Here we have it. Zhang Boheng qualified in first place by almost two points over Oka Shinnosuke in 2nd and Hashimoto Daiki’s falls in 3rd.

As Simone taught us yesterday, everyone who does the walkout wrong is the winner. Juda definitely passed through the mark and did not stop in handstand. Xiao almost walked straight into the camera. A medal is his.

Rotation 1

Jarman – FX – GBR – DLO 2/1, nice form, step – back 2.5 to double front hop forward – triple double, awesome stick – 2/1, bounce back – front full to randi, bounce back – 3.5 , only a little movement, excellent.  14.900

Kovton through a hit pommel horse. The world feed is like, all the leaders are on rings, right? 14.633, that brings him right back into contention compared to qualification.

Richard next on horse, overbalances his first hs out of scissor, steps down onto the horse – and now a fall. He’s like, but we already did it??? 12.733.

Hashimoto – triple bounce, bounce back – double double, holds onto the stick, lean forward – front full to randi, little bounce – 2/1, small movement – back 2.5 to front lay, hop – 3/1, again holds onto stick with a lean forward. A hit. 14.633, like Kovtun, already repaired a major error from qualification.

Meszaros hop back on double double tuck on rings.

Yulo gets 11.9 on horse, so not ideal.

Oka – FX – DLO 1/1, a little steppy into the corner – front full to randi, crooked twist axis but nailed – double double tuck, sticks as well, deep position – 2/1, stuck – 2.5, also a bit deep, slide back. Strong. Also the kind of routine the women’s code would be like, I hate you, and the men’s code is like, you are the prince and king. 14.566

I respect Liz Chetkovich for bothering to learn some men’s skills in a way the rest of us would never. Verniaiev through a strong horse.

Zhang – FX – front 2/1 to double front pike, bounce back, tucks at the end – ACK – back almost 3.5 to 1/2 turn accidental head stand – randi, short, hop forward – 2/1, stuck – back 2.5 to clean layout, hop – 3/1, bounce back. 13.233

The Chinese mentally cannot at this Olympics in a way that I identify with.

So Hashimoto gains 9 tenths on qualification, while Zhang loses 1.133. Hashimoto needed to pick up 3.5 overall, so would need more gains. Aiming to do that on high bar as well.

After 1
Jarman 14.900
Verniaiev 14.833
Hashimoto 14.633
Kovtun 14.633
Oka 14.566

A look back at Dolci’s vault – Kas 1.5, medium hop forward, some leg crossing. 14.366.

Rotation 2

Macchiati – VT – the man looks exactly like Alia Shawkat and you will not convince me otherwise – Kas 1.5 a short with a lunge back. 14.166

Richard brings it back with a hit rings.

Xiao through a clean horse with 14.266, same as Q. On good pace so far.

Hashimoto also steps down off the pommel on a scissor to handstand but goes so far he has to fall completely. Zhang is back.

Juda – VT – Kas 1.5, very short, stumble back with a couple steps, keeps it to his feet.

The US men did too much swordfighting with their medal winning boxes after the team competition and tired themselves out.

Oka is like actually hitting is easy, though two events solidly. Xiao and Oka well poised at this point to take advantage of the errors. 14.500 for Oka.

Zhang Boheng through pommel horse to restore his competition, 14.333. So he’s still down 1.133 on his pace from qualification, but Hashimoto is now down 0.500.

Joe Fraser has a couple crazy leg breaks on one pommel and fully tucks but keeps it on the horse miraculously. 13.700

Pretty rings dismount from Kovtun, small step. 13.333

Jarman keeps up the trend of scissor to handstand on one pommel and then stepping down onto the horse, but he keeps his routine together after that. 14.066

After 2
Oka 29.066
Jarman 28.966
Dolci 28.699
Xiao 28.599
Verniaiev 28.366

STOP THE COUNT.

Hashimoto is in 15th and Zhang is in 16th right now. Oh, men’s. You silly goose.

A look back at Schmidt getting a Dragulescu to his feet, large bounce back. Casimiri Schmidt/Ilia Kovtun crossover tattoo explainer when.

Rotation 3

The lead men were on rings in this rotation so I decided to get breakfast, but we do have Dolci peeling off high bar on his dismount and staying down for now. Getting looked at. Very awkward landing.

He’s up and walking off now and showing us his broken grip culprit. Equipment malfunction would give him a redo.

Hashimoto has opened rings with a 13.400 and an inquiry.

