TOKYO (AP) — As he waited for his turn on pommel horse, two-time world champion Kohei Uchimura looked down at the opposite end of the floor, curious to see what the U.S. men were up to.
Maybe there’s something to that big talk by the Americans, after all.
A year after finishing a close fourth at the world gymnastics championships, the U.S. men believe they can be on the podium this year. And not clinging to the bottom step, either. This team, they insist, can contend for the world title.
Of course, the Chinese and Japanese will have something to say about that. The teams have combined to win the last three Olympic titles, and China has had a stranglehold on gold at the world championships since 2003. Neither is showing any signs of weakness here.
