2000 Olympic Trials (Part 2)


Written September 2000 © Stephanie Schneider

Location: FleetCenter (Boston, MA)
Date: August 17-20, 2000

Day 3 (Men's Finals): I awoke this morning with the feeling like, this is it, after tonight, the 2000 Men's Olympic Team will be known. The excitement was different; it was even more than I had felt the previous two days. I started the day off by reading all about the trials in the local paper just as I had done the past two days. Man, I wish my local paper was half as good as this one. There were like 6+ different detailed articles on the trials every day, plus standings, tidbits, and more. It was interesting to see what the standings actually were since we were unable to know in the FleetCenter. The previous day I had learned that Sean Townsend has been sick with strep throat, so it was pretty amazing that he turnedd in decent performances. I would be rooting for him tonight. I also learned that Kendall Back, who withdrew from the competition after her first event the previous night, and withdrawn due to a nagging injury. I also now knew the actual standings in the women's competition: Elise was leading followed by Amy Chow, Kristen Maloney, Morgan White (big surprise to me), Jamie Dantzscher, Dominique Dawes, Shannon Miller, Tasha Schwikert, and Vanessa Atler, way back in ninth place. The remaining athletes didn't appear to have too much of a chance. The standings only gave me a clearer picture as to how the scores had all stacked up; I knew that they wouldn't matter in the long run.

Today was all about the men though. The men's finals started early (4:00), so we didn't have as much time to explore the town. However, we did come to a hotel (The Hilton), and after talking to a couple people, we gathered that that's where the gymnasts were staying. We didn't know for sure, but I knew we would have to check it out later on. Besides, everyone was gone for the competition.

There was definitely more buzz going on around the FleetCenter due it being the finals, so I made sure to get a spot in line early. By this time, I almost due what to expect walking in. It had become a routine thing, which was incredibly awesome. Just to wake up and know that you're going to see a huge gymnastics meet live. As I had done previously, I roamed the arena taking pictures, watching warm-ups, and looking for people in the audience or on the floor. I saw Dominique Moceanu signing autographs for some fans, but it was next to impossible to get one. She really was one of the most popular people there. She looks so different when she's not competing. She is really pretty. It was neat seeing her talking and laughing with Chris Young because we don't often get to see these gymnasts just being themselves away from their competitions. I also spotted Kristen Maloney and Kendall Back down on the floor, and Kristen smiled for a picture. :) I love seeing gymnasts in regular clothes with their hair down and everything. A little later, I spotted Mihai Bagiu sitting in the stands, and I asked him to sign my program. It didn't seem like a lot of people recognized him, so I'm glad I saw him to let him know that there are people who remember him from the 96 Games.

An interesting thing I observed was John Roethlisberger going through his pommell horse routine at the end of warm-ups. He stood right next to the apparatus and moved his shoulders and hands exactly as if he was on the apparatus only he wasn't. It was interesting because it shows that gymnastics is almost more mental than physical, especially in huge meets like this one. I was rooting for John; he deserved to make the team, but I was worried because he had failed to be consistent previously.

As I was walking back to my seat, I saw Trent Dimas getting out of his seat. Apparently, I wasn't the only one, so me and a few other people followed him outside and asked him if he'd sign our programs. He was very nice and even signed mine "To Stephanie." While he was signing for us, a woman that was with him made a comment like I can't believe people still remember you. And I immediatelt said, "We remember." I just loved the fact that we could let him know that he hasn't been forgotten even though it's been eight years since his Olympic gold. I also spotted Jason Gatson again signing autographs. I think it's so cool that he came out and did that even after his disappointing Nationals.

We got treated to a trampoline exhibition by Ryan Weston and another national team member before the meet. It was amazing.

Ok, finally, the intro on the screen came on which meant, the meet was starting! That "Right here, right now" song was becoming the theme of the meet. Blaine Wilson was obviously the crowd favorite. My dad made a comment like "He must be like the Tiger Woods of gymnastics." Yeah, at least in the U.S. anyway. He looked so good throughout the entire meet, especially on rings. The entire place was just glued to his performances. I don't think I saw him make one mistake. He should be awesome in Sydney, maybe even challenge for a medal.

Overall, the gymnastics looked a lot better than in the prelims. Everyone was hitting under pressure, and I couldn't help but think regardless of who makes this team, we're going to have a great team in Sydney. A highlight for me was Jamie Natalie. He had some of the most amazing routines and he hit them all but perfectly. I hadn't known too much about him coming in except for the fact that he was coming out of college and had done quite well collegiately. He really impressed me though.

