1970: The Men’s Competition at the University Games

In 1970, the Japanese men won the team competition for the fourth consecutive time and the individual all-around for the fifth consecutive time at the University Games. (There wasn’t a team competition at the 1961 Universiade.)

At the University Games in Turin, one could see that the 1968 Code‘s emphasis on risk, originality, and virtuosity was starting to pay off, as gymnasts were seeking to perform more difficult and original skills. In 1969, there was talk of ditching men’s vault altogether because it had become stale. Then, at the 1970 Universiade, Okamura performed a handspring with a front salto on vault. (A few weeks later, Tsukahara performed his eponymous vault at the World Championships.) On high bar, Straumann did a double tuck over the bar, laying the groundwork for decades of creative dismounts and Kovacs-style releases.

What follows are the results, as well as commentary about the competition.

The Results

Team

	FX	PH	SR	VT	PB	HB	Total
1. JPN	28.80	28.10	28.45	28.15	28.70	29.05	171.25
2. URS	28.10	28.30	27.85	27.80	28.25	28.55	168.85

3. USA	166.05
4. YUG	162.95
5. HUN	162.80
6. GER	160.65
7. SWE	153.75
8. ITA	153.25
9. FIN	152.40
10. BUL	151.80
11. FRA	150.30
12. ALG	142.55
13. CAN	142.25

All-Around

	Country	FX	PH	SR	VT	PB	HB	Total
1. Okamura Teruichi	JPN	9.65	9.35	9.70	9.55	9.65	9.60	57.50
2. Fujimori Ryuji	JPN	9.55	9.20	9.45	9.25	9.55	9.80	56.80
3. Fogel Vyacheslav	URS	9.50	9.55	9.45	9.30	9.45	9.45	56.70
4T. Sakamoto Makoto	USA	9.35	9.20	9.55	9.25	9.50	9.60	56.45
4T. Hosokawa Shinichi	JPN	9.60	9.55	9.20	9.20	9.50	9.40	56.45
6. Andrianov Nikolai	URS	9.30	9.40	9.25	9.35	9.45	9.60	56.35
7. Senda Taichi	JPN	9.35	8.70	9.30	9.35	9.50	9.65	55.85
8. Furman Yefim	URS	9.30	9.25	9.15	9.10	9.35	9.40	55.55
9. Maleev Vyacheslav	URS	8.95	9.35	9.10	9.15	9.20	9.50	55.25

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Schedule and Judging Assignments

Floor, Vault
Fabio Bonacina (Italy)
István Horváth (Hungary)
Hartmut Fink (Canada)
Jerry Wright (United States)
Vasco Prescianotto (Italy)

Pommel Horse, Parallel Bars
Giorgio Garufi (Italy)
Anatoli Gorodezki (USSR)
Ahmed Ben Slinane (Algeria)
Angelo Manoni (Italy)
Dimitez Dimitrof (Bulgaria)

Rings, Horizontal Bar
Luigi Zanetti (Italy)
Ota Masahide (Japan)
Vadi Quinto (Italy)
Kim Kyungsoo (South Korea)
Jiovan Petrović  (Yugoslavia)

(Source: Japan’s Official Report on the 1970 University Games)

September 1, 1970

Time	Floor	Pommel	Rings
15:00-15:16	FIN NOR	ITA	BUL
15:16-15:32	BUL	FIN NOR	ITA
15:32-15:48	ITA	BUL	FIN NOR
15:48-16:04	TUN GBR	ALG	FRG
16:04-16:20	FRG	TUN GBR	ALG
16:20-16:36	ALG	FRG	TUN GBR
16:36-16:52	JPN	YUG	CAN
16:52-17:08	CAN	JPN	YUG
17:08-17:24	YUG	CAN	JPN
17:24-17:40	USA	SWE LUX	HUN
17:40-17:56	HUN	USA	SWE LUX
17:56-18:12	SWE LUX	HUN	USA
18:12-18:28	USSR	FRA	SUI AUT
18:28-18:44	SUI AUT	USSR	FRA
18:44-19:00	FRA	SUI AUT	USSR

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Commentary

Here’s how Japan’s Official Report summarized the competition:

Japan was absolutely dominant on floor exercise. It was remarkable to see American athletes performing a single twist in the “dive forward roll.” It should be noted that the American athletes had already done this at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, and it has been steadily passed down since then. In the Soviet Union, two athletes performed the “back double twist,” but I was not very impressed with the movements or the routines other than the acrobatic technique.

