Reigning Olympic all-around gold medalist and uneven bars bronze medalist Sunitha Lee could also be making an attempt out a brand new ability on the 2024 Paris Video games.
A brand new aspect in her uneven bars routine is the discharge, by which the gymnast performs a entrance flip and an entire twist within the structure place. Lee hopes to change into the primary lady to carry out the feat at a world occasion.
If she will be able to do it on the Olympics, the ability, generally referred to as the “Full Twist Jaeger,” can be named “The Lee,” the primary within the sport’s factors guidelines to be named after her. Talent. A handful of expertise are named annually, however solely a handful of gymnasts obtain the dignity of bearing the identical identify.
“Li” can be one of the vital troublesome occasions within the girls’s uneven bars. Let’s take a more in-depth have a look at how she performs this transfer.
Every ability within the uneven bars undertaking has a letter worth indicating problem, beginning with A and going all the way in which to G, though it is doable that Lee’s new ability can be an H.
Jaegers are named after Bernd Jäger and check with a sequence of strikes that includes performing a 360-degree swing whereas maintaining your physique straight on the excessive bar, then releasing a entrance flip earlier than catching the bar once more. They are often mounted astride (D), mounted on a spear (D), or mendacity flat (F).
The Jaeger structure is named Cappuccitti (named after Stephanie Cappuccitti) and is never tried in competitors as a result of problem of grabbing the bar. Lee’s transfer additional will increase the issue by including an entire twist.
Word: Cappucciti is performed by Luo Rui. The absolutely twisted Jaeger is carried out by Sunisa Lee.
Picture courtesy of Worldwide Gymnastics Federation (Rui); New York Occasions (Lee)
What makes Lee’s transfer significantly notable is that she did not create a variation of a unique launch approach referred to as Tkatchev, which is the route most uneven bars innovators have adopted in recent times.
Within the unique model, named after Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Tkatchev, the gymnast swings round a excessive bar with an upright physique, releases the bar close to the highest of the swing, flies again over the bar with legs crossed, after which Rotate your higher physique ahead to seize the bar once more.
Word: Carried out by Gabby Douglas.
USA Gymnastics
Swinging will be carried out in 5 positions, flying will be carried out in three positions, and half-twists will be carried out within the air. This implies there are at the very least 30 permutations of the identical ability.
Prior to now 4 years alone, six new Tkachev variants have been named.
Whereas there have been nonetheless some alternatives up for grabs, Lee selected a unique route. It has been 18 years since somebody innovated on a Jaeger base. The final was Chinese language gymnast Li Ya, who launched the semi-twisting Jaeger in 2006.
In January, Lee posted a video on Instagram exhibiting her practising the brand new ability throughout coaching. It is a signal that she’s returning to type after going through severe well being points for a lot of the final yr.
Lee was identified with an incurable kidney illness that left her face, palms and legs severely swollen and unable to compete.
After returning to elite competitors, she tried out the brand new ability on the Winter Cup in February, however missed the aspect throughout a bar routine and fell.
Because of the problem and danger of this method, it’s not but sure whether or not Li will try this method with a medal. However the Paris Olympics will present a possibility to have the game named after her and go away an indelible mark on the game.
