中美女子体操: 弱不禁风与气势雄健

In a not so distant past, Chinese women gymnasts won the team all-around competition in Beijing at 2008 Games. Since then, many had high hopes that they would repeat their glory and dominate gymnastic podium in future games. But that hope turned into disappointment at Rio as the Chinese teams were crushed by the American team and only claimed the bronze, with a whopping 8.6 points behind the US.

在里约奥运会上，美国女子体操队在全部四项比赛中12人次完美零失误，“最后五人组”最终在体操明星拜尔斯的带领下以几近完美的精彩表现如愿以偿地拿下她们本届奥运会上首块团体金牌。

At Rio, American athletes had a heart stopping performance in all 12 routines across four events, and led by Simone Biles, the ecstatic “Final Five” strolled away with their first gold medal.

拜尔斯在里约奥运会上大放异彩，她不仅在自己最擅长的自由体操项目上一骑绝尘，在全部四项比赛中都表现亮眼，她在决赛中堪称完美的耀眼表现帮助美国女子体操队确保第二次卫冕团体金牌。

Simone Biles is majestic, not only in her signature event, the floor routine, but in all four events. Her spectacular and flawless routines in the team final has helped the team secure the second and consecutive gold for US gymnasts.  

中国女子体操队的领军人物是20岁的商春松，其余四名队员分别是均为19岁的谭佳薪和毛艺，以及均为16岁的范忆琳和王妍。但是，由于许多人都对中国体操队员的年龄存疑，怀疑她们是否达到女子体操运动员16岁的最低年龄限制，中国体操队的年龄也在里约引发另一波争议。

The 20-year-old Shang Chunsong leads the Chinese team, along with two 19-year-olds, Tan Jiaxin and Mao Yi, and two 16-year-olds, Fan Yilin and Wang Ya. Their age has sparked another controversy at Rio, with many people being skeptical about the age they claim, questioning whether they indeed reach 16, the minimum age requirement for female gymnastic athletes. 

除了年龄，中国女体体操运动员看上去也远比美国选手孱弱、苍白和单薄。

Apart from their age, Chinese girls look much weaker, paler and thinner than American athletes. 

一些网民在社交媒体上称：“中国姑娘们看起来各个单薄，好像轻轻一折就能成两半。”

“The Chinese girls look like they can be easily snapped in half,” some comments appear on social media. 

有报道称，由于运动员村的食堂“非常冷”，中国女子体操队队长商春松在抵达里约的第一天就感冒发烧，她因此中断了例行的场馆训练，且未能参加跳马预赛，最终只获得56.532分，令人大失所望。商春松赛后承认由于自己生病缺席了大量训练，她在比赛中只发挥出了70%的实力。

It is reported that the team captain Shang caught a cold and had a fever the first day arriving at Rio, because the dining hall in the athlete village was “freezing cold”.    She skipped the routine on apparatus during the training, and botched her vault in the qualifiers, after scoring a disappointing 56.532. She admitted of being at only 70 percent in the competition, after missing a chunk of training because of her illness. 

但是，弱不禁风的中国选手和身肌强健的美国运动员明显的体型差异或许在一定程度上可以解释中国女子体操队的差强人意的表现。

Maybe the difference in athlete’s body shapes – the skinny Chinese type vs. the strong, muscular American figure could partially explain the disparaging performance. 

虽然拜尔斯身高只有4英尺9英寸，但她看上去远比中国选手成熟、强壮并且肌肉更加发达。她被誉为有史以来最杰出的女子体操选手,是天生的运动奇才。凭借强健的身体，拜尔斯拥有旋转、空翻和扭转的非凡能力，她在比赛中将其惊人的爆发力，特有的柔韧性以及卓越的稳定性展现得淋漓尽致，并惊创至今无人敢尝试的“拜尔斯式”。此外，她还拿下了里约奥运女子体操个人全能比赛的冠军。

Biles was only 4 feet 9, but looks older, stronger and more muscular than the Chinese athletes. She was touted as the best female gymnast in history and once a lifetime athlete. With her strong body frame, she revealed tremendous power, flexibility and endurance in her performance that allowed her to gain a superhuman ability to twist, flip and spin, and to perform a manoeuvre dubbed “The Biles” – which no one has ever even attempted. She also claimed the gold medal in the individual all-around.

女子体操运动员的曾一度以身材矮小和看似发育不良为身材典型，以致厌食症成为女子体操界的通病。但是随着体操运动在过去十年里不断发展变化，运动员的体型也在随之改变。

Women gymnastic athletes once became known for unusually small, seemingly prepubescent athletes, giving the sport a reputation as a hotbed of eating disorders. But as the sport has changed over the past decade, so has the body associated with it. 

相比之下，身体强健且具有爆发力的运动员不仅更加健康，亦更有能力抵御越来越严酷的比赛。随着羸弱之风逐渐消散，现代体操运动越来越依赖于力量和活力，只有体格更为强健的体操运动员才能在现代体育竞技时代脱颖而出。在中国越来越渴望强化其奥运强国的形象的今天，派出具有强健体魄的运动员更能显示中国的体育实力。

Strong, explosive athletes are indeed healthier and better able to withstand the rigors of intense competition.  As the feeble waif style has faded away, modern gymnastics increasingly relies on strength and dynamism than before, and gymnasts with more athletic physiques are better performers in this modern game era. Amid China’s growing desire to strengthen its image as an Olympic superpower, athletes’ stronger body types can further help demonstrate the point.