Sovetsky Sport. September 22, 1966. So, the championship has begun. The compulsory program. Men. First shift - 8am. It would seem that those who manage to sleep longer and go out on the platform knowing the results of their opponents would be lucky. But there is a small gymnastics paradox, connected first of all with the specifics of judging, with its visuality. And this paradox plays into the hands of the leader of the first shift and one of the undisputed contenders for a good place in the sun - Yugoslav M. Cerar.
The teams in the first shift did not represent formidable gymnastic powers with established traditions. The overwhelming majority of participants lacked what athletes call 'schoolness' [the fundamentals]. And Cerar - elegant, fit, soft, and elastic on the apparatus - looked to the judges and spectators in pleasant contrast to everyone else.
His vault was not great - 9.3. However, this is the highest vault score in the shift. And vaulting is not his signature event. On the parallel bars he got 9.6 (it seemed to us that the judges were a little too kind). High bar was 9.75. Everything is on the rise, and now the spectators are wandering around the stands following the leader.
Floor exercise. This is where Cerar's 'school spirit' came into play. For example, his compatriot Kersnik, a red-haired, strong man, an excellent vaulter and a talented guy in general, had a knee that simply shook during balances, and handstands that were literally out of control. That is, elements that you can't get through with talent alone, but require refining. Cerar navigated the reefs carefuly and shifted slightly on a simple element - 9.45.
All eyes are on the Yugoslav, and yet one cannot help but notice the slender Finn O. Laiho, who is developing a calligraphic handwriting.
Cerar looked great on the pommel horse - he was really prepared! The score was 9.75, and the deductions were for a sluggish dismount and for touching the horse with his knee; however, it seemed to us that his trouser leg was to blame for this - for some reason his pants were too wide.
It is impossible not to mention that before the Yugoslav approached the horse, forty gymnasts one after another raised their hands in a sign for a second attempt. But he did not flinch.
And now the whole team is milling around the leader. They are adjusting straps, numbers, it seems they are even blowing away the fluff. The rings remain - the last apparatus. Cerar started smoothly, then hesitated, and finished the routine with only 9.4. But his total of 57.15 points is quite impressive. The team result of the Yugoslavs is not so great: 271.40. But he made them the leaders of the first shift.
It would be wrong to claim that the organizational rough spots finally ended with the start of the championship. They remained and continue to cause a lot of grief to both spectators and journalists. For example, the official program, which no one has changed yet and which currently serves as the only reference point for those following the progress of the competition, indicated that the Italian gymnasts would appear on the platform in the second shift. But the athletes line up near the apparatus, and there are no Italians. What's the matter? No one in the press center can give the relevant information. In general, the information is late. Apparently, that's why there are not many people in the large and cool hall of the press center.
In the meantime, the GDR team is in the spotlight in the second shift. This is a very even, self-confident team that has proven itself quite well in recent years. The GDR gymnasts are the most solid contenders for bronze, and they prove it with their actions.
The scores are surprisingly even. True, S. Fulle, the acknowledged leader of the team, does not live up to his title and twice (on parallel bars and pommel horse) received a score below 9 points. But this will not affect the mood of his teammates. M. Brehme assumes all the powers and leads the team forward with a confident hand. His example can only inspire.
Brehme is very good on the parallel bars (9.6) and remains at this level twice more (rings and horizontal bar). Floor exercise brings him 9.4, and he gets 9.45 on the pommel horse.
And here's the vault. He can catch up with Cerar and thus become the author of a small surprise.
For the first time, Brehme looks a little restless. Preparing for the run-up, he makes several energenic movements with his arms, as if throwing off an invisible weight. He waits for the 'starter's shot' to sprint towards the horse. But when the vault is over, Brehme, unable to stick, takes an extra step in search of support. It costs him a lot. His final score is 9.1 points. Cerar remains unreachable.
The score of the GDR gymnasts (278.8) is a benchmark for the main contenders for gold - the Japanese and USSR teams. And here they are, separated by different apparatuses, but closely watching each other.
