Entries from May 2009 ↓

This Canadian gymnastics coaching course is rarely offered.

We held the last one in my Province May 2008 in Calgary.

If you need it, email Cynthia at Gymnastics Alberta to add your name to the growing list of candidates. When we have enough names, we can schedule that course.

cbringas AT abgym.ab.ca

This same course is scheduled for end of June in Charlottetown, PEI, by the way.

On Facebook, Inside Gymnastics commented on another rule change by the International Gymnastics Federation.

… a raising of the age limit for artistic male gymnastics. Citing the International Olympic Committee’s Youth Olympic Games rules and following “heated debate,” the FIG voted to raise men’s age limits to 18 for senior competition (i.e. World/Olympic), starting January 1, 2013. (The beginning of the next Olympic cycle.) …

I do like the very long lead time on changes like this.

But – I’m confused – does this mean the Men’s age requirement is different than the Women’s age requirement?

If so, that would mean that male gymnasts need even more protection from over-training at a young age than female gymnasts.

Anyone in the sport can tell you that coaches push far less in Men’s gymnastics as there is far less rush to peak for the career.

This looks like yet another bad decision by FIG.

Yet one that will have very little effect in the real world as most Seniors competing internationally are of that age now.

But there are exceptions:

… Multiple past men’s World and Olympic stars have been under 18, notably Dmitri Bilozertchev, who won Worlds at just 16 in 1983 with what many consider the most dominant performance in history, and China’s Feng Jing, the youngest-ever men’s World champ in 2001. (Also 16, Feng was several months younger than the December-born Bilozertchev.) …

Feng Jing did not make the 2008 Olympic team. But he just won the Chinese National Championships.

The original FIG Council Official News blurb dated May 26, 2009.

Gymnastics Training Tips offers books, articles and many other products.

They post a free calendar each month.

Gymnastics Training Tips – calendar

Two-time Olympian Morgan Hamm of Waukesha, Wis., and Megan C. Shemanske were married on Saturday, May 23, at the Sharon Lynn Wilson Center in Brookfield, Wis. Paul Hamm, 2004 Olympic all-around champion and Morgan’s twin, was the best man. …

Also in attendance were 2008 assistant Olympic coach Miles Avery, who coached both Hamms, and his wife, and gymnasts and coach Andre Kan from Swiss Turners Gymnastics Academy.

The couple will live in Chicago, where M. Hamm is interviewing to work in the stock market.

USAG

MorganHamm.com

(via Inside Gymnastics on Facebook)

I’m just home from our last competition of the year. And it was a good one.

The theme was Super Hero. And there were some terrific costumes.

Even better was the fantastic weather in the Canadian Rockies. In fact, Men’s coach Kelly Mock moved the pommel horse rotation outside so everyone could enjoy the scenery.

My favourite special prize was the “speeding ticket”, a $5 prize for the vaulter with the fastest run.

Thanks Marilou Gariepy and the entire Summit organizing committee.

The upcoming schedule of clinics through to October 2009 has been posted on GymSmarts.

GEW offers affordable workshop that provides tools and ideas to improve, educate and motivate gymnastics class instructors to teach recreational and preschool gymnasts.

Cost $45-$69 / coach for the day long session.

They have excellent coach clinicians led by Cheryl Jarrett from Austin, Texas. She’s the USA Gymnastics Junior Olympic Committee Chairman for Region 3 as well as Director of Education for Gymnastics Association of Texas-(GAT).

Sign up here.

Reiko recommends we check out the 2 day camp for instructors in July in New York.

You for $155 you get a day & 1/2 of workshops, overnight stay & meals. Plus you can add-on the USA Gymnastics saftey course on the Sunday afternoon.

Who is MostepanovaFan?

We are not worthy.

Here’s a sample video code of points difficulty analysis (2008 Olympics) from MostepanovaFan.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Of course these will quickly become out-of-date as the good ladies of the FIG change the rules. But it’s the fastest, easiest way to get a quick overview of how modern International routines are put together.

In fact the sample above is already long out-of-date. The women count only the top 8 skills now.