Verniaiev – VT – nearly holds onto the stick on his Dragulescu but ends up swimming twice and then hopping. 14.400

Soares – HB – tak 1/1 is smooth – tak 1/2, solid – liukin kind of crazy but gets it – high kovacs – kolman, catches, some muscling swinging out of it – tkatchev to piked tkatchev solid – DLO 1/1, hop forward

Juda finishes PBars with a double front, hop forward

Zhang with a lunge back on double double dismount on rings, 14.600, big moment to gain ground for him.

Oka’s 13.666 rings score is also under inquiry, while Hashimoto’s inquiry was rejected.

Richard – VT – USA – Also lands a little short on his Kas 1.5, medium bounce back

Karimi hitting on Pbars, nice height on front straddle – hits bhavsar and tippelt – one handstand arch with hand replacement, lunge back on dismount. 14.066

Kovtun – VT – Kas 1.5 nice in the air but a pretty large lunge forward and out of the area. 14.266

It’s a very good 14.000 for Fraser on rings thanks to a stuck double double. Jarman lunges back on his own. 12.800, a hit but it’s always going to be a low one for him.

Xiao does have one handstand struggle on rings, waver and dip – hits double double with lunge back, but also upped his D from qualification and goes 13.800.

Dolci is now up for his HB redo – tak 1/1, goes over the wrong way – tak 1/2 – Cassina, hit – Kolman and falls – resumes with hip layout tkatchev – tkatchev – stalder – DLO 2/1, hop back. And now he’s had to do two whole HB routines.

Oka got his rings inquiry accepted and he’s up to 13.800 there.

After 3
Oka 42.932
Verniaiev 42.766
Xiao 42.399
Kovtun 42.232
Zhang 42.166

Hashimoto is in 18th, with the good scores to come.

Rotation 4

Meszaros – HB – frotn stalder 1/1, good – tak 1/2 – piked kovacs – Kolman – layout tkatchev – tkatchev – full – tak – DLO 2/1, hop back. Really pretty routine.

Oka – VT – Kas 1.5 with kind of a miracle stick – he looked short on amplitude and came in really deep and was like, hi this is how you stick. 14.300

Zhang – VT – Kas 2.1, hits it – chest forward and a hop. 14.500

Verniaiev on Pbars arches an early peach 1/2 but keeps it moving – his tippelt is so much better than most, so high – bhavsar, hit – finishes double front 1/2 with a shuffle back. 15.000

Juda – HB – yam, hit with some pike – kovacs – layout tkatchev – tkatchev -tkatvhev piked, nice combination – tak, smooth – tak 1/2, short but improving each time – DLO 1/1, nice stick. 13.766

Fraser – VT – Kas 1.5, some feet and knees throughout but a fairly controlled medium step forward. 14.333

Jarman – VT – Kas 2.5, well hit, medium step forward out of the area. 15.166

Meszaros got his high bar raised to 13.766 on inquiry.

Xiao – VT – Kas 2/1 is solid, step to the side, mostly controlled landing, just some whirly feet. 14.833

Kovtun – PB – diam – peach 1/2, solid – peach to one, comfortable – soliud throughout handstand work 1.5 turn, gets it – makuts is solid – doubel front, stuck landing. Yes to that. 15.400

Hashimoto – VT – Kas 2/1 is well completed, bounce back, chest down a bit. 14.766

Richard has hand placement adjustment on a diam on Pbars with an arch – otherwise solid – holds onto the stick on his double front. 14.133

Meanwhile Hashimoto was just opening his water bottle in a way that also looked like he was running away from a bee.

Yulo arches his peach right off the top on pbars but keeps it together – just a lovely diam toward the end – double front 2/1 dismount, hop back.14.500

After 4
Verniaiev 57.766
Kovtun 57.632
Xiao 57.232
Oka 57.232
Jarman 56.932

Zhang is 6th, Hashimoto 9th.

A look back at Moore on high bar – tak 1/2 is solid – stalder tkatchev layout goes crazy, super far from the bar and falls and a leg flail as he turns to land on his back. Lovely stick on DLO 2/1.