Yoichi and Yewki Tomita, as well as Fred and John Roethlisberger were very entertaining to watch. The excitement after they went was just unbelievable. The excitement all night long was unbelievable. You could just feel it in the air: this is the Olympic Trials.

Raj Bhavsar was another favorite of mine. I knew he wouldn't make the team, but I knew it was an accomplishment just for him to be at trials, and he has such a great personality, not to mention some great tricks. I enjoyed watching him. I was also cheering for Sean, Paul, Morgan, and Steve of course. The Hamm twins impressed me a lot on floor, and Sean impressed me with his style on every event. Steve is just a great all-around gymnast, and I knew how he had just missed in 96. But I was more interested in what was going on with John, Jamie, and Yewki because I knew they were on the bubble. After John was done with his last event (floor), he walked around the floor with his arms up as a celebration from hitting his routine and making it through the night successfully. It was one of the greatest moments of the trials.

After the meet, we were again treated to Jessica Howard and also an acrobatic pairs exhibition. It was neat; though it's not really mainstream in this country, it really is fun to watch.

An announcement was made that the selection committee would now decide the final team, so we had a little time to wait and just wonder what the final verdict would be. I was extremely hyper by this point so I started walking around the arena and I noticed Amanda Borden and John Macready sitting together down on the floor. Of course I took a picture. I think they're such a cute couple.

Anyway, as I was waiting, I tried to make a prediction as to who I thought would be on the team. I knew Blaine, Paul, Sean, and Steve would almost definitely make it. I knew the top 4 men automatically qualified, and this is who I figured the top 4 to be. After that, I thought it was between John Roethlisberger, Morgan Hamm, and the two guys who had impressed me in the prelims, Justin Toman and Jamie Natalie. I also considered Yewki Tomita to be an outside shot. But I had my team picked, which included John and Morgan.

When the lights finally dimmed, the excitement was almost too much. Each athlete was introduced, the last being Trent Wells, who had injured himself on floor and had been forced to withdraw. He came out on crutches and received some of the loudest applause. Next, Bob Colorassi stepped forward, made a few remarks, and introduced the Olympic team. This was something that you simply had to be there to understand just how dramatic and exciting it was.

The alternate: Jamie Natalie. The alternate has to be the most heartbreaking position. He had the meet of his life and had come so close but not quite. Next, the team in alphabetical order. Morgan Hamm. Wow, the twins are going together; that is so awesome. I was so happy for him. Paul Hamm. It was expected but still exciting. Steven McCain. All of his disappointment from four years ago has finally been erased. John Roethlisberger. Wow. What a great moment. Before stepping forward, he just put his face in his hands, unable to control the emotion. This third Olympic team has to mean so much more than the other two after overcoming so much. I'm so glad he made it. And last, but certainly not least, Blaine Wilson.

The whole team was presented to each side of the audience while the song, "Proud To Be An American" played. A mini-ceremony was held as the team went to each side of the floor and then walked around the entire arena. For the whole awards portion of the meet, I was down on the side, much closer than my actual seat was, so I had a great view of everything. I think security realized there was no way they were keeping everybody in their seats for this. It truly was an amazing night, something you simply had to be there to understand. After the gys left the floor, I went down to the front, and eventually, some of the guys that hadn't made the team made their way out on the floor. Jim Foody came over to talk to a bunch of us fans and was going to sign autographs for us before security made him leave. See, this is what makes me mad! He was extremely nice and promised us he'd come back, but I didn't see him return. I spotted several other gymnasts down on the floor, and I got Jaycie Phelps, Brett McClure, Yewki Tomita, and Chris Young all to smile for a picture. Chris, especially, was really nice, staying to sign autographs after the meet. Outside, Yewki and Yoichi were signing, and a security guy came up to them and was like, "Don't you have to go somewhere?" As in hinting that they wanted them to leave. Ah, why do they have to do that?

