All-round star Liukin struggles to adapt to spectator role

LONDON: Olympic all-around gymnastics champion Nastia Liukin was daddy's special girl a year ago but now needs an appointment to see her busy father, Valery.

The 19-year-old's decision to take a break after winning gold in Beijing last August means she has been exiled from the inner-sanctum of American gymnastics, at least temporarily.

It is a situation Liukin is struggling to accept.