Entries from January 2009 ↓

I met Dru in Australia. We were both competing in the Victoria State “Geriatric Gym” championships 2007.

Gymblog reports that Dru is planning to compete her first Master’s Games, Sunday Feb. 22nd in Geelong.

source – Straight to the Bar

Sounds impressive?

Gymnast, Ivan Elliot, competed at age-78.

Just testing how the new flickr videos look embedded on this site …

Adult Rec hijinx at Seattle Gymnastics Academy.

I like that cargo net over the pit.

UPDATE: A non-profit organization tries to raise money to help promote sport in the developing world. Initially, the IOC supported the group. But — last week — decided to uninvite them to participate in any way at future Olympics. Apparently paying sponsors feel the publicity and funds that Right to Play generate at the Olympics would somehow detract from their own marketing. You might remember that China did not want Right to Play in Beijing because they were vocal about Chinese companies not doing enough to improve Human Rights in Africa.

Click through to the links if you want to know more.

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Right to Play are the good guys.

Olympic Champions Trent Dimas and Kyle Shewfelt are two of the gymnasts who support this organization. Phoebe Mills is another.

… The IOC confirmed Thursday it has ended its relationship with Right to Play. That will prevent the international humanitarian organization from setting up shop at Olympic venues during the 2010 Vancouver Games, plus the upcoming Olympics in London and Sochi, Russia.

…

International Olympic Committee spokesperson Emmanuelle Moreau said in an e-mail the decision “had nothing to do with sponsorship.” …

She’s a lying liar. (Her job description, I assume.)

The refreshingly straight talking IOC veteran Dick Pound admits the decision was to protect its sponsors during the Games:

… “When you raise a lot of money from people who support your exercise, you can’t have them ambushed by somebody else,” Pound said in an interview. “Right to Play knows that.” …

The IOC are the bad guys. As usual.

The Olympics are all about the money.

Right To Play is an athlete-based international humanitarian organization that emphasizes sports to aid the development of children and youth in underprivileged areas of the world. The organization has its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The organization was founded by Norwegian speedskating star and four times Olympic champion Johann Olav Koss. Other Olympians involved with Right To Play include Canadians Clara Hughes, who has won medals in both the summer and winter games, Praveen Perera, Alexander Ovechkin, Beckie Scott, and American Joey Cheek, who donated his 2006 Winter Games earnings from the medals he won, and Dutch Boxer Arnold Vanderlyde, just to name a few.

Right To Play programs are currently being implemented in 23 countries: Azerbaijan, Benin, Chad, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Indonesia, Israel, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, UAE, and Zambia.

Right To Play uses sports as a way to teach children about teamwork, fair play, conflict resolution, self-esteem, communication, commitment, respect, and integrity. Right To Play is committed to improving the lives of children and to strengthening their communities by translating the best practices of sport and play into opportunities to promote development, health and peace.

Wikipedia

You can volunteer or register your support on the official website – Right to Play

(via Gymbrooke Sports News)

UPDATE: TCO did a little more digging on this story. Turns out it was a complaint by Olympic sponsor GM that resulted in the humanitarian group being cut out of future Olympics.

Words and Music by Dean Laterra

main vocalist: Carly Weinstein (12 years old)

And she’s so fast, and she’s so strong, and she flips around, like she’s super girl, and I gotta know, how she does those tricks like that.

lyrics on the official website – Groovy Ruby

Cute.

Warning – terribly distorted photos are included in the video on YouTube.

(via mpk on the International Gymnast forum)

official website – Shawn Johnson

Maya Bielik started up a new gymnastics blog, the first and only in Hebrew. And in Israel.

From email:

Categories – elements, “our little country” (Israeli stuff), montages, college, nostalgy, documentary movies, laughter, Israeli competitions and worldwide competitions.

I’ve written about the Madrid worldcup, Georgia’s gymdogs and NCAA in general, I’ve put 6 documentaries by now, a post about Israel’s 2008 nationals, posts about Agnes Keleti, Olga Korbut, 50 years of Uneven Bars, Xiao Sha, Bela Karolyi, Romanian gymnasts, British gymnasts, Canadian gymnasts and much more.

Check it out at Gymania.net

Or in (garbled) English via Google Translate.

Maya had even posted a video from Canada that I had not seen, another from Oakville Gymnastics. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

related posts:

the rise of Oakville Gymnastics

Kelly Manjak – conditioning and bars

The UCLA Freshman sensation scored a perfect 10 on the same night that Georgia’s Courtney Kupets scored two perfect 10s at another meet.

“Perfect” is a red flag to most coaches. We know that any performance could be better. Higher, stronger, faster.

But I’ve got no complaints with Vanessa’s vault score in this meet. Wow!

Watch it on CBS College Sport.

She competes with Brittani McCullough, recall, likely the most powerful vaulter in College gymnastics today. Brittani stuck Yurchenko full in the same rotation for 9.95. Yet the judges were still willing to award a 10 to Zamarripa.

It was clean.

UCLA Bruins – Zamarripa Scores Perfect 10 On Vault In Win Over Cal State Fullerton

related post: judging breakdown – Yurchenko vault

Shocker of the night in the NCAA.

Amanda Castillo, Corey Hartung and Alicia Goodwin all fall on beam.

larger original – flickr – dogan2

No. 1 Florida Gymnastics Team Upset at No. 8 Arkansas 196.375-195.425

Florida Head Coach Rhonda Faehn:

“We are extremely disappointed in our performance this evening. It was not Florida gymnastics,” …

Gymblog has commentary.