Rotation 5

Juda – FX – double double, nice stick – front 2/1 to only a front tuck with a coupel steps of stumble – randi, little hop – 2/1, stuck – 2.5 to 1/2, gets the stick, a bit low – FTDT, stays with it, chest down and a step. 13.533

Verniaiev – HB – tak 1/2, good – tkatchev piked – tkatchev – tak 1/1, solid vertical – yam, lots of pike, struggles a bit with rhythm out of the catch – DLO 2/1, large bound forward. 12.7

Zhang is excellent on Pbars, going to get a 15 million, stuck dismount. 15.300

Kovtun – HB – tak 1/1 is nice – tak 1/2 shorter – kolman, high, catches a little elbowy but fine – layout tkatchev to tkatchev to piked tkatchev, good – DLO 2/1, bounce back. 13.833

14.933 PBars fro Fraser keeps him up htere.

Richard – HB – Cassina, good – Kolman, also excellent – Liukin – hits it – tkatchev to piked tkatchev – tak 1/1, past – tak 1/2, a little crooked but OK vertical – DLO 2/1, lands shortish, hop forward. 14.400

Nice stick from Jarman on double front 1/2 PBars dismount. 14.300

Xiao was very precise on PBars, at least until dismount with a bounce back and extra little step on double front 1/2. 14.766 goes barreely ahead of Zhang, though Zhang is much stronger on HB.

Hashimoto did have a big arch and hand placement on a peach 1/2 in his Pbars – mostly very clean – double front 1/2 also nearly goes to pieces, chest way forward with a hop to save it to his feet. 14.433 not what he can do.

Meszaros – FX – back 2.5 to double front, excellent – double double, again looked like he would stick and then a little hop – rudi, some form, holds onto the landing – front 2/1 to layout, clean but a little foot slip on landing – back 1.5 to front full, hop again – 3/1, small movement.

Oka did look like he was going to go over the bar during his Makuts but it ended up just being a small arch – the rest was excellent – hop back on dismount. 15.100

After 5
Oka 72.332
Xiao 71.998
Zhang 71.966
Kovtun 71.465
Fraser 71.266

Hashimoto still in 8th, and while his HB is a big score, it’s not big enough to catch those in medal position if they hit their routines.

Zhang in third but will expect to get it with his HB score.

A good floor from Kovtun could get him a medal here.

Rotation 6

Fraser – HB – tak 1/2, good – immediate kolman – cassina, catches – layout tkatchev – piked tkatchev to tkatchev, good – zou li min – tak 1/1 extremely late – stalder – DLO 2/1, stuck. Nice finish. 14.266

Meanwhile Karimi got 8.533 on horse.

Kovtun – FX – front full to double front, little hop – front 3/1, small hop – back 3.5, hop to the side – randi – back 2.5 to front lay, solid – 3/1, a little low but holds the stick. Nice one. 14.700!

Jarman – HB – tak 1/2, good – layout tkatchev – tkatchev – tak – front stalder – stalder – elbows in giant- DLO 1/1, little hop, Low D but clean. 13.333

Kovtun’s score forces Xiao to have to break 14 on high bar to pass him.

Richard falls on his final pass on floor.

Xiao – HB – tak 1/1 is past – tak 1/2, good – layout tkatchev, hit – tkatchev to piked tkatchev – DLO 2/1 very clean, small step back. A good routine. 14.366 is the huge number he needed, what do I know, didn’t think that was going to be enough. So he goes ahead of Kovtun. We ride at dawn.

Xiao did mess up the walk out. We should have known.

Hashimoto – HB – tak 1/2, a little crooked, gets vertical – liukin, hit – Cassina, good – kolman, good – layout tkatchev – tak 1/1, also crooked line but gets it – stalder – giant full – DLO 2/1, hop back. 14.400 for Hashimoto, into 4th with Oka and Zhang to go.

Oka – HB – tak 1/1, past – tak 1/2, good – kolman, solid – layout tkatchev – tkatchev – inbar – DLO 2/1, hop back. Oka said just hit all your routines you losers.

14.500 and into first place for Oka.

Zhang – HB – will get to first with his usual hit – tak 1/1, good – tak 1/2, right to vertcial, into kolman, a little close, swings through it – cassina is hit – layout tkatchev – tkatchev – another moment of elbows and form in there arch out of giants – but the DLO 2/1 is nailed and stuck, little lean forward. That’s that?

NOT ENOUGH. 14.633 and Oka is the winner. That arch and elbow form out of the giants was weird and probably made the difference.

FINAL
1. Oka 86.632
2. Zhang 86.599
3. Xiao 86.364

If you want the champion to be the gymnast who put together the cleanest hit gymnastics with difficulty on the day, that’s Oka. Meanwhile Hashimoto ends up in 6th.