As excited as I was and as much as I didn't want to leave, it was time. It was still fairly early since the meet had started three hours earlier than the other nights, so we had no intentions of calling it a night. We eventually made it to the Hilton hotel. I had been dreaming of coming to Boston and running into all of the gymnasts at their hotel because I had heard about so many people's experiences. But to actually have it happen seemed too unreal. Well, we walked into the hotel, and there weren't a lot of people there, so I figured if we did run into anybody, it wouldn't be hard to try to talk to them. After a few minutes, I saw Kendall Back. I asked if I could get a picture with her, and she very nicely said yes. She also signed my program. I told her I was sorry about her injury, but she didn't seem too disappointed. I think she was just happy to be there and not concentrated on making the team. A moment later, I saw Jason Gatson and he posed for a picture with me. Though I had been hoping for something like this to happen, when it actually did, there are no words to describe how incredible it was. Jason Gatson is one of my favorite gymnasts ever, and I had stood next to him, with his arm around me. It still seems unreal. Anyway, a few moments later, we spotted Blain Wilson. THE Blaine Wilson, standing a few feet away from me. I was a little nervous walking over to him; what would I say? There were some other people asking him for autographs, so it wasn't just me. Several people asked for pictures, and he was so nice to everyone. He was about to leave, and I knew I couldn't get an autograph and picture, and I knew a picture would mean a million times more, so I managed to catch him before he left, and he posed for a picture with me. I congradulated him and told him he was awesome. I didn't really know what else to say. Just the fact that I was talking to him was just too unreal. It's weird though; when you see these people on TV, it's like their celebrities and everything, but when you see them in person, they're just regular people. Well, regular people that a lot of people recoginze, but they're still just regular people.

After it became obvious that we weren't going to see anybody else, we left the hotel and tried to find a place to eat. We decided on this neat little place that you go around to different stands and order different things to eat. It's kind of hard to explain but it was really different and neat. Anyway, as soon as we sat down, who did I see but Sean Townsend himself! A couple girls were congradulating him and asking for a hug. He signed a t-shirt for them. I was about to go over, but he went to sit down with a bunch of people, and I decided against it. I wasn't going to interrupt his dinner celebration for a stupid autograph. This was his night to celebrate. We saw him get up several times while we were eating but I never did get to say anything to him. He seemed like he was a having a great time; he was with a bunch of people, but I don't know who any of them were. It was just neat that he was in the same restraunt as me. :)

Well, this had without question been the greatest day of my life. I didn't even know what to think; I was so excited and didn't get to bed till very late that night, but I knew I had one more exciting day in front of me!

Day 4 (Women's Finals): I couldn't believe how fast the week had gone. For the past couple days, it was like just getting up, exploring Boston, attending the gymnastics meet, and doing whatever. And that was my whole world; I didn't even think how it would be when it was over. It was like I had gotten used to that; it was my daily life. I guess you could almost say I was spoiled. But it was my vacation, and isn't that what vacations are all about? Still, how could it be the last day already? I had every intention on making this the greatest day of all though. Tonight was the women's finals, the biggest night of all.

I slept in a little bit after my big night the previous night and then went downstairs to read the paper. I discovered that John Roethlisberger had actually been seventh and had been picked over Jamie Natalie, who had been fifth. Wow, I'm happy for John, but now knowing that, it must be all the harder for Jamie. That's the only downside to not selecting a team strictly be scores. It was interesting reading everyone's thougts on the issue and what it was like waiting for the team to be selected.

My dad had got me a piece of posterboard so I could make a sign for tonight's finals, so I worked on making a sign while I watched the men's finals on TV. Hehe, I was there, I already know what happens. :) It was interesting though. You know all the drama that goes on when you watch gymnastics on TV? Like they build certain things up (and ignore some things all together) and say, he needs this score, she needs that score. Well, it's really not like that when you're there in person. I mean, it is, but you see what you want to see, not what NBC wants you to see. I guess you could say it's a lot more real in person. But it as neat seeing a different perspective on things and also the little stories that they did. The one about Chris Young was good; he has such a great outlook and is so positive. Yeah, he finished last, but I enjoyed watching him. Wow, you miss SO much on TV. Never was that more evident than watching a telecast immediately following the live experience.

My sign was for Elise Ray, who I have been a fan of ever since I first saw her in 1997. She wasn't the most promising gymnast, but I was always amazed by her artistry. And hey, maybe, I'd get on TV if I had a sign. :)

Well, by that time, I was ready to get out in the town. My dad and I's relatives went with us for our last day in Boston and showed us around. We saw a whole new part of the town that we hadn't even seen yet. I just love big cities. :) This was the first time I had ever been in a REALLY big city, so I had an awesome experience even beyond the gymnastics. Anyway, after we had lunch, we went to the Convention Center, where there were a bunch of gymnastics displays. No, there were A LOT of gymnastics displays. They had all of the equipment on display (there had been demonstrations earlier) and also on sale, along with various gym accessories. We got there when everything was pretty much over though, so we didn't even have to pay to go in. I ended up buying a new pair of grips, which I needed badly, and ended up getting the IG Millennium calender for free with my purchase. :) I also admired the great beam covers on the beam (why can't our gym have at least a good beam cover?), and I got to look through the J.O. Compulsory Book which was on display along with the Code of Points. Since our gym apparently lost it, I read some interesting things.

After stopping back at the house, it was time to go back to the FleetCenter for one last time and one last awesome night of gymnastics.

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