International Gymnast

So how would Uchimura change the Code, if
he could? “I’d like to bring back the bonus for vir-
tuosity,” he says. “I would like to see excellent
scores for excellent performances that nobody
can equal.”
No other gymnast could match Uchimura’s
overall virtuosity in London, even if the judges
possessed no tool to reward it. The Code cur-
rently requires judges to use only their eyes and
a calculator, while the brain and soul are appar-
ently too emotional to trust.

For the sake of artistic gymnastics, Uchimura
is clinging to his principles. “I think beautiful per-
formances can make people—people who don’t
even know gymnastics very well—be moved and
say ‘Wow,’” he says. “I think the performance
that touches people’s hearts is beautiful. So I
want to show such a performance.”
Though Uchimura is planning to upgrade his
difficulty on floor exercise, pommel horse and
rings this year, he’s not revealing any changes
just yet. But thanks to YouTube, viewers can
already see that he has an excellent layout triple-
double off high bar and a tucked triple-double on
floor exercise.

Still, he strongly believes execution is what
fans appreciate most. “Even simple skills,” he
says. “If you do them with perfectly straight
knees and toes … I think the audience can
understand the difference.”
Uchimura says his favorite event is pommel
horse, “because it is not hard for my body [and]
I can train for a long time!” Vault, on the other
hand, doesn’t thrill him much. “The perform-
ance is too short,” he contends. “I cannot show
any difference in performance as compared to
other gymnasts.”
Aside from his unwavering commitment to
impeccable form, even during the most dizzying
of aerial elements, Uchimura also stands out for
his cat-like landings. Whether it’s a triple twist
floor dismount or a double pike off p-bars, he
seems to stick better than two-sided tape.

Perhaps the ill-timed ankle injury to Ger-
many’s Fabian Hambüchen, who got hurt on the
eve of the London worlds, contributed to Uchi-
mura’s current god-like status. “It didn’t affect
me,” Uchimura said of Hambüchen’s absence
from the meet. “But I was disappointed, because
he is a good gymnast and my friend.”
Hambüchen, who referred to Uchimura as
“the man” prior to the worlds, is still in awe of
his talent. “He is really strong, and I think he
could be the next Yang Wei,” he told IG. “But I
won’t give up. Never.”
In terms of results, Uchimura could indeed be
the next Yang Wei, who won back-to-back world
all-around titles prior to his 2008 Olympic