Here’s a surprise.

Oksana Chusovitina has been appointed head coach of the Uzbek national team. The news is somewhat surprising in that Chusovitina recently said in an interview that she didn’t want to coach elite gymnasts as she didn’t like having to be tough on her pupils. Looks like she has changed her mind…

(photo: Marine/Gymnet)

Triple Full – Oksana Chusovitina Appointed Uzbek National Team Coach

I cannot believe this means she will retire.

More likely Oksana will end up competing for Uzbekistan.

UPDATE: Triple Full says Oksana is committed to compete for Germany. Hmmm.

Past & Present Gymnastics recommends gymnastics videos from the UK:

Coverage includes some interesting footage of some of the UKs top clubs, the national training centre and some of the major competitions in the UK (Acro Worlds 09, Glasgow Grand Prix, GB vs FRA, GB vs CZE, WAG, MAG, Trampoline & Rhythmic (Oh Dear) Nationals.

BGtv

Check it out on the British Gymnastics website – BGTV.

Look for interviews with Beth Tweddle, Lisa Mason, and coach Paul Hall. Also, a look at the Lilleshall Training Centre.

I’ve added a link in the right hand navigation under the VIDEO category.

After Shayla Worley, Ivana Hong was my favourite American gymnast of the last quadrennial.

As Amy Van Deusen says, ” … you can’t seem to take a bad picture of Ivana because her form is so good.”

sitesbymorgan – Brian Jones – larger version

more photos of Ivana

World gold medalist Ivana Hong will make the move to Plano, Texas-based WOGA to train under Valeri Liukin as soon as her right ankle heals enough to resume training, she told Inside Gymnastics earlier this week.

In the past few months, Hong, who turned 16 in December, has sampled several clubs across the U.S., but settled on the WOGA, home of the last two Olympic all-around champions, after a successful trial run in early January. …

Inside Gymnastics – Hong Headed to WOGA

Despite endless commentary I read about her problems leading up to the Beijing Olympics, I felt Ivana was extremely well trained by Al Fong and Armine Burutyan over the last quad. For an international gymnast she was an average talent, very well prepared. Her training of Yurchenko Double Twist, for example, was text book perfect. It’s amazing to me she can do that vault.

related posts:

Armine Barutyan – gymnast and coach

Is gymnastics coach Al Fong a changed man?

Courtney Kupets scored 10.0 on Bars and Beam to lead Georgia to victory over their arch rivals Alabama. This was Georgia Head Coach Suzanne Yoculan’s last dual meet vs Alabama Head Coach Sarah Patterson.

Yoculan retires at the end of this season.

In front of a crowd of 9,938 on Friday, the Gym Dogs posted a 197.175-196.275 victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Courtney Kupets posted a career-high 39.825 to win the all-around for the fourth meet in a row as the Gym Dogs moved to 4-0 for the season. Kupets’ 39.825 was the fourth highest all-around score in Georgia gymnastics history.

“There is no team in the history of my career that I would rather beat than Alabama,“ Georgia coach Suzanne Yoculan said. …

Gym Dogs Top Alabama

Why is Suzanne so irked with ‘Bama?

That’s an interesting story.

It’s a BIG rivalry.

… it all began to heat up when the teams were two of the best in the country.

The Gym Dogs captured their first NCAA Championship in 1987, and Alabama followed suit in 1988. Georgia won in 1989 and Alabama was victorious in 1991. Georgia captured its third title in 1993 and Alabama evened the rivalry in 1996.

“We were going back and forth,” Yoculan said. “We both had great teams and (Patterson) was working so hard to build attendance over there.”

“We had the same kind of challenges. She’s a big promoter.

“And she’d come up with an idea and I’d be like, ‘That’s awesome. I need to come up with a better idea.’ It would go back and forth like a ping-pong match.”

In 1995, when Alabama traveled to Georgia for a meet, a confrontation erupted during warmups when Patterson saw that Georgia did not have the most current uneven bars on the competition floor.

“The new spreader that came out made it better for taller girls,” Yoculan said. “We didn’t have it yet, but we weren’t required to. She just made a decision in her mind that we did it on purpose.”

Alabama had multiple falls on the uneven bars and subsequently suffered a loss to Georgia. Following the meet, the conflict continued.

“She went into the press conference and went on and on about the bars – that we deliberately did it,” Yoculan said. “That we didn’t have the equipment and that it affected the outcome of the meet. … And I would never do something like that. I wouldn’t not put the bars out there to get an edge.”

Yoculan responded with a quote she had read in a motivational book: “Losers make excuses; winners make adjustments,” and was later reprimanded by the school and SEC officials. …

Final flames in fiery feud – Yoculan, Patterson battle in final regular-season meet

Of course some speculate that the feud is “contrived to generate interest”. That’s at least partly true.

Utah Coach Greg Marsden noted that “both will probably be offended to learn that in some ways he thinks they’re similar”.

I expect these young gymnasts in China are doing up to 10min handstands in training. (The coach said they no longer do 30min handstands.)

That’s still far too long. Training muscular endurance of that duration will not help them in Artistic gymnastics. Except — perhaps — in terms of psychological toughness.

Note that the Chinese coaches do the handstands on a bar. That’s much safer on the wrist.