Pommel horse has always been the weakest event for Japanese athletes, and they have always been outscored by foreign teams in this event. This year was no exception, with Japan leading in five events, but losing to the Soviet Union by 0.2 points on pommel horse. However, in the individual competition, Hosokawa took first place with a score of 9.55, which is the same as Vogel (Soviet Union), which is very impressive. With the small difference within the team and the first place in the individual competition, it seems that the Japanese level on pommel horse has finally reached the stage where it can join the ranks of international techniques.

[Note: The University Games did not have official apparatus winners until 1973, so there was no true “individual competition” on individual apparatus.]

There were no special points to be noted on rings, and the routines were not different at all from those in the past, so there was no change. Okamura (Japan) was by far the strongest, taking the top spot with a high score of 9.70, far ahead of Sakamoto’s (USA) 9.55.

On vault, only Japan was able to perform the kinematically advanced technique. Okamura’s “front handspring forward somersault” and Fujimori’s “cartwheel backward somersault” attracted the attention of all the spectators and were very popular. The Soviet competitor showed excellent technique while doing “handspring with one twist.” The landing was unstable due to the mismatch between the float and the twist, but the grandeur of the second phase and the efficiency of the twist were worth learning. I strongly felt that Klimenko’s (Soviet Union) twisting technique, which he had shown in the Japan-Soviet competition a few years ago, was steadily improving in the Soviet Union.

[Note: I asked Hardy Fink if he recalled Fujimori performing a Tsukahara vault, and while he recalls Okamura’s handspring front, he does not recall Fujimori’s “cartwheel backward somersault.”]

On parallel bars, as on rings, there were almost the same skills and routines as in the past. There were a few useless routines by the Soviet athletes. The Japanese athletes’ techniques of “forward swing with a twist to handstand” [i.e. a Stütz] and “somersault over the bar” [i.e. a back toss] seemed to be particularly superior to those of the Soviet Union and other countries. The “forward salto with one twist” was performed by two Soviets and one Japanese, but it was not as good compared to the “backward salto with one twist”.

Senda’s performance on horizontal bar was wonderful. He was the second performer and got the high score of 9.65 points, and Fujimori was the last one to go with a score of 9.80. Maleev from Soviet Union performed “one hand in reverse grip, free hip circle through to handstand” and “backward swing up to healy” with his opposite arm as his entrance move, and Straumann from Switzerland performed “backward somersault” from a giant as his dismount, going over the horizontal bar and flipping backwards. This technique is similar to a double somersault, just like a double somersault backward. This technique attracted attention as a completely new technique for Japan.

Overall, the Japanese teams dominated the competition, with Japanese athletes winning first place in all events. The most important reason for the victory was that all the athletes were able to perform in a mentally stable condition from start to finish, with the team leader, Hiroyoshi Hara, kindly organizing all the athletes. It is most noteworthy that Okamura, continuing the honorable tradition established by his seniors, won the competition against the world’s best, and also won first place on four events: floor exercise, rings, vault, and parallel bars. Fujimori, who was competing against Vogel from the Soviet Union until the very end, performed with mental stability from start to finish, and executed a perfect performance on horizontal bar, scoring 9.80 points, the highest score of the competition, as mentioned above. It is also noteworthy that he came in second in the all-around, beating Vogel by 0.1 points. However, the most important first performance of the gymnastics competition, which was performed steadily by Senda and Hosokawa, had a great impact on the team’s performance.

