Mary Lou Retton (USA) - 1984 Olympics - Compulsory Floor

Mary Lou Retton's compulsory floor exercise from the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• mary
• lou
• retton
• usa
• gymnastics
• gymnast
• 1984
• olympic
• games
• vault
• vt
• compulsory
• team

[Trublutahoe]

My aren't we snooty judging her in today's standards? I am not a blind fan, but she kicked ass. So, are we going to see you compete in the next Summer Olympics? I would root for you. Judging from the sidelines is easy. Give me the same latitude you took, I would say if she were young again and competed, she would win Gold again. She not only has skill, but attitude to always win. She beat her competitors, can you?

[veevee305]

What an era. Even Mary Lou Retton, the undisputed power gymnast of the day, manages to put a bit of her own personality and even a touch of grace into a floor routine. None of today's power gymnast's can even come close, whatever country they hail from.

[pinolobu]

OMG it's been 27 years since I saw this - that song has been stuck in my head all these years.

[camjay8]

It is a fricken compulsory routine everyone could do them back then! It is NOT the best gymnastics of 1984

[sheinacolfer]

Are compulsory routines ones that were set the same for everyone? i never heard of them before now. .

[Stonymypony]

How did the gymnasts have time to learn the compulsory routines?

[thenines666]

@vontrappster

I do to miss the old way of gymnastics. It is not reall the same as it use to be. GGo back to the ythe old skoll way of doing it

[TotoisLostInOZ]

Why can't contemporary floor routines be like this? I kow that they have to have all the difficult twisting and stuff, but I really do miss the actual TUMBLING.

[dancinkarl]

this makes me really miss compulsories!

[vontrappster]

@Trublutahoe

She was fucking filthy.

[emmyjo720]

@Dar0922 The Olympic battle would have been between Mostepanova, Yurchenko and Kati Szarbo who would have have been in contention for a medal, due to the quality of her work. Yurchenko was the best vaulter in the world so Mary Lou would have struggled to get a 10 for hers, up against Yurchenko performing a vault that changed gymnasts for men and women.

[Dar0922]

@emmyjo720 You're right. I didn't list Yurchenko. She was also an amazing gymnast at that time. I'm still a huge Mostepanova fan. Her tumbling, dance and grace are timeless. Watching the gymnastics competition at Olomouc was far better than the farce that took place in Los Angeles. Olomouc is where the real good medals should have been handed out. I do feel sorry for Mary Lou Retton as she will always live under the the cloud of the Soviet boycott.