The Mens team final will take place tonight, the third day of Artistic Gymnastics competition, as eight teams will compete for the gold. In qualifications, China finished with 373.600 points, followed by Japan at 369.500 and Russia with 365.425, just .225 ahead of the Americans.
The favorite to win tonight is China, who dominated the qualification stage, but defending champion, Japan, will not go down without a fight. Japan delivered a decent performance at the qualification stage, and has the potential to get much better scores tonight.
Russias performance tonight may depend on whether or not Konstantin Pluzhnikov is able to participate. Pluzhnikov fell off the rings at the end of the session, landing on the back of his neck. He walked off the podum, then lay down on the sidelines as trainers diagnosed his injury. Pluzhnikov did walk off on his own at the end of the competition, but his status is still up in the air.
Although the Hamm brothers will not be competing in the Olympics this year, dont count the U.S. out just yet. Sasha Artemev, who joined the squad Thursday night, and Raj Bhavsar are the Hamm brothers replacements, and both performed well the other night.
The 2004 Athens runner-up, who finished sixth in the qualifications, lacks experience, but not heart. The United States, led by fist-pumping Jonathan Horton, who went wild the other night during competition upon seeing a U.S. flag, knows they have a lot to prove and will do whatever it takes to not let everyone back home down.
Does the U.S. have enough heart to medal? Will anyone be able to overpower China? Who do you think will take home the gold tonight?