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One thing will almost certainly have to happen by Tuesday if the U.S. is to collect the gold it has been stalking since storming to victory in worlds by a whopping four points: Wieber will have to find a way to overcome the kind of adversity she's so expertly avoided during her lengthy reign atop the podium.
Scores are reset in the finals, where teams enter three competitors in each event, with all three scores counting. Wieber is a virtual lock to stand in front of the judges and raise her hand several times. If she doesn't do it in the right frame of mind, gold could turn into a more modest color.
"I think that's a test of character," Penny said. "I think Jordyn's got a lot of character ... I think you'll see the best of Jordyn Wieber (in the finals)."
Wieber, her eyes blotchy from crying, declined to speak to reporters afterward but seemed to recover a few hours later, thanking fans for their support and insisting she "can't wait for team finals."
The rest of the world can.
Even with the world champion struggling and Douglas making a major error on floor -- landing so far out of bounds during one of her tumbling passes she appeared to be jumping into the Thames -- the U.S. remained very much the class of the field.
Maroney, nursing a busted right big toe, anchored an eye-popping vault rotation that seemed to send a message to perennial powers Russia, Romania and defending Olympic champion China that the Americans have only improved from their blowout win in Tokyo.
"We were awesome," Maroney said. "We just hit, hit, hit."
The Americans ripped through four Amanars -- considered the most difficult vault currently done in competition -- and never looked back. They finished their rotation a whopping 11 points in front of previous leader Britain and were never really challenged.
The Russians came closest, with Victoria Komova posting the highest all-around score of the day (60.632) to nudge Raisman out of the top spot. Former world champion Aliya Mustafina put up a steady if not spectacular 59.966 to place fifth, but the Russians will be hard-pressed to close the 1.4-point gap with the U.S.
China came in third, more than five points back. Romania, Britain, Japan, Italy and Canada will also head to the finals. If Wieber recovers in time, the rest of the field knows they're likely fighting for second and third.
"We knew the Americans were going to be up there," said Rebecca Tunney of Britain, which was in the same qualifying session as the Americans. "They're going to be unbeatable."
[Associated
Press;
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