Gymnastics gone wrong

Wow. Very strange things were happening in the world of men's gymnastics over in London. The American squad qualified #1 and might have thought they were a cinch to win a medal -- if not the gold, in the team competition. What they seemed to overlook was the Chinese male gymnasts have been clearly superior to the rest of the world in every competition over the last decade or so.

Sure enough, when it got down to the nitty-gritty, the Chinese performed almost flawlessly. In the meantime, the Americans were choking like a chihuahua on a chicken bone. They were stumbling, bumbling, falling off, falling down, and eventually fell out of competition for a medal. It didn't look like Team USA, but more like Team Spazz. I've seen freshly caught perch flopping around on the ice of a frozen lake perform more graceful routines.

On an unexpected high note, the host British team captured silver medals. Few expected them to fare nearly that well, but they turned in a grand performance and absolutely earned it. Ukraine would round out the podium with the bronzes.

But wait a minute. Japan, which had finished 4th, lodged a protest. They claimed one of their gymnasts had been scored wrong and demanded a review.

Now it's no big secret that Japan and China have been bitter rivals for centuries, not only in sports, but in everything else as well. It might fairly be said they hate each other, from the lowliest peasants to Emperors, Premiers, and Prime Ministers. Also, there's no love lost between Japan and the various entities of the former Soviet Union.

Surprisingly, officials huddled up and actually viewed replays of the Japanese gymnast's performance in question. Boos rained down from the audience in attendance, and likely from TV viewers around the world. Lo and behold, they not only changed it, but dramatically.

While the Chinese had an insurmountable lead for the gold, Japan suddenly leapfrogged from 4th to 2nd. The Brits saw their silver medals turn into bronze and Ukraine got bumped out entirely.

Yes, the British team was dignified about it, as one would expect of them, but after they've had time to reflect, it might just be that some resentment will creep in. Yet, at least they got medals, which was somewhat of an upset in the first place. On the other hand, the Ukrainians appeared stunned but, to their credit, showed the discipline to stoically march off the floor. However, yours truly has a hunch that it won't be long before they begin to stew over the whole turn of events, as well. First they have medals, and then they're stripped of them, all because of some judgment call that happened much earlier which the Japanese contingent managed to have reversed in their favor? Something is very wrong with this picture.

Then again, as we all know, the Japanese have always been known to be open, honest, fair, honorable, and most certainly trustworthy in all manners of things.

Here's what they don't seem to understand---

While they may have maneuvered themselves into silver medals, once again, they lost a lot of face in the process. The whole world was watching and stands in disapproval. In the end, they lose.