It’s time for the 55th edition of You Asked, The Gymternet Answered! We apologize if we haven’t gotten to your question yet, but we try to answer in the order in which they were received (unless they are super relevant and need to be answered in a timely manner). Something you want to know? Ask us anonymously by going through the contact form at the bottom of the page.

After watching the U.S. Classic, is Simone Biles virtually unbeatable? Apparently she has more upgrades and she’s already far ahead of everyone else. Even with falls she can still win.

This year, yes, I don’t think anyone can come close to knocking her off the top of the podium. There are definitely a couple of girls who look like they can get within a point of her, but the thing is that while they’re pushing upgrades, Simone still isn’t done upgrading. On GymCastic I likened this to a treadmill…they’re chasing after her but she’s still running forward as well. Of course there will come a time when Simone reaches a peak but I honestly don’ think she’s there yet…she just keeps adding and adding, and does all of her new and difficult skills very well, which shows that there’s potential for even greater things to come.

What’s the status of Peyton Ernst?

Peyton has retired from elite and will compete at the University of Florida for the 2015-2016 season!

Why didn’t Aly punch out of her first pass during team finals at the 2012 Olympic Games?

She was struggling with it during the touch warm-up, and actually landed it on her head in her final run before having to go on and compete. Since the U.S. had such a strong lead going into floor, she made the decision to take it out so as to not risk falling on it. Sometimes a tenth or two in connection value isn’t worth risking the fall, especially in a high-pressure setting like the Olympic Games.

When was the last time that a gymnast competing in the second seed group in the all-around at Worlds or the Olympic Games was able to break through and make it on the podium?

The last time this happened was 2009, when Koko Tsurumi of Japan qualified 7th into the all-around final and finished with a bronze medal around her neck. She managed to get in ahead over top six qualifiers Lauren Mitchell, Deng Linlin, Ana Porgras, and Ekaterina Kurbatova so it was a pretty major achievement. Tsurumi happened to have what was basically the competition of a lifetime pushing her just 0.025 ahead of Mitchell (who also had a fabulous day), whereas Deng, Porgras, and Kurbatova all faltered in finals.

Has anyone performed a double front pike as a bars dismount?

Yes! It’s not in the code of points yet but check out Russia’s Viktoria Kuzmina performing one into the pit. Ksenia Semenova also had a piked double front off bars, though she did hers as an arabian double front.

What do you think of UCLA’s “Legacy” floor routines? I wouldn’t want to call it lazy, because Miss Val has choreographed a billion floor routines. But as a gymnast, I feel like I’d feel weird trying to do someone else’s floor routine. Any thoughts?

Actually, people recycle floor routines all the time, particularly at the JO level! Sometimes it’s fun doing someone else’s routine, especially if it’s one you’ve looked up to/admired! Like when Sasha Tsikhanovich performed her mother Natalia Laschenova’s 1989 Worlds routine at her last senior meet at Bridgeport.

With Yao Jinnan’s injury being attended to early on the season, do you think she’ll get all her skills back and maybe even upgrade her routines in time for Rio 2016?

I think that’s the goal and why they chose to address it now rather than waiting for it to become a problem. She wasn’t really facing a season-ending injury…she just had problems with her shoulder and wanted to get it fixed sooner rather than later. In this way it’s very smart and I think she shouldn’t have much of a problem getting her skills back and possibly even upgrading. Plenty of gymnasts face season-ending injuries the year before the Olympics and manage to come back from that, so I think the fact that this was more of a precautionary fix than a legit season-ending injury and the fact that she took care of it in February, giving her a year and a half to rehab and get back to the gym, makes things look incredibly good for her.

At this point do you think Kyla Ross’ chances at making the Worlds team are in jeopardy?

I don’t think they’re in jeopardy because of Classics, no. Classics isn’t used as a determining meet for Worlds…it’s the first meet of the season and generally everyone makes mistakes and is trying to get back into competition shape. If you’re going to make mistakes, Classics is the meet to use. Martha Karolyi does look at a gymnast’s overall history but the majority of her selection is based on more immediate meets – nationals, and then perhaps most importantly, the Worlds selection camp. She expects gymnasts to be at 90% by nationals and then pretty much competing Worlds-worthy routines at camp, so Kyla certainly isn’t in jeopardy based on one missed routine at a meet that in the grand scheme of things doesn’t matter.

She isn’t a lock in the way she’s been in the past, that’s for sure, and it looks like the top five all-arounders from Classics will likely be included on the Worlds team, leaving a sixth spot open. With four hit routines, Kyla is still one of the top six all-arounders in the country, and if she can finish in the top 3 or 4 on bars and beam at nationals, she has a pretty solid chance. Remember when I said Karolyi takes the overall history into account? If a gymnast is getting a 15.5 on bars nationally but hasn’t had strong international results compared to Kyla getting maybe a 14.8 nationally but proving year after year that she is a rock in team final competition, that bodes well for her. She’s not in the same position she was in 2013 and 2014 where she was a clear bet, but she’s not in jeopardy either.

What do you think about Shang Chunsong’s chances for Rio?

I think she has very strong chances…this year should be a pretty good indication since she’s now pretty much the leader of the team with Yao Jinnan out. How she does in Glasgow this year could help determine her chances a bit better since she sometimes struggles under pressure. If she hits in Glasgow and especially if she is a medal contender, she could definitely be one of the front runners for next year’s team.

Regarding spotting bails, I always thought coaches spot because even though it’s a relatively easy skill, it’s also risky because if a hand misses, they could face-plant on the bar. Kind of like the way coaches more often spot a Tkatchev that goes back towards the low bar, but not ones going the other way.

Well yeah, there are a lot of reasons. Safety is one of them, marking proper shapes is another. Bails aren’t as easy as they seem. It’s pretty difficult to find a small bar like that while doing a half twist and trying to finish in handstand!

Can you explain what a Church is?

A Church is a Tkatchev variation. It’s done in the piked position rather than straddled, and it’s done from a toe-on entry (as opposed to clear hip, stalder, or from a giant). Watch Brenna Dowell’s perfect 10 bar routine to see a good example of a Church…it’s the skill that comes in at 0:15.

What happened to Koko Tsurumi?

Koko took a bit of a break after the Olympic Games, but returned to competition domestically last fall and then went on to perform very well at various meets in 2015. Unfortunately she ruptured her Achilles at the NHK Cup this May while warming up her tumbling on floor. Very unfortunate for the Japanese team, as she was looking very strong, especially on bars and beam. It’s hard to say whether or not she’ll be able to come back from that strongly enough to challenge for 2016.

Why do gymnasts from countries like Hungary never upgrade?

It’s possible gymnasts who don’t upgrade have just reached their peak and are continuing to compete skills they already have because they’re consistent with them. I’ve definitely seen Hungarian gymnasts upgrade (especially the younger ones or newer seniors), but Hungary’s most known gymnast, Dorina Boczogo, is an older gymnast and like many other older gymnasts might not have the ability to compete higher levels of difficulty than they’re currently doing. But they want to remain on the international circuit and are typically their nations’ most valued members – like Boczogo, Marta Pihan-Kulesza of Poland, Oksana Chusovitina of Uzbekistan – so even if upgrades aren’t in the cards any longer, they still do a great job showing how consistent they are with what they have.

Have a question? Ask below! Remember that the form directly below this line is for questions; to comment, keep scrolling to the bottom of the page.

Article by Sarah Chrane and Lauren Hopkins