We have parallel bars first. Kerdemelidi comes out first for 9.45. He was successful. Next is Karasev. He is inexperienced, and his mistake on the dismount is forgivable: it works out well, and he was happy and relaxed.
Shakhlin adds 9.65 to the team, and Titov gets one tenth less. Now it's Voronin's turn. It seems that he doesn't need the bars as a support at all -9.75. The same can be said about Diomidov. But he is even higher - 9.8. And the total is simply excellent: 48.2.
The Japanese start with the floor exercise. The tension makes itself felt. Especially in the balances, which usually serve as a kind of thermometer of nervous tension. Everyone has slight wobbles, but the impression was smoothed out by the final somersault and precise landing. Here are the results in the order in which the athletes competed: Mitsukuri 9.4, Nakayama 9.5, Matsuda 9.4, Kato 9.55, Tsurumi 9.55, Endo 9.65.
On the horizontal bar, Olympic champion Shakhlin was very confident until the dismount. But then he fell. He raised his hand. Looking ahead, we will say that in the second attempt his score was 9.6. Titov also 'voted' (and got 9.55 for his repeat). But the young leaders passed without flinching: Diomidov and Voronin got 9.75 each. Karasev and Kerdemelidi maintained the pace (9.55 and 9.6).
The Japanese were comparatively weak on the pommel horse. It is characteristic that Nakayama, Endo, and Kato made the same mistake in a row - they bent their legs. In general, Endo did not look strong. Scores: Matsuda 9.3, Mitsukuri 9.45, Nakayama 9.25, Endo 9.25, Tsurumi 9.5, Kato 9.5.
Finally, we can compare the results. Our guys are starting the floor exercises. The worst scores are for Shakhlin, who performed first, and for Diomidov, who performed last - 9.15. Unfortunately, our leader has a misfire. Voronin and Karasev are the best with 9.6, Titov with 9.55, and Kerdemelidi with 9.3. In the floor exercises, the Japanese are stronger.
There is no argument - the Japanese are well prepared, and there is no point in pointing out to them such obvious help as they received from the judging team on the rings. Suffice it to say that Mitsukuri, who did not hold the handstand at all, received 9.45, and Endo's score was absolutely absurd. The scoreboard dispassionately showed 9.6 and at the same time retained its natural color - it did not turn red [did not blush]. The best was Nakayama (9.7), Kato (9.65), Tsurumi (9.7), and Matsuda (9.45).
It was hard to come by points on the pommel horse. Even Titov got only 9.2. Diomidov led his horse calmly. Voronin got 9.55, and Diomidov got 9.6 points.
Meanwhile, the Japanese are vaulting. Both attempts by Nakayama are good. Kato makes a bold flight - 9.8. Matsuda has the same score. Here are the other results: Mitsukuri 9.55, Nakayama 9.6, Tsurumi 9.7, Endo 9.6.
The competitions continues.
The last two apparatus. On the parallel bars the Japanese look weaker than our guys. Nakayama gets 9.25, Endo 9.5, Kato 9.55, Mitsukuri 9.6, Tsurumi and Matsuda both 9.65.
Our guys have their penultimate apparatus, the rings. Again Voronin and Diomidov look extremely confident. Voronin 9.8, Diomidov 9.75, Karasev 9.45, Titov 9.4, Kerdemelidi 9.35, Shakhlin 9.3.
And here is the finish. The USSR team has vault, and the Japanese are on the horizontal bar. Our guys did not perform their vaults very confidently. Diomidov got a score of 9.6, Karasev and Voronin got 9.5, Shakhlin 9.45, Kerdemelidi 9.3, Titov 9.0.
What about the Japanese? Kato and Matsuda had breakdowns and scored 9.1, Endo had 9.75, Nakayama and Mitsukuri 9.7, and Tsurumi 9.65.
Thus, the Japanese team is ahead with 239.4. The USSR team has 238.5.
In the individual classification, Voronin is ahead with 57.95, Tsurumi is behind him with 57.75, and Diomidov is third with 57.6.
S. TOKAREV and A. CHAIKOVSKY