Don't Call it A Comeback

Since the London Olympics have come and gone, many of our favorite champions are making plans to score a coveted spot on the team in Rio.  there will be new age eligible juniors popping up over the next four years and veteran seniors hoping for their shot at Olympic Glory. Here, I'm looking at few noteworthy gymnasts  who just missed their chance at London this year.  I'm looking at the veteran seniors and the newly age eligible newbies who made an impression on gymnastics fans.

Veteran Seniors:

 Rebecca Bross

Rebecca, a teammate of Nastia Liukin's and a protege of Nastia's dad Valeri

, was the 2010 National Champion and  six time world medalist. She dislocated her knee cap on the vault at the 2011 Visa Championships. She was back in time for the 2012 season, but she could only do bars and beam. Rebecca, before the injury was as consistent and solid as anyone. When she came back for the Nationals, she wasn't really herself. She had issues with the beam throughout the whole cycle, while she performed well on bars, she fell on the last night of the Olympic Trials. She ultimately failed to make the team for London. Pre-injury Rebecca could have made the team and possible won the gold in London. Rebecca is currently touring with the Kelloggs Tour of Gymnastics champions, but she still hasn't indicated whether or not she'll return to competition. It's looking very likely that she will since she went down and competed in the Mexican Open. My verdict? I hope she does, she is a strong bar worker and the US needs more strong bar workers. In addition, she is strong on beam and she can deliver in the all-around, which means she can contribute to all four events in a pinch. What needs to happen is she needs to get some Musty like divaness in her and then she will be back in full swing.

Sabrina Vega

Sabrina Vega was a member of the 2011 World Championship team that brought home the gold medal. She's not the most well known member of that team, but she is in my opinion and underrated talent. She's a solid beam worker and she's fantastic on the floor. Word on the street is, it was an injury that kept her from performing her best during trials. Sabrina is currently touring with the Kelloggs Tour of Champions and has plans to return to training, her ultimate goal to make the team for Rio. To amp her training, Sabrina has made her way from the east coast to the mid-west to train at GAGE.

The Newbies:

Elizabeth Price

Elizabeth or "Ebee" as she is called, did make the London team as an alternate. If the FIG had allowed the Olympic team to be six or seven girls, she probably would have made the team. When the NBC trio, Tim, Elfi and Al weren't too busy talking about Nastia Liukin face-planting off the uneven bars, they loved Ebee. She's one of those gymnasts that definitely has her specialties, but she is consistent enough to contribute to any event and she is a strong all-around gymnast.

Sarah Finnegan

Sarah also made the London team as an alternate. In her words, this was a huge accomplishment. She was just happy to even be considered for London, let alone make the team as an alternate. The 15-year-old from Missouri, who is coached by veteran coach Al Fong, certainly has Rio in her sights. Hopefully, her status as an alternate for London boosts her confidence in the coming season. She's made quite the impression on gymnastics fans.

 I just received this twitter message from fellow gymnastics obsessee, Alexis (I removed the last name for privacy reasons):

Alexis  ‏@SixelaNesor

@mcsmaria28 Sarah is TOO adorable. would love to see her in Rio. her beam routine is amazing.

Kennedy Baker

Kennedy trains with former world champion, Kim Zmeskal (Burdette) and her husband Chris. At the Secret Classic in May, she scored the bronze medal. Her showing at the Visa's earned her a ticket to the Olympic Trials where she placed 8th in the all-around behind McKayla Maroney. Kennedy wasn't one of the gymnasts regularly featured by the NBC gymnastics trio. She is a solid gymnast with consistent performances. However, she could definitely benefit from international experience and she'd be a great asset to any World Championship team. Since she just became age eligible as of earlier this year, I think Kennedy could wind up being a power player on the American gymnastics scene. Doesn't hurt to have a former World Champion as your coach. Below is a clip from Visa's you can see Kennedy in action.

That's all for now, kids. Keep checking back for more gymnastics awesomeness to come!