Reigning Olympic all-around gold medalist and uneven bars bronze medalist Sunisa Lee may be trying out a new skill at the 2024 Paris Games.
A new element in her uneven bars routine is the release, in which the gymnast performs a front flip and a complete twist in the layout position. Lee hopes to become the first woman to perform the feat at an international event.
If she can do it at the Olympics, the skill, commonly known as the Full Twist Jaeger, will be named “The Lee,” the first skill in the sport’s points rules to be named after her. . A handful of skills are named each year, but only a handful of gymnasts receive the honor of bearing the same name.
“Li” will be one of the most difficult events in the women’s uneven bars. Let’s take a closer look at how she performs this move.
Each skill in Project Uneven Bars has a letter value indicating difficulty, starting with A and going up to G, although it’s possible that Lee’s new skill will be an H.
Jaegers, named after Bernd Jäger, refer to a series of moves that involve performing a 360-degree swing while keeping your body straight on the high bar, then releasing a front flip before catching the bar again. They can be mounted astride (D), mounted on a spear (D), or lying flat (F).
The Jaeger layout is called Cappuccitti (named after Stephanie Cappuccitti) and is rarely attempted in competition due to the difficulty of grabbing the bar. Lee’s move further increases the difficulty by adding a complete twist.
Note: Cappucciti is played by Luo Rui. The fully twisted Jaeger is performed by Sunisa Lee.
Image courtesy of International Gymnastics Federation (Rui); New York Times (Lee)
What makes Lee’s move particularly notable is that she didn’t create a variation of a different release technique called Tkatchev, which is the route most uneven bars innovators have followed in recent years.
In the original version – named after Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Tkatchev – the gymnast swings straight around the high bar, releasing it near the top of the swing, crossing the leg back Fly over the bar, then rotate your upper body forward to grab the bar again.
Note: Performed by Gabby Douglas.
USA Gymnastics
Swinging can be performed in five positions, flying can be performed in three positions, and half-twists can be performed in the air. This means there are at least 30 permutations of the same skill.
In the past four years alone, six new Tkachev variants have been named.
While there were still some opportunities up for grabs, Lee chose a different route. It’s been 18 years since someone innovated on a Jaeger base. The last was Chinese gymnast Li Ya, who introduced the semi-twisting Jaeger in 2006.
In January, Lee posted a video on Instagram showing her practicing the new skill during training. It’s a sign that she’s returning to form after facing serious health issues for much of the last year.
Lee was diagnosed with an incurable kidney disease that left her face, hands and legs severely swollen and unable to compete.
After returning to elite competition, she tried out the new skill at the Winter Cup in February, but missed the element during a bar routine and fell.
Due to the difficulty and risk of this technique, it is not yet certain whether Li will attempt this technique with a medal. But the Paris Olympics will provide an opportunity to have the sport named after her and leave an indelible mark on the sport.
