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20 September 2000
SYDNEY, Australia - Inspired by the newborn son he has yet to see, Alexei Nemov put on a golden show in the men's all-around Wednesday, twirling and tumbling his way to the title that eluded him four years ago. He took the gold with 58.474 points.
``I now have a son. That was a major motivation,'' he said, smiling broadly at the thought of little Alexei, who was born after Nemov left for the Olympics.
``I did my best for Russia, my family and my loved ones,'' he said.
China's Yang Wei won the silver, finishing 0.113 points behind Nemov. Oleksandr Beresh of Ukraine took the bronze.
Five-time national champion Blaine Wilson finished sixth, continuing America's all-around drought. The United States hasn't won an all-around medal since Peter Vidmar's silver in 1984.
It's been a rough week for Wilson, who was so good at the U.S. Olympic trials he looked like he might be a contender for all-around gold.
But he faltered in the team competition, and made enough tiny mistakes Wednesday to keep him off the medals podium.
``I don't think I need to redeem myself at all,'' Wilson said. ``Walking in here, I've done more for the U.S. than any other gymnast out there. I don't have to explain myself to anybody. Not you, not my parents, not anybody.
``Everybody's human, they make mistakes. You can't win everything you step out on the floor to do.''
Paul Hamm, who performed like a grizzled veteran for most of the team competition, finally showed the jitters of a 17-year-old. He fell off the high bar, his first event, and made a series of other small mistakes to finish 14th.
Still, his finish was mighty impressive for a guy who's only a senior in high school.
``It gives me more confidence to go back home and compete against guys in the U.S. because now I know I've done this, I've been through it before,'' he said.
So has Nemov, who finished just 0.049 points behind Li Xiaoshuang of China in the 1996 all-around.
So stoic and focused during the competition, the gymnast dubbed ``Sexy Alexei'' in Atlanta for his playfulness turned to the bank of cameras after the gold medal was placed around his neck and hopped up and down. With a broad smile on his face, he held out his arms in triumph.
After the Russian national anthem was played, Nemov again turned to the cameras, blowing a kiss and striking a body-builder's pose as he laughed.
``I don't believe that this has happened,'' he said. ``I was expecting it, but I didn't believe it.''
If Nemov was surprised, he was the only one. Watch him for one routine and it's clear that he's simply better than everyone else on the floor.
His lowest score of the night was a 9.65 on the vault - better than some gymnasts' highest score.
While other gymnasts worry about how many flips and twists they can throw into their routines, Nemov remembers that the name of this sport is ``artistic gymnastics.'' His toes are always perfectly pointed, his legs extended so they look about five feet long and his body so straight you could use it as a ruler.
He's one of the few gymnasts who can draw the kind of gasps from the crowd usually reserved for only the ugliest of crashes.
He looks like a trapeze artist on the high bar, drawing oohs and aahs with his soaring flips. On one, he throws himself high above the bar and does a somersault, slapping his thighs in a move that looks more suited for Cirque du Soleil than the Olympics.
On the floor, his favorite exercise, he moves with power and purpose and makes it look effortless at the same time. When he does his flares - swinging his body around on his hands while he scissor-kicks his legs - he throws in a little turn on his shoulders that looks like something out an early '80s Michael Jackson video.
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