Simona Amanar
Simona Amanar, who recently turned 20 in Tianjin, is the new leader of the Romanian team. Not too many gymnastst keep competing into their 20s, but Simona has no intention to stop competing. Instead, she looks forward to the Sydney Olympics. This would be her second Olympic competition, after Atlanta, where she won the gold medal on vault.
How are things going? Is everything alright?
Why shouldn't it be alright? I still have a lot to prove as far as gymnastics is concerned.
A lot of people thought that after the mistakes you made in Tianjin (the fall on beam in the team competition, and on bars in the AA), your retirement is drawing near.
They were just being mean. If we all quit after our first mistake, Svetlana Khorkina would have retired a long time ago.
Are you happy with the silver medal you won on vault?
Yes, because Yelena Zamolodchikova, the first place finisher, had higher start values on both her vaults. She a had a 10.0 and 9.9 SV, so there was no way I could finish ahead of her.
Still, you're the reigning Olympic champion on this event.
Yeah, and maybe I will defend my title, who knows? I decided to compete in Sydney.
How do your parents feel about this, do they want you to compete in your second Olympics?
They tell me to do whatever I think is best. It's my decision to make.
What happened when you fell on bars on Thursday?
I thought I was over the bar, and I wanted to change my grip, and my hand just slipped. To make matters worse, I hit the bar while falling. As if the blisters I had on my hand weren't bad enough.
Do you realize that's when you lost an all-around medal?
Of course, but there's no point in blowing that out of proportion. I'll just keep going, especially since I am qualified for Saturday's floor final, which I think is my best chance (to win).
How did you like China?
It's very nice, but I didn't get to see much of it, because I only went out once. That's when I bought my jeans and the new jacket.
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