GYMNASTICS / WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS : Miller Comes Back Strong to Challenge

Shannon Miller, defending world champion in the all-around, rebounded from a disappointing opening day during Wednesday’s World Gymnastics championships.

Miller, 17, from Edmond, Okla., qualified second behind teammate Dominique Dawes in the beam event and third behind Romania’s Lavinia Milosovici and Dawes in the floor exercises.

It as an improvement after Tuesday when she was fourth in qualifying for the vault and missed out on a place in the final of the uneven bars.

“I didn’t do as well (Tuesday) as I would have liked, so today I really wanted to hit my routines,” Miller said.

She said she was more confident on the beam and in floor exercises than in the other two disciplines, despite never having won a medal on the beam at a world championships.

“Because I had a pulled stomach muscle (last month) I didn’t get as many repetitions on the bars as I would have liked, plus I added a new trick,” she said.

Steve Nunno, U.S. coach, said Miller has made spectacular progress since suffering the injury.

“Shannon’s getting better every day,” he said. “By Friday, everyone will see her back in top form.

“We had to come back slowly, but a metamorphosis has taken place over the last two weeks with Shannon’s performances. She’s looking good and feeling confident. She’s progressing, not just maintaining her skill level.”

Miller will be off today before defending her all-around title Friday.

“These past two days have just been a warm-up for the all-around,” she said.

Dawes, meanwhile, loomed as a threat to Miller and Milosovici--who has qualified for the finals of all four apparatus events--in the all-around.

Dawes, 17, from Silver Spring, Md., scored 9.837 to lead the qualifiers for the beam ahead of Miller (9.825) and Milosovici (9.762).

Milosovici, a dual gold medalist in Barcelona, scored 9.837 in the floor exercise, and Dawes scored 9.825 and Miller 9.787.