2018 US Women's Worlds Team

[flippingtogether]

So Jade Carey and Trinity Thomas declined invites to the selection camp, and are, I presume, not going to compete this year at Worlds at all.

Everything still seems murky to me on how one can get to the next Olympic Games, but I do know that the reasoning of these 2 ladies has to do with their particular strategies to increase their chances to end up at the 2020 Olympics. Anyone able to shed more light on this? And was this a good choice of these 2 athletes and their coaches?

 

[amiandjim]

I don’t know about Trinity. From what I have read, Jade and her father are going to attempt to qualify via the individual apparatus World Cup circuit. If she earns this spot, it is hers and cannot be given to another athlete by the US, even if Jade is injured. This is different than earning a spot at the all around world cups, which would then belong to the US and could be given to any athlete. It is unclear whether Tom Forster/USAG understand this difference, but it in there article I read, he supports Jade’s wishes.

I think the plan is good for Jade, but I’m unsure if it’s the best plan for USAG this far out for
Tokyo.

 

[Flipfloppy]

For Trinity, I suspect her reasoning for declining the invitation is that she is a freshman at Florida and has very little chance of making the team for Worlds, especially since she is limited to 20 hours of training per week as an NCAA gymnast. It would be difficult to miss a week of classes, especially after missing a week for Pam Am Games, and would have required her to stay in peak "in season" condition for an additional month when she starts NCAA season, with a rigor of a competition every week, in January, which could predispose her to injury - and all of it when she has almost no chance to make the World team. It makes more sense to take a physical break and stay on campus in classes.

 

[CLgym]

I found this article entertaining and helpful (since I fall squarely in the camp of people confused by the new Olympic qualification rules...)

https://balancebeamsituation.com/2018/10/02/the-jade-carey-problem/

 

[flippingtogether]

Thank you. I went to Spencer's site this AM after I heard the news, checked his Twitter and there wasn't anything yet.....but a little patience and time yields the commentary I was looking for! Thanks @CLgym! (my fave gymnastics site after this one!)

I found this article entertaining and helpful (since I fall squarely in the camp of people confused by the new Olympic qualification rules...)

https://balancebeamsituation.com/2018/10/02/the-jade-carey-problem/