Men's gymnastics creates 'unofcial' rivalry

The school and team of Ohio State inspire hatred throughout Ann Arbor and the state of Michigan.

Wolverines are brought up to hate those who wear the scarlet and gray and scream for the Buckeyes.

In the world of men's gymnastics, though, there is not much of a rivalry between the two schools. But that might be changing soon.

Ohio State and Michigan have clearly been the two best teams in the country this year. The two are currently No.1 and No. 2 in the nation, with Michigan holding the top spot.

In two weeks, the teams will meet for the fifth time this season at the NCAA Championships in Nebraska. Ohio State holds an edge over the Wolverines this year, beating them in three of four meetings.

DANA LINNANE/Daily Big Ten rival Ohio State might be the toughest opponent for Kenny Keener and the rest of the Wolverines at NCAAs.

That result is deceptive, though. Ohio State gained two of those wins in the early weeks of the season, before a young, injured Michigan team found its place amongst the elite.

In the past two weeks the teams have split two titles. At the Big Ten Championships in Iowa City, Michigan won the title and Ohio State finished third.

On Saturday in Illinois, Ohio State came out on top, but only by .05 points. Michigan faltered after gaining an advantage through its first three events and missed its chance at scoring its best meet of the season. Ohio State finished strong to snatch the victory away from the Wolverines.

"If I had a choice between winning Big Tens or winning here (regionals in Illinois), I would always take Big Tens," Michigan coach Kurt Golder said.

History is also not with the Buckeyes. Last year, Big Ten champion Iowa lost to Ohio State at regionals, finishing third. But the Hawkeyes, along with Illinois, came back to top the Buckeyes at the NCAA Championships.

The one thing that may keep the schools from having a serious rivalry is the nature of the sport. Although gymnastics is a competition among teams, it is largely an individual competition. Also, because one team's success only varies indirectly with the success of other teams, rivalries are not a focus.

"We go into a meet with a goal of performance. We want to go out and try to perform our best on every routine," Golder said. "We aren't thinking about going out and beating the other team. We think that if we perform up to our ability, winning will take care of itself."

Although the teams don't focus so much on rivalries, they do have an impact on the athletes. Many of the gymnasts end up competing together in clubs, or with each other on national teams.

Even without an official rivalry, one team may gain an advantage. The two teams are the leading candidates to grab the most impressive sounding title of all - national champions.

04-13-99