[…]

As mentioned above, new skills have emerged in 2 or 3 events, and these skills need to be widely disseminated in the Japanese gymnastics world through films and other methods. In addition, it is most important for Japan, a country with little international exchange, not to be left behind by the constantly advancing direction of the International Gymnastics Federation, technical trends, and rule revisions, in order to maintain the current title. In this sense, if allowed, we should consider dispatching an officer who specializes in keeping up with world information.

床においては日本が絶対的な強さを持っていた。 アメリカの選手が“とびあがり前転” で1回ひねりを行なっていたのが目についた。 1964年の東京オリンピック大会のさいにすでにアメリカの選手が行なっていたが,その後着実に受け継がれている点に注目せねばなるまい。 ソ連においては2人の選手が “後方伸身宙返り2回ひねり” を行なっていたが,アクロバティックな技以外の動きやコンビネーションの点においてあまり感心したものとはいえなかった。

あん馬はこれまで日本選手の最も苦手とする種目で,いつの大会においても外国勢に大差をつけられていた。今回もその例にもれず, 5種目は日本がリードしたが,あん馬においてはソ連に0.2点の差をもって惜敗した。しかし個人では細川選手が9.55の得点をもってフォーゲル選手 (ソ連)と並んで首位を占めたのは立派であった。チームの差も少差であり,しかも個人では1位をとるなど,日本のあん馬もようやく国際的な技術に仲間入りできる段階まできたようである。

つり輪では特にとりあげる点はなく, コンビネーションについてもこれまでとまったく異なったものがなく、代わり映えしなかった。 岡村選手 (日本) が断然強く坂元選手 (アメリカ) の 9.55を大き引き離し9.70の高得点をもってトップに立った。

跳馬は運動構造的に高度な技をこなしていたのは日本のみで, 岡村選手の“前転とび前宙” と藤森選手の”側転後方宙返り”は全観衆の注目の的となり、 大変な人気をよんだ。 “前転とび1回ひねり”の技については,ソ連選手が素晴しいさばきをしていた。浮きとひねりがうまくマッチしなかったために, 着地が不安定であったが, 第2局面の雄大さとひねりの能率の上さは学ぶ点が多かった。 数年前の日ソ対抗において見せたクリメンコ (ソ連) のひねりの技術が, ソ連において着実に伸びている感を強くもった。

平行棒においてもつり輪と同様に,これまでとほとんど変わりない技とコンビネーションしか見受けられなかった。 ソ連の選手において無駄なコンビネーションが 2, 3 見受けられた。 日本選手の “前振りひねり支持”, および” “棒上宙返り” の技術はソ連をはじめ他国の選手に比較して特に秀れていたように思われる。おり方として “前方宙返り1回ひねり ” が,ソ連の選手2名, 日本選手1名によって行なわれていたが,“後方宙返り1回ひねり” に較べるとひねり技術において少々見劣りのする段階であった。

鉄棒においては千田選手の出来が素晴しく, 2番目に演技し9.65点という高得点を得、 最後の藤森選手はよくそれに応え, 9.80 という素晴しい得点を得る結果になった。 ソ連のマレーフ選手が入り技として, “片逆手懸垂振り出し”から逆手の腕を軸に“うしろ振り上がり1回ひねり支持”を行ない, またスイスのストローマン選手が終末技として順手車輪から, “後方宙返り”で鉄棒の上を越えてうしろにおりる技を行なっていた。この技は2回宙返りと類似した技術で、 ちょうど2回宙返りをうしろにおりるような技である。 この技は日本としてはまったく新らしい技として注目された。

