Olessia Dudnik (URS) - Worlds 1989 - Balance Beam Final

[@211jump]

What an icon. She really isn't talked enough or given enough credit now of days. She truly innovated complex beam routines while keeping that grace and elegance. I really wish that she hadn't got injured and retired. I would have given this a gold medal regardless. This was miles ahead of anything Silvas did. After her career ended she helped coached for a while I heard. Coaching Telsenko, and Zelepukina two great Ukrainian balance beam workers. Dudnik supposedly taught Zelepukina how to do the Aerial - LOSO - LOSO, and RO - Back Full.

[@Boban1611]

Did you see the Interview with her? She is still glowing from the inside. She seems to be a beautiful person and was a fabulous gymnast. I bet she would have won Olympic Gold Medals if only she had tried.

[@211jump]

@@Boban1611 Yes! I have seen the interview! Seems like a great person, and a great gymnast :)

[@yuiop6611]

@@211jump. She definitely deserves more credit. She was the best gymnast in ‘89 imo. Lashenova is a very close second.

[@objetivista686]

Silivas mastered the best routine of her time but Dudnik mastered the best routine of today gymnastics. I learn to appreciate Silivas perfection on beam throught time (while i think she was very overscored on floor and bars most of the time) but we are talking about a rare phenomenon like Dudnik.

[@mmoran3]

Lord this routine has probably been the one that has held up the most in the C.o.p for 30 years was able to medal 🏅

[@yuiop6611]

She has the gold in my book. I love Silivas but their routines aren’t even comparable. Dudnik (and Bo but she had a bigger break on her dismount) is in a league of her own.

[@artqhris]

olessia could not win because she had 1 error in her landing when disassembling the beam, so no, she was not better than Silivas

[@wolfiesownx4893]

@@artqhris interesting. And here am I thinking that one step forward does not erase the insane difficulty and perfection of the whole rest of this routine, jam packed with innovation. It was wat ahead of - my Then favorite- Silivas. I am sure Daniela will agree today.

[@jennyz9429]

It did in the 10.0 system unfortunately. ​@wolfiesownx4893

[@intldawn]

That was a huge step forward and a stumble to stop herself from falling. She got that triple twist all wrong and underrotated, which has to be an execution deduction besides that step. The judges would have given her gold even with a moderately better landing. She scored a 10 in team finals even though she also didn’t have a perfect landing on her dismount because of the extreme difficulty throughout. It was an astounding routine, but a poor dismount can’t be ignored. A 9.937 was extremely generous given that she nearly put her hands down on that landing. That score does reflect how much the judges respected the rest of the routine because she really shouldn’t have gotten more than a 9.9 with that mistake. The judges tried to help her.

[@oscarpedroso9958]

This is what I call a balance beam genius! The difficulty, the grace, and the quiet, reserved badassery!

[@healthandwealthdiva]

And the pink leo 30 years before its time! 🩷

[@Boban1611]

Hear hear!

[@RalfMtr]

My overall favorite gymnast... and Shushunova of course!

[@Boban1611]

.... Shoushounova of course! 😎 Ich vermisse Elena... ihr Tod hat mich sehr erschüttert, als ich davon gelesen habe. Die 80er Jahre haben so tolle Kunstturnerinnen ans Licht gebracht und Elena Shoushounova war ganz vorne mit dabei.

[@dennandrian9854]

Shushunova my favorit and dudnik..yeahh soviet face beautiful

[@kreul8736]

Unbelievable routine. Thank you

[@Boban1611]

She was ahead of her time... an outstanding gymnast of the USSR. There is an interview with her on youtube, where she speaks about her past, her injuries and why she didn't go for the Olympics. It is quite nice to see her.... kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z3fHo4Sro9ulprM

[@kreul8736]

@@Boban1611 i'll see. thank you very much

[@pxuusize4597]

She has a beautiful face.

[@Boban1611]

Yes indeed. A bit sad though...

[@fandelmanga1443]

The most beautiful gymnast i have ever seen!

[@MrMartinportnoy]

@@fandelmanga1443 3:40 reminds me a lot of Mukhina - the sad expression... (to me the epitome of beauty was Omelianchik in '87 / '88)

[@fandelmanga1443]

@@MrMartinportnoy Sorry for arriving late. That sad expression highlights Olessia's beauty even more, she was very beautiful. As for Omelianchik, she was also very beautiful, especially her eternal smile that gave her a magical aura.

[@luiz4430]

She looks like teenage Dana Plato

[@sakurasoh]

She is amazing

[@Boban1611]

I have to agree. Her performance and difficulty was almost out of this world.

