MINNEAPOLIS — They white knuckled each other’s hands. They screamed, both in encouragement and at times horror. They contorted their bodies in their seats like it might telepathically help stick a dismount out on the competition floor. They sometimes covered their eyes.
The U.S. Gymnastics Trials may have glittered and glistened on NBC Sunday night, but across the lower bowl of the Target Center, where gymnast families sat, it was a cauldron of pressure and prayer.
The U.S. Olympic Women’s Gymnastics Team has long been the hardest team in the world to make. This year it was even harder, partly due to new Federation of International Gymnastics rules and partly because a group of veterans who not only wouldn't cede their spots, but have elevated their games.