全般的にみると日本勢が優位を占め、全種目日本選手が1位を独占する結果になった。 原弘吉チームリーダーが親身になり選手をまとめ, 全選手が精神的にまったく安定した状態において終始演技できたことが最も大きな勝因といえよう。 岡村選手がこれまでの先輩によって築かれた栄誉ある伝統を立派に受け継ぎ, 世界の強豪を相手に堂々と優勝したことは最も特筆すべき点であり,さらに床, つり輪、跳馬,平行棒の4種目において首位を占めたものも立派であった。 それに次いで藤森選手がソ連の強豪フォーゲルと最後まで競り合いになり、終始精神的に安定した演技を行ない,鉄棒においては完璧な演技を遂行し、 前述のように本大会最高得点の9.80点をマークし、 総合得点において0.1 点の差でフォーゲルをおさえ2位に食い込んだのも注目に値する。 しかし何といっても体操競技で最も大切な1番目の演技を, 千田,細川両選手が着実に行なったことがチーム力に大きな影響をおよぼした功績は見逃がせない。

[…]


前述のように 2, 3 の技において新しい技術が出現し,これらの技術においてはフィルムその他の方法により広く日本体操界に広める必要があろう。 また特に国際交流の少ないわが国が､ 絶えず進歩して行く国際体操連盟の方向や、技術の傾向, さらにルール改正などに取り残されないようにすることが現在の王座を堅持し続ける上において最も大切なことといえよう。 その意味において, ゆるされるならば今後世界の情報をキャッチするための役員を専門に派遣することを考えて行かねばなるまい。

As for the American team, they were happy with their bronze medal:

All in all it was a memorable event – the travel to and from was long and tiring, the 747 airplane is huge and a pain in the neck, Italy is a good-looking country with warm, friendly people, and we were all very proud to see our four gymnasts on the victory stand with the bronze medal around their neck and the stars and stripes high on the flagpole.

Modern Gymnast, Oct. 1970

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Appendix: All-Around: Places 10-58

10. Höpfner Hermann	FRG	55.00
11. Molnár Imre	HUN	54.95
12. Brodnik Janez	YUG	54.95
13. Kersnić Milenko	YUG	54.80
14. Tickenoff Paul	USA	54.50
15. Kisteleki Antal	HUN	54.05
16. Emery Bob	USA	54.00
17. Turoff Fred	USA	53.90
18. Nissinen Mauno	FIN	53.45
19T. Vratič Miloš	YUG	53.15
19T. Kovács Gyula	HUN	53.15
21. Bordán Dezső	HUN	53.05
22. Lazhari Larbi	ALG	52.95
23. Svensson Vommy	SWE	52.90
24. Höpfner Wolfgang	FRG	52.55
25. Kerzmann Michael	FRG	52.50
26. Jones Robert	GBR	52.35
27. Karttunen Markku	FIN	52.05
28. Straumann Urs	SUI	51.85
29T. Pallotti Roberto	ITA	51.70
29T. Vailati Fluvio	ITA	51.70
31T. Burgeois Michel	FRA	51.20
31T. Hmjelovjec Ivica	YUG	51.20
33. Ott Ulrich	FRG	51.05
34T. Taudien Yngve	SWE	50.65
34T. Mitruk Steve	CAN	50.65
36. Arnold Randall	GBR	50.60
37T. Leguet Jacques	FRA	50.55
37T. Panayot Vassilev	BUL	50.55
39. Lederwall Steffan	SWE	50.20
40. Rachkov Ivan	BUL	50.15
41. DounevI vo	BUL	49.85
42. Tomassi Mario	ITA	48.90
43. Karamfilov Nicolai	BUL	48.75
44. Ingvaldsen Thorbjørn	NOR	48.00
45. Soavi Yves	FRA	47.60
46. Jotung Bernarnd	LUX	47.35
47. Pirinen Pekka	FIN	46.90
48. Baumgartner Wolfgang	AUT	46.85
49. Mori Vincenzo	ITA	46.65
50. Loeb Guy	FRA	45.80
51. Kinsman Tom	CAN	45.10
52. Mnif Nouredine	TUN	44.80
53. Balcombe Gary	CAN	44.10
54. Sedgewick Tim	CAN	44.00
55. Fekih Iousef	TUN	43.75
56. Laabed Rabah	ALG	43.60
57. Fellah Fouad	ALG	43.35
58. Louhibi Djelloul	ALG	41.85

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