2015 Chopin Piano Competition Throwback

[imnotapianist]

I just rewatched the 2015 Chopin competition first round and there was this competitor called Tiffany Poon who played in my opinion one of the greatest interpretations of the Barcarolle Op.60 ever. Her sound quality was great and her control of tones/colors was insane. I feel like in my opinion in terms of musicality matches Zimmerman's famous interpretation of the same piece. And yet, she was eliminated from the first round.

I tried to find why and some people were saying that her playing was "contrived" or that "she didn't know how to use the damper pedal." And I'm very confused about that. I mean, the notes were clear and the damper technique she uses creates a super ambient feeling to the piece that's very interesting. And the only contrived I notice is her movement, which is not at all related to the quality of her piano playing. 

So, if anyone watched the Chopin competition, what are your thoughts? Do you agree? What can you pick apart in her performance?