Entries from March 2009 ↓

Some jots have been posted online …

GymNiceTic – Podium Training at European Championships

… The comment that stood out to me was “Women’s Podium Training finished today in Milan without brilliance. Falls were common rather than isolated and the general skills level was not impressive,” maybe the new code isnt quite doing its job improving form and removing falls I just hope the actual competition is better. …

Gymnastics In Europe – European Championships Podium Training

GYMmedia European Championships coverage (German)

… Dancing last among the 11 couples, Johnson and Ballas performed an athletic, fast-paced routine that included a few front and back flips. They scored 25 out of 30 points, tying them with rodeo champion Ty Murray and partner Chelsie Hightower for the evening’s fourth-highest total. …

International Gymnast – Johnson Flips to Fourth-Place Tie on ‘Dancing’

Billionaire Apple founder Woz was eliminated.

Many noted how out of competition shape Shawn has gotten since Beijing.

GymNiceTic linked to the FIG press release confirming that the FIG A category World Cup from June 3-7 in San Juan, Puerto Rico has been cancelled.

The reason?

Sponsorship money they were counting on did not materialize.

There’s a world financial crisis, of course.

GymNiceTic – World Cup cancelled!

A call to arms from the Gymnastics Association of Texas:

Gymnastics Association of Texas and Texas USAG support the COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE version of House Bill 1393, authored Representative Leibowitz. Further, we call on Senator Nelson to change Senate Bill 68 by adopting the language of the Committee Substitute version of House Bill 1393.

…

We call all GAT members, parents, and gymnastics enthusiasts to join us in Austin at the Capitol Rotunda at 11:30 AM, THIS Thursday, April 2, 2009to make history! THIS IS OUR CHANCE to RAISE OUR VOICES and BE HEARD to SAVE OUR SPORT!

We need phone calls – emails – letters to your STATE representatives. Time is short ask all your team parents and coaches, everyone we MUST unite!

Gymnastics Association of Texas

I’m hopeful the amendment they support will be accepted.

Recall this awful accident from 2007?

Wang Yan, listed as 15 or 16 years-of-age, fell headfirst from the uneven parallel bars, breaking her neck and losing consciousness after attempting an audacious dismount. …

Teenage gymnast feared paralysed for life after horror fall | the Daily Mail

How is she doing now?

Teenager Wang Yan is walking, talking and text messaging her friends less than two years after suffering a nightmarish accident on the uneven bars that put her in a coma and was expected to leave her permanently paralyzed.

Wang, 17, no longer requires help with her day-to-day life after experiencing a miraculous recovery from surgery that saw her on crutches two months after her horrific tumble in the summer of 2007.

She said she is literally taking her rehabilitation one step at a time. “I am still walking very slowly and when I speed up, I lose my rhythm,” she was quoted as saying by Sina.com. …

Despite the poor to non-existent odds of her walking again after fracturing her second and third vertebrae, Wang is getting faster by the day during her rehab sessions at the hospital attached to Zhejiang Vocational College of Sports.

Doctors there say she will need their assistance for another 12 months. After that, Wang will be able to do all her rehab at home – a program she will need to follow for the rest of her life.

China Daily – From coma to cook, teen gymnast on the mend

One mistake can have a lifetime of consequence.

An interesting video was posted by igorgymn1 on YouTube.

There are some errors and ommissions. Correct and update the list, if you like, and post it in the comments.

Named Gymnastic Elements. High bar

MUSIC:
London mc – What is my name
Nightwish – Passion And The Opera

1) Adler;2) Carballo;3) Keler;4) Gienger;5) Finland uprise;6) Endo;7) Cuervo;8) Russian giant;9) Quast;10) Steineman;11) Yamawaki;12) Russian-czech giant;13) Koste;14) Jager;15) Hoffmann;16) Italian giant;17) Liukin I;18) Liukin II;19) Marinich (Xiao Ruizhi);20) Ono;21) Tkatchev;22) Tsukahara;23) Voronin;24) Zou Li Min;25) Pogorelov I;26) Pogorelov II;27) Rumbutis;28) Straumann;29) Hayden;30) Deltchev;31) Balabanov;32) Markelov;33) Piatti;34) Rybalko;35) Weiler;36) Watanabe;37) Stalder;38) Nicusor Pascu;39) Pegan;40) Kovacs;41) Gaylord I;42) Gaylord II;43) Suarez;44) Pineda;45) Maras;46) Krysin – Andrianov;47) Kolman;48) Fardan;49) Cassina;50) Fedorchenko;51) Shaham;52) Belle

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Is that Charles Lakes doing the Jaeger?

UPDATE:

I’ve removed it from the post. But you can still see the photo by clicking the link, if you wish.