[@saychunjo2153]

She got great look and great routine, too shame the landing at the end failed her.

[@benrobinson77]

I'm intrigued by her aerial+LOSO series because I notice she leads her roundoffs and cartwheels with her left leg, but her LOSOs lead with her right leg when she lands. When I was a gymnast I led with my left leg and everything I stepped out of had to be with my left leg. So if I did an aerial I would be stuck because I would be landing on my right leg to lead into the next element, no way could I do anything after it. Maybe I was a messed up gymnast, or she has a unique talent to switch her landings like that.

[@jennyz9429]

It's so interesting to watch a bunch of aerial LOSO LOSO series. A number if gymnasts do switch legs!

[@thebodyillusionadileshem2984]

I agree it is unusual that she is able to switch like that, also Vandez with right leg..

[@healthandwealthdiva]

Nah, my takeoff & landings are the same as hers 🩷

[@thebodyillusionadileshem2984]

Omg so many hard skills in one routine, executed perfectly❤. I just wondered why her leaps weren't even close to 180...probably wasn't a requirement

[@Boban1611]

She did the same thing at the Europeans 1989 kzbin.info/www/bejne/rXWpcmiOZc50p8U I have no idea why.... she was capable for the 180 degrees split, I am pretty sure. But still one of the best... maybe even the best Balance Beam routine of all times. ❤

[@giuliopisani6522]

Olessia per me la migliore di sempre sulla trave!!!

[@Boban1611]

Yes! But I think she was great on all events... maybe not so much on Uneven Bars. But Horse Vault and also the Floor Exercise were phenomenal. ❤

[@giuliopisani6522]

sono d'accordo forse le parallele era un pò meno forte ma era una ginnasta completa peccato che ha avuto una carriera breve!!!

[@suailichirco4165]

Top!

[@Boban1611]

At the Europeans the same year, she performed almost a perfect routine and became the Co-European Champion (tied with Gabriela Potorac) It was so sad, that she made this bad mistake at her dismount. She had a shot for her second individual Gold Medal at that apparatus.

[@ameliabedelia7018]

This was 1989 and scoring was entirely different Bank then. She had 3-4 leaps that were subpar and a huge step on the landing (low and short) with her almost touching the mat. Back then they should have given her a 9.8 to 9.85. The judges were generous.

[@genlyai5055]

Completely wrong. a) leaps were quite different in 1989; full splits virtually never happened (your ignorance is appalling!) and there are in fact different sorts of leaps, not all of which would get to 180 in any correct execution. b) 'imperfect 10s' were rampant in the decade, including several for Mary Lewd Wretched at the Olympics c) How do you actually manage to cross the street alone?

[@ameliabedelia7018]

@@genlyai5055 you’re a ratchet piece of work. The only splits you can do are with your abusive baby daddies.

[@Boban1611]

Oh dear... what can I say.... Yes - the score was definitely too high and the WTC tried to get control of those inflation of perfect scores, but somehow they didn't do a good job on that routine. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE Olessia Dudnik and her Balance Beam routine, but if I see such a terrible mistake at a dismount and still see a 10 flashing, then I know something went 'wrong'. I think the judges knew, what she was capable of and they wanted to give her the chance to enter the Final Competition to win (probably) the Gold Medal. You can say what you like, but there were always rumors about these kind of politics. There were openly discussed by journalists before, but could never be proven to that point. According to her leaps: I always felt as if she wanted to 'rush' through this leap series and show the judges it could be done quickly and she would still stay on top of the Beam. I remember for example Oksana Omelianchik's Beam routine in 1985, when she won the European Championships at that event and she did a beautiful series of leaps from 0:30 onward and that happened 4 years earlier.... You can see her routine here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZK4p6yhnquDl8U And my final words are: be nice to each other. We are all united as fans here.... I am also acting from time to time a bit naughty, but I also try to be a polite and modest person in life. 💚💚💚

[@no_2792]

​​​@@genlyai5055Her leaps were still atrocious even though it wasn't required

[@genlyai5055]

@@no_2792 Wrong. And since 180 degree splits are the ONLY thing modern gymnasts do 'better' than the greats of the past, you have absolutely no point. You're the kind of cretin who counts fouettes at the ballet. FOAD. Blocked.

[@EdwinVargas-vg6vs]

Tiempos pasados donde la estética y juventud eran la norma. Hoy ponen una chimpancé con tutu. A dar vueltas y le dicen gimnasia femenina

[@Boban1611]

The sport changed drastically - but it was intended by the FIG I guess.... they started changing the rules.... the nations took advantage of it.