Imperfect 10
Gymnasts face new scoring system

Turns out, the perfect 10 wasn’t so perfect.
At least not in the minds of international gymnastics officials.
Four years after a series of scoring errors marred the competition at the Athens Olympics, fans who tune into gymnastics once every four years are in for a big shock Saturday in Beijing. The perfect 10 is passe. Fifteens, 16s – maybe even a, gasp! 17 – are all the rage.
“I hate the new scoring,” said Mary Lou Retton, whose Olympic gold medal came courtesy of a 10 on vault. “The perfect 10, you don’t have to say anything to describe it. The perfect 10, you were perfect.”
Even more than the 6.0 in figure skating, the 10 was gymnastics’ brand. Think of Nadia Comaneci, and you immediately think of that mesmerizing string of seven 10s in Montreal. Somehow, seven 15s doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.
Regardless of whether you knew a pommel horse from a pony, it wasn’t hard to figure out if a routine was good or bad. Start at 10 and count backward. The closer to 10, the better the routine. The further away, the less chance somebody’s getting a medal.
“I thought they were crazy,” Bela Karolyi said of the new scoring system. “Why? Why is it needed? It attracted so much attention. The perfect 10 was something that was cherished.
“I thought it was crazy to take it out, a humongous waste. I still feel that kind of in this way, maybe selfishly.”
But the 10 returned to its pre-Comaneci mythical status after the 1992 Olympics, with none awarded afterward in international competition. That meant judges had to get creative when it came to separating the world’s best gymnasts, with only so many tenths and hundredths of points to spread around.
That flaw in the perfect 10 was glaringly apparent in Athens, when scoring errors left fans and athletes alike unhappy.
The men’s high bar, vault and all-around all had issues, and the International Gymnastics Federation finally decided it had had enough.
Norway blanks U.S. women
Norway started rolling from the opening whistle, getting two goals in the first 4 minutes to beat the U.S. women’s soccer team 2-0 at the Beijing Olympics in Qinhuangdao, China.
Laursen Kaurin outjumped and outmuscled U.S. defender Lori Chalupny to head the ball over charging goalkeeper Hope Solo and into an open net in the second minute.
Two minutes later, Melissa Wiik latched onto a deep pass on the right side after the U.S lost the ball in midfield. The Norwegian then outraced U.S. captain Christie Rampone and curled a right-footed shot past Solo and just inside the far post.
Cyclists apologize for masks
A group of American cyclists has apologized to Beijing Olympic organizers after arriving in China’s capital wearing face masks.
Michael Friedman, Sarah Hammer, Bobby Lea and Jennie Reed released a statement one day after showing up in the protective gear.
“The wearing of protective masks upon our arrival into Beijing was strictly a precautionary measure we as athletes chose to take, and was in no way meant to serve as an environmental or political statement,” the athletes said. “We deeply regret the nature of our choices. Our decision was not intended to insult BOCOG or countless others who have put forth a tremendous amount of effort to improve the air quality in Beijing.”
The host city’s air remains a concern with the start of the games approaching.