After an error-ridden first day of competition at the women’s Visa Championships, many gymnasts pulled it together for day two. Watching the afternoon and evening sessions, I was heartened to see some beautiful performances, but saddened by the fate of Rebecca Bross, who suffered a dislocated kneecap after landing short on a Yurchenko double-full. Below is a look at Saturday’s ups and downs.

Junior Day Two Highlights

Katelyn Ohashi seized the all-around title with four stunning routines. Ohashi has it all: excellent execution, polished presentation, and difficult skills. After landing a double-twisting Yurchenko, she swung an immaculate endo-Jaeger sequence on bars. Her floor was elegant, and she put together an extraordinary beam routine: back handspring, back handspring, stuck layout-full; Onodi, front aerial; and piked full-in dismount. Even with a fall on her sheep jump, she scored a 14.95.

Although second-place Kyla Ross could not match Ohashi in terms of difficulty, I enjoyed watching her pristine performances. She vaulted an Amanar, stuck her double layout off bars, and floated through a front aerial, back handspring, layout on beam. Ending on floor, Ross showed a double Arabian-stag leap and lovely artistic touches: oversplit leaps, a full turn to side split.

In third was Sarah Finnegan, who had an excellent meet to finish just ahead of Lexie Priessman. Finnegan was particularly strong on floor, with crisp choreography and powerful tumbling, including a double Arabian. Priessman also performed well, throwing an impressive Amanar to huge applause.

These top finishers were in a class of their own, but my favorite routine of the afternoon came from a lesser-known competitor, Polina Shchennikova of the International Gymnastics Academy of the Rockies. Shchennikova was captivating on floor, where she performed a nice triple twist and displayed impeccable body line, gorgeous toe point, and extreme flexibility.

Senior Day Two Highlights

Jordyn Wieber dominated, hitting four phenomenal routines to run away with the all-around title. Starting her night on floor, she opened with a high double-double and came back with a 1½ step-out through to a triple full. She completed a solid Amanar, and then nailed her bar routine: consecutive Weiler kips, Maloney, Tkatchev, and double-double dismount. Wieber finished on beam, sticking her standing-full, back handspring series and landing her 2½ twist dismount knowing that she had won her first senior national title.

Finishing second was McKayla Maroney, who came back from a rough first day to hit four-for-four. I was so excited to see this talented gymnast put everything together. She showed style and impressive difficulty, hitting a world-class Amanar on vault and a 3½ twist on floor. Following Maroney in third was Alexandra Raisman. After surviving a shaky beam routine, she did her best work on floor, including a crowd-pleasing first pass of 1½ step-out through to a double Arabian-punch front.

Other meet highlights came from veterans Chellsie Memmel, Shawn Johnson, and Alicia Sacramone. Memmel decided to stop her bar routine after she tweaked her shoulder, but nailed her other events. She added a double layout on floor, and looked slightly off on a few beam elements, yet refused to wobble. Sacramone’s floor was exceptional, showcasing her tremendous power, while Johnson’s hit beam set thrilled spectators. I was also impressed by the tenacious consistency of fourth-place Mackenzie Caquatto and the crisp performances of fifth-place Sabrina Vega, whose floor routine featured beautiful music and dramatic dance that suited it perfectly.

Dissecting the Difficulties

Overall, the seniors performed much better on Saturday than they had on Thursday, but there were still some mistakes. Two of those errors were committed by Rebecca Bross, who came up short on her beam dismount and then did the same on her double-twisting Yurchenko, dislocating her knee on the second fall. Looking at the many mishaps over two days of competition, one could easily point to nerves or shortcomings in preparation. Although those factors might have played a role, I think it’s important to consider that every athlete in the meet attempted some very complex gymnastics. Bross's routines are particularly difficult, and she performed them while still recovering from ankle surgery.

The open-ended scoring system and current Code of Points demand that elite gymnasts fill their exercises with big tricks and intricate combinations. Amanars are becoming more and more common. On bars, a given gymnast might perform a Tkatchev, Pak salto, Shaposhnikova-half, and double-double dismount, all in the same routine. Beam is about squeezing in as many combinations as possible, while gymnasts like McKayla Maroney are ending their floor routines with a double Arabian.

Some gymnasts triumphed over the Code in Saint Paul, and my hat goes off to them. But I also think we need to put the mistakes in perspective—and give all these athletes some serious credit.