver position.

[nungate]

Something to do with the degree of difficult assigned to the dismount that the Japanese gymnast attempted (and failed). The dismount he attempted was worth more points than some of the other dismounts used by other gymnasts

[nungate]

^ make that difficulty

[Andyvon]

The judges were wrong when they deducted points from the last Japanese gymnast for his dismount from the pommel horse. Although the dismount was untidy he landed on both feet which was perfectly legal. He didn't fall or touch the ground with his hands so he shouldn't have had any points deducted for the landing. The Japanese appealed against the deduction. The judges then looked at the tape and realised they had been wrong to penalise the gymnast for a perfectly legal dismount. They then reinstated the points for the landing and that took the Japanese team's final score from 4th place to 2nd.

Hope that makes sense.

[LazyGun]

Ummm is right. The judges initially marked him down more harshly than they should have, on the basis that he had failed to dismount the apparatus. The Japanese appealed, pointing out that he had dismounted, just made a hash of it, so the judges amended their makes to reflect this, deducting less points than originally. Since the teams were all so close, this meant that team GB, who had originally leapfrogged the japanese to take silver, now had to make do with bronze instead.

The team seemed happy enough, and it is still an impressive achievement....

[LazyGun]

Andyvons answer is much more lucid and concise than mine :)

perils of cross- posting................

[scrummyyummy]

Thanks for the explanations! So in that case, the Japanese team were in the right to get silver? I'm reading people's comments in the Daily Mail and The Sun on line and a lot of them are criticising the Japanese but surely, it was their right to be awarded the silver and the judges should get the criticisms? I have to say, both the papers didn't explain it too well about the judges making the mistake.

[THECORBYLOON]

As I understand it, the gymnast had finished his routine but rather than make his usual dismount, he fluffed it. He was deducted points and that meant the Japanese finished in fourth. A protest was lodged because although he fluffed the dismount he landed on his feet so it WAS a dismount even though it was not done properly. The judges had originally judged him as not making a dismount so they deducted points on that basis. Following the protest the judges said he had made a dismount so they re-awarded some of the deducted points and that then moved the Japanese from fourth to second and the UK team was moved down to third.

[THECORBYLOON]

Typing on a mobile 'phone is not good........

[ummmm]

lol

[Ann]

If originally the Japanese were 4th and we were 2nd who was in 3rd place? Whoever was in 3rd can't be happy that they dropped out of the medals after the change of mind from the judges!

[THECORBYLOON]

Ukraine was in Bronze.

[scrummyyummy]

Ann, the Ukranians were in 3rd but dropped to 4th.

[scrummyyummy]

Thecorby: you beat me to it!

[Ann]

They must be quite miffed ........... at least we still had a medal :)

[scrummyyummy]

It's annoying how the papers are saying things like 'we were robbed' when in reality, the silver did belong to Japan. It's the judges who made the mess up.

[LazyGun]

the papers love nothing more than to manufacture a outrage of the uncontroversial......

[Andyvon]

The Ukrainian team dropped from bronze medal place to fourth. They are very upset as the decision has probably robbed them of their sporting careers. The Ukrainian team would have continued to receive funding if they went home with the bronze medal but now they will get no funding for fourth place.

People can't consider the British team to have been 'robbed' as the Japanese team was only elevated to their correct and rightful position of 2nd place.

[THECORBYLOON]

The thing is the UK team were happy enough to get the Bronze, it was only when the Japanese final score was shown before the protest that they were telt they were in the Silver position. I'm sure that if the situations had been reversed and the UK team had protested, the papers would have not been mumping.

[scrummyyummy]

Corby: You are right, I'm sure the papers would phrase their headings differently if the error was the other way round. I am supporting Team GB because it's the country I live in but I believe in fairness too and Japan got the silver fair and square.