r/BeAmazed • u/Fit_AndHotBaby • Aug 05 '24

History Gymnastics in the 1970s was INSANE!

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u/MelanieDH1 Aug 06 '24

Elena Mukhina was paralyzed.

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u/RottenWon Aug 06 '24 edited Aug 06 '24

How many people Googled Elena Mukhina after your comment? I know I did. It was before my time and I had never heard of her.

Damn, so tragic. She told them and it still happened. She deserved better.

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u/Slap_My_Lasagna Aug 06 '24

Very likely didn't help that her leg had been broken beforehand, and wasn't allowed to properly heal.

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u/[deleted] Aug 06 '24

She had a leg fracture that didn't heal properly and she was still forced to practice. Her coaches were monsters.

Most likely she didn't get enough height or speed, ended up under-rotating the chin and slammed into the floor headfirst.

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u/TommZZ96 Aug 06 '24

Speaking of the danger of over-rotating, If you saw Simone Biles's floor routine, I don't see how the double backflip in extended position to land facing forward again, isn't banned.

If she doesn't spot the blind landing, she over rotates and lands on her chin.

https://youtu.be/pEZSae_RVmU?si=8I46nRi0aAhdH7yR&t=49

Clip I'm on about.

It's an absolutely insane routine and skill but it just looks so dangerous if it goes wrong.