==== original post:

waɪ.t posted a strange image from Prague, Czechoslovakia on flickr:

PHOTO REMOVED

the sacrifice of the gymnast – larger version

DWTS WEEK 4 Season 8, Episode 6 ( March 30 2009 )

The Lindy Hop in front of a live studio audience.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

This was something special, I thought.

But the judges wanted more dance, fewer tricks.

The best article I’ve seen yet on a misguided new set of regulations that could force gym owners to move to another State.

Legislation Could be a Blow to Gymnastics, Martial Arts

Some argue the bill protects kids, others believe it’s all about money

One great quote from the article:

… Texas currently produces more Olympic athletes than any other state in the union, and children often spend 30 to 40 hours a week training, even home schooling to have enough time. Injuries occur, but are par for the course of such intense training.

“In the Senate hearing last Tuesday, it was testified that 35 children have died in the state of Texas in licensed childcare facilities,” Dudley said. “But in gymnastics, we didn’t lose a single one.” …

NBC

… wing walking is the act of moving on the wings of an airplane during flight.

Capital Coastal

Agnes Skinner (fictional character from the Simpsons) was a wing walker in the 1920′s.

Selena is one of those rare gymnasts who could not seem to retire.

She finally did.

I love her stream of consciousness advice to the young kids still at her old club:

I miss it. Absolutely everything about it. I miss the crashes, the tears, the bruises, rips and cuts. The pressure, the pain, the rush. I miss flips, air sense, sore muscles and that feeling of accomplishment. I miss callused hands, sockless feet, spandex, stick it, and chalk. I’d do anything to nail a perfect beam routine, to stick all my tumbling lines or a dismount. I miss landing double backs and twisting tsuks. Toe on fronts, layout walkouts and front tucks on beam. I miss eating mat or twisting too hard and having a mouth full of foam. Yeah, I even miss conditioning. I miss rope climbs and working so hard your muscles shake. I miss overcoming fears, conquering skills. I miss competing, I miss being afraid. Take me back to the vault room, my locker covered in messages – to that smelly old gym I call home. I miss drama nights & laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe. Those outrageous ideas we’d come up with. I miss being inspirational, I miss being there. I miss the coaches…even when they yelled. Cause they believed in me when I stopped believing in myself. I miss travel meets – long bus rides and plane rides. I miss handstands in the elevator & milkshakes at midnight! I miss cheering so loud it hurts to talk, I miss march in. I miss nervousness, I miss the crowd. I miss walking on that floor, hearing my music; I miss the glory, the high scores and the low ones too. I miss that feeling that nothing but gymnastics gave me. Waking up everyday with unbelievably sore muscles but excited for training that night anyway. I miss stretching, the front tuck game and circuits. I even miss not being able to hang out because I had practice or training camp. I miss that security, that sanctuary that place where nothing else matters it’s just you and your passion. But more than anything…I miss the girls. I miss my team: those girls who I call family. Of course I miss the good times but I miss the bad ones too the hard ones, like saying goodbye – I still miss you everyday E.N., RIP. I miss being part of “that” team, I miss training nights and warming up to S Club 7. The goofy vault warm-ups, the support system, training groups and countless crazy times I miss being your captain; I miss each and every one of you. I miss every little bit of it, the good and the bad.

keep your chin’s up ladies.

WOW.

Brittney from Adrenaline in Denver is a strong gymnast with a bright future.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

More videos like this on the Gibson Athletics SaltoCafe YouTube channel.

At my gymnastics club this season we have many “first year” competitors.

First year in a new age / ability category.

I find that first year competitors work hard and make rapid progress. They are motivated to prove they should have “moved up“.

Sports Girls Play has an excellent post, however, on the other kind of season: The Confidence Season:

Sometimes the road to success is not the fast lane. …

… Each season we end up with a group of athletes who excel – they have mastered their skills, are relatively consistent in their performances, regularly place in the top third during awards, and are learning the next level skills with excitement. We also have a group of athletes we call “bubble kids” – they are making it through their routines, getting average or lower than average scores, are not getting called up for awards, and are not as ready for the next level skills. Sure we could push them ahead anyhow, but that often leads to discouragement, low self esteem, and the development of fears.

When the placements for the next season come out, many of the parents of our “bubble kids” get a little anxious. They worry that their child is being left behind, won’t be with her friends or will be bored. But more often than not, when we have these athletes stay at their current level, one year later we hear from the parents that it was the best decision they did not get to make! …

The Confidence Season

original – flickr – Sarah_Hawkins

more photos by Sarah_Hawkins tagged “gymnastics”

The decision on whether or not to “move up” next season is very individual. There are many variables.

It must be decided case-by-case.