Taiwanese gymnast Lee Chih-kai failed to secure an Olympic berth in the pommel horse following a second-place finish at the last qualifier in Doha on Friday, a performance that Lee and his coach called “unconvincing.”
The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist finished runner-up in the final after scoring 6.6 for degree of difficulty and 8.800 for execution for a combined score of 15.400. That was just 0.100 short of Jordan’s Ahmad Abu Al Soud, who had qualified for the event in Paris before the Apparatus World Cup series in Qatar’s capital.
After missing the final rounds in the first two of four qualifier legs, Lee, who topped the third leg in Azerbaijan in March, had only one chance left for Paris: win another championship while hoping Nariman Kurbanov of Kazakhstan finished fifth or lower.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan’s gymnastics team
However, as Al Soud topped the competition, Kurbanov secured his spot in Paris.
Lee and his coach said they disagreed with the judges’ scoring.
“The score is definitely unconvincing. Apparently, they intended to set me up to lose. I’m sad for sure, but that is not going to change anything,” Lee told reporters after the final. “This is the most difficult routine I performed this year, and I performed it very smoothly. I would have nothing to say if I screwed it up myself, but that is not the case today.”
The same sentiment was shared by Lee’s coach Lin Yu-hsin, who said it was frustrated that Lee earned the same score as he did in his first round, even though he performed a more difficult routine and performed it better.
“All of those present were shocked to learn that a Kazakhstani gymnast still earned 15.133 despite making a blunder in his dismount,” Lin said.
The first Taiwanese to win an Olympic medal in artistic gymnastics, Lee, 28, vented his frustration as he showed little confidence in vying for an Olympic berth in the individual all-around event, which he does not specialize in, at the upcoming Asian Championships in May.
“It’s taking place in three weeks, but I’m full of wear and tear at my age. How is it possible for me to compete in an all-around event that requires all six categories to be completed in one day?” said Lee, who is still plagued by an injured wrist and a fractured foot.
Approaching the end of his career as a gymnast, Lee said he has devoted “200 percent” to the sport over the past two decades and is “burnt out.”
“I think it’s about time [to retire] if I could not secure my last [Olympic] berth,” he said.
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