Judging

This is for everyone who's ever been really disappointed, especially all those gymnasts out there!

As you give out countless high fives and soak in the admiring praise of your teammates, you gleam with pride for the bar routine you just nailed. Your body was straight and your legs were together the entire time. All of your skills were connected without any hesitation, there were no falls, and the landing was stuck perfectly. You are a 100% positive that you will get a nine, and have pretty high hopes of a high nine too. Then, as you sit down, you stare at the empty scoreboard, anticipating the champion worthy number that is about to pop up. All of a sudden, in bright red light, it comes...an 8.5! You deserved way more than that! The routine was perfect! Your jaw is still on the floor as your teammates say,"Good job!" or "That's really good!" The words mean nothing though; just empty praise so you don't feel bad. Did you do something horribly wrong that you were completely unaware of, or does the judge just not like you. Chances are, you will never find out, and you will just have to live with the disappointment. :( oh well. maybe next time