Alternate plan successful

Without the Hamms, US men grab bronze

BEIJING - As soon as the Chinese finished competing on the horizontal bar, they knew they had won the team gold medal in men's gymnastics.

There were tears and pumped fists as the winners saluted the home crowd. But the Americans also had reason to pump their fists and salute the crowd, placing a surprising third with two alternates coming up big. Japan won the silver.

"We always hoped we could do this," said US coach Kevin Mazeika. "The guys never gave up. All our work paid off."

"We were confident. [I told them], 'The gymnastics that you've done to this point got you here. That's all you have to do.' And they won the bronze medal."

Celebrating unexpectedly strong performances and perfect landings, the US looked completely different from the somber squad that attended a news conference announcing the withdrawal of Morgan Hamm late last week. With Hamm and his brother Paul Hamm injured and out of the lineup, expectations were low. If the Americans were lucky, maybe they would sneak into the medals.

It appeared their luck ran out on the final event, the pommel horse. But an impressive performance by alternate Alexander Artemev (15.350) ended the competition on a positive note.

But would it be enough for a medal? The Americans would have to wait for the favorites to finish out. But with just the horizontal bar remaining, China was in prime position to delight the crowd with a gold.

On rings, alternate Raj Bhavsar made sure the Americans started solidly. After he finished with only a small hop on his landing, Mazeika pumped his fists in the air and teammates greeted Bhavsar with shouts of "Great job," and "Awesome, buddy." But there was a long delay before Bhavsar's score of 15.325 flashed on the board. Bhavsar anxiously waited to find out what the judges thought, while teammate Jonathan Horton waited to perform.It was not an ideal situation for a team dealing with the Hamm brothers' late withdrawal from the competition. It looked, however, like the Americans had become accustomed and adept at dealing with adversity. Following Bhavsar's lead, Horton and Kevin Tan produced strong performances.

Marching to the vault to the rhythmic clapping from the Chinese crowd, it was clear the Americans' confidence was growing. Horton stuck the landing on his vault for a score of 16.200. Happy with his performance, Horton smiled broadly and pumped his left fist.

After two rotations at the National Indoor Stadium the Americans were in second place, but they weren't expected to stay there. Favorites China, Japan, and Russia were in the bottom four. But all three had completed their turns on pommel horse, which promised to be the toughest event for the US. The Chinese began making up ground on the rings with a near flawless effort from Chen Yibing, who scored a 16.575 and prompted wild cheering.

But the Americans' improbable quest for a medal wasn't over. While their routines often lacked the thrilling difficulty of their Chinese and Russian rivals, the Americans made their case for a medal with solid execution and no major mistakes through four events.

With four events completed by all eight teams, the Americans were shockingly in second place. Horton delivered an impromptu pep talk as the US waited to compete on the floor and pommel horse.

"We're doing sets we've never done before," said Horton. "No regrets."

Tan echoed Horton with another call for "no regrets."

Horton and Justin Spring certainly had none on the horizontal bar, sticking their landings and prompting chants of "USA, USA." The predominantly Chinese crowd tried to drown out the chants. But the Americans were confident as they gathered momentum heading toward the final event, the dreaded pommel horse.

But before they could tackle it, they had to continue their string of strong performances on the floor. It proved easier said than done. With a medal within reach, Spring and Joey Hagerty were shaky during tumbling runs. It wasn't until Horton took the floor as the team's third and final competitor that the US regained some of its swagger.

As Horton rejoined his teammates, they reminded each other they were still in the hunt for a medal. "It's not over yet," the said. The Americans medal hopes hinged on the pommel horse.

When Tan got tangled up and stopped mid-routine, the Anericans could see their medal hopes slipping away. It was the first major mistake of the competition for the US. Next, Bhavsar executed a solid, yet unspectacular routine, setting the stage for Artemev. Artemev, the second alternate, made his cameo as the Americans' hopes rested on him.