Pinch-hit leap from Young aids U.S. gymnasts

ATHENS — Aided with an unexpected and timely assist from former BYU gymnast Guard Young, the United States men's gymnastics team survived Saturday's qualification round to remain in contention for the country's first men's Olympic team medal since the Los Angeles Games of 1984.

With a score of 230.419 in the compulsory competition, the six-man U.S. team finished in second place and ensured a place in the favored final rotation when the team medal is decided Monday night in the Olympic Indoor Hall. Japan (232.134) enters the optional round in first place, with Romania (230.019), China (229.507), Ukraine (228.382) and Russia (227.980) trailing the United States.

In the finals, each team enters three gymnasts in each of the six events — floor exercise, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars and high bar — with every score counting toward the total score. In Saturday's prelims, however, the rules allowed five gymnasts in each event, with the top four scores counting.

Young's major contribution came on the Americans' fourth event, the pommel horse — one of his weaker events and one he was not scheduled to perform.

But the 27-year-old BYU graduate, a second-place finisher in the 2000 NCAA all-around as a senior, was forced into duty when teammate Blaine Wilson pulled him aside just before the pommel horse round was to start.

"You've got to go for me," Wilson said, "I can't do it."

In the second event of the night, the high bar, Wilson fell and hurt his back while scoring a non-counting 8.862. Trainers had to use smelling salts to bring him to. He recovered to deliver a 9.7 on the third event, floor exercise but landed hard at the end of that routine. He was shaking and sweaty when he delivered his message to Young, who answered, "OK, I'm ready."

Under the rules, Young had to go last on horse. Three of his teammates delivered acceptable scores ahead of him — Jason Gatson with a 9.225, Morgan Hamm with a 9.7 and Paul Hamm with a 9.725 — but Brett McClure fell on his routine and managed only a 9.0. A counting score from Young was sorely needed.

Young stepped up and produced a solid 9.212 effort.

Young, who was born in Utah and moved to Oklahoma when he was 10, was one of the last two gymnasts named to the U.S. team and had not looked sharp in pre-Games training. "He told me he was worried whether he belonged," said Peter Vidmar , a member of the 1984 U.S. gold-medal-winning team who is in Athens as a radio commentator for Westwood One. "After today, he came up to me and said, 'Now I know I belong.' "