Click through to the MostepanovaFan channel on YouTube for more including:

As coaches we talk a lot about line and posture.

But how’s your posture, coach?

I am definitely image #1. Monkey posture.

Trainer Pete Friesen, now with the Carolina Hurricanes, wanted to put me in a text book as typical male gymnast bad posture.

The image came from a post on Full Twist – The Educator.

IG is reporting that FIG has made a drastic rules change to improve our sport.

Artistic gymnastics is getting a new “kiss and cry” area, the FIG announced Saturday.

“The Federation is taking steps toward making its competitions more entertaining …

Artistic gymnasts will join figure skaters and rhythmic gymnasts, who already wait in the score zone to receive their marks after competing.

Gymnastics competitions are in “dire need” of overhaul, the FIG Executive Committee and Council decided following a meeting in Lillestroem, Norway. …

IG – Gymnastics Adds ‘Kiss and Cry’ Score Zone

The GymBlogosphere is near unanimous in response:

… Dear FIG,

Remove your collective heads from your collective anal sphincters …

thailek – IG Forum

Blythe on Gymblog:

… What better way to make gymnastics look less like a sport and more like a beauty contest or reality TV show. …

How embarrassing is this going to be for Men’s Gymnastics?

Now … I don’t mind a rendezvous spot on the competition Floor for coach and athlete to meet after the routine. This is done often now for TV broadcasts. It might even look spontaneous and natural.

FIG is clearly a disaster. Great people. But great people who are making one bad decision after another.

It’s time for a coupe.

We need support a block to replace Grandi and his long time supporters.

After we posted the routine of up-and-coming Ring man CJ Maestas, several wrote in to point out that Scott Rosenthal, at Level 10, is as good or better.

Better strength, I’d say, judging from this training footage.

Click PLAY or watch one of Scott’s competition routines on YouTube.

Scott Rosenthal from Gemini Gymnastics has committed to Penn State, home of Ring man Kevin Tan.

The PERFECT 15.75 …

What if Grandi had his way in the 70′s?

source – All Gymnastics, All the Time

I was surprised at some of the negative comments about Anna Myzdrikova’s Floor routine.

Certainly it does not compare with the greats of the past. But Myzdrikova is much better than most other routines under the current code of points. Anna is much better than He Ning from China, for just one contemporary example.

Here’s one of the great routines from the past that is much, much better in every way.

Click PLAY or watch Lilia Podkopaeyva (Ukraine) at the 1996 Olympics on YouTube.

So elegant. Amazing tumbling. And how I miss the days when girls did not walk backwards into the corners.

Watch 2 more favourites Simona Amanar (Romania) 1996 and Dominique Moceanu (USA) 1996 on Full Twist – Favourite Routines.

The Couch Gymnast has a terrifc rant on this subject – Grace vs Power .

Leave a comment if you have your own favourite Floor routine(s).

Raj Bhavsar already has a skill named after him on Rings.

At the upcoming World Cup meet in Moscow he plans to unveil another “new” skill, this time on P Bars.

… Bhavsar will be one of four U.S. gymnastics, joining national all-around champion David Sender, Olympic bronze medalist Joey Hagerty and University of Oklahoma gymnast Chris Brooks of Houston, who will compete May 29-30 in Moscow at an International Gymnastics Federation World Cup.

Bhavsar will compete on rings and parallel bars, but his primary incentive for the trip is the chance to get his name in the FIG code of points if he completes an above-bar release skill on parallel bars that he has been practicing since 2007.

“It starts from one end of the bar and finishes at the other end, and I think I’ve got it down,” he said. “It’s like any skill – more hits than misses. I’m 95 percent there.” …

Chronicle

Leave a comment if you know his new trick.

Normally competing a skill at a World Cup is not enough to get into the Code of Points. That might happen if he competes it at the World Championships.

He is Rajnastics on twitter.

Best tweet from Raj: “Enough whine about swine.”

Hey, Utah Coach Greg Marsden just joined twitter. He’s a bit slow to the party. Surprising since Greg and Utah are often first to do things online.