GYMNASTICS / WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS : Soviet Men Easily Earn Gold; U.S. Fifth

The Soviet Union, which probably could have won the gold medal with a four-man team instead of six, continued its seemingly untouchable dominance in gymnastics by winning the team competition at the World Championships Tuesday night.

They beat second-place China by more than seven points--equivalent to about a 20-run lead in a baseball game.

And what did the Soviet coach have to say?

“I am very happy, the team showed what they can do,” Leonid Arkaev said. “And I can understand when Igor (Korobchinski) fell off the pommel horse, it was understandable.”

It was the Soviets’ only miss of the competition at the Hoosier Dome.

The only hope for some type of parity seems to be if the Soviet republics begin to compete under separate flags, to which Arkaev replies: “They will lose. I don’t think it is a good idea.”

To which Bela Karolyi, the U.S. women’s coach, replies: “It will be even more dangerous, then there will be 10 countries from the Soviet Union to deal with.”

As it was, there were too many for the Americans. Germany was third and Japan fourth.

The Americans, at a disadvantage competing with a five-man team, entered the meet in fifth place and stayed there, but not without trepidation.

“I thought it was going to be a real positive thing working for us tonight, competing without Lance (Ringnald, who withdrew because of an injury),” said Chris Waller, U.S. national champion. “But it didn’t work out that way. Every time there was a miss, we took it severely. Everything counted. It wasn’t like we could throw out the lowest score.

“It took a serious effort to keep it going. We were under a lot of pressure.”

The Americans finished five points behind Japan and barely edged sixth-place Korea, scoring 569.725 points to Korea’s 569.450. Still, it is the U.S. men’s highest finish in this event since 1983, when they finished fourth.

“I couldn’t ask for more of them,” U.S. men’s Coach Francis Allen said. “When they fell, they would come back. They were tough mentally and that’s exactly what they had to be. To finish in fifth place without Lance is a milestone for us. It shows their mental discipline.”

Scott Keswick, who was designated the anchor of the team in Ringnald’s absence, qualified for the men’s individual apparatus finals in both the rings and the high bar. It is the first time an American has been in the individual finals since 1983.

Keswick, Jarrod Hanks and Waller also qualified for the men’s all-around competition, placing 15th, 20th and 22nd respectively. Only three gymnasts can qualify from one country.

“I learned a great deal from this meet, and I will take it with me to the next competitions,” Keswick said.

Countries had to place in the top 12 to qualify for next year’s Olympics. Finishing seventh was Italy, followed by Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Switzerland and Britain.

Entering the optional competition, Germany was in second place, followed by Japan, China, the United States and Korea, and it appeared it was going to finish that way.

By the end of the second rotation, China had overtaken Japan for third place, the Americans had moved ahead of Korea and were trailing Japan by more than a point. The Germans were locking up the silver and the Soviet Union led by four points.

But the word on China, according to Allen, was that they cannot compete “under the lights.”

It looked that way on the high bar, China’s third event, when three members of the team fell off, and Japan, ever consistent, moved into third by a tenth of a point.

But the lights were still on as China moved to the floor exercise, and they scored well enough to move up again to third. Then after the fifth event, China moved to within a tenth of second-place Germany.

On China’s final event, the rings, it posted its highest marks of the night. When Jing Li stuck his dismount and scored a 9.850, the lights dimmed on Germany, who won the bronze.

“After the high bar, we thought we would fight to the end,” Jing said. “We knew in the end the person who smiles last, will be the best.”

Germany, which had five East Germans on its team, was satisfied.

“China beat us because they were better, not because of we made errors,” Germany’s Sylvio Kroll said.

One of the Americans’ best moments came in their second event, the high bar, when Chainey Umphrey scored a 9.725 and Keswick drew a roar from the crowd of 5,962 when he scored a 9.8.

But in the floor exercise Keswick missed on his final tumbling pass, falling forward and landing on his head and arm. He had a 9.050.

“I was too psyched, too strong for myself,” Keswick said. “I just had so much energy and wasn’t lose. That’s why I (also) missed next on the pommel horse.”

But before the fifth event, the rings, alternate John Roethlisberger helped Keswick out. “He came up behind me and said, ‘You are great on rings, go out and get it,’ ” Keswick said. He scored a 9.775.