A.I. will not replace Gymnastics Coaches

Tony Retrosi:

In my upcoming book, Coaches as Educators, I make the argument that gymnastics coaching is one of the relatively few professions that would be extremely difficult to replace with artificial intelligence.

At least the parts of coaching that really matter.

Think about it.

AI can tell you that a gymnast’s handstand was 12 degrees from vertical. It may even be able to tell you WHY. But can it look deeper and realize that we do not coach or teach skills. We coach and teach PEOPLE.

Maybe the gymnast lacks shoulder flexibility. Maybe their body alignment is wrong. Maybe they are afraid of going over the top. Maybe they are physically exhausted.

Or maybe their parents were arguing in the car on the way to practice and they haven’t been able to concentrate on anything since they walked into the gym. …

AI Can Judge a Handstand. But Can It Coach a Gymnast?

Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships ’26 RESULTS

Full results are up on Wikipedia.

The 39th FIG Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships concluded on November 8, 2026, in Nanjing, China.

Russia topped the overall medal table with 6 gold medals and 12 total medals, followed by Belarus with 3 golds and China with 2 golds.

Click PLAY or watch Finals day 1 highlights on YouTube.

Click PLAY or watch Finals day 2 highlights on YouTube.

Click PLAY or watch Finals day 3 highlights on YouTube.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Daniil Smirnov wins Mens Youth Olympic Games

  1. Daniil Smirnov (Russian Federation): 81.298
  2. Uzair Chowdhury (Great Britain): 79.132
  3. Nishihara Ikki (Japan): 79.065
  4. Yang Lanbin (People’s Republic of China): 78.465
  5. Shiroiwa Naoto (Japan): 76.265
  6. Li Lezheng (People’s Republic of China): 74.964
  7. Giacomo Capuzzo (Italy): 74.864
  8. Maxime Rolin (Belgium): 74.731
  9. Samuel Wachter (Austria): 74.231
  10. Abdallah Shaarawy (Egypt): 74.131

Daniil Smirnov of the Russian Federation took home the men’s artistic gymnastics all-around gold at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on Tuesday (10 November), scoring 81.298 to finish ahead of Great Britain’s Uzair Chowdhury (79.132) and Japan’s Nishihara Ikki (79.065).

It was a remarkable turnaround for 17-year-old Smirnov, who qualified sixth with 76.764, more than four points behind top qualifier Chowdhury. With scores reset for the final, however, the Russian made the most of his second chance.

Dakar 2026: Daniil Smirnov crowned men’s artistic gymnastics all-around champion

Russia’s Daniil Smirnov wins Youth Olympic all-around title

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Polina Dmitrieva wins Youth Olympic Games

1. Polina Dmitrieva RUS 54.665
2. Louane Plisson FRA 53.665
3. Zhong Qi CHN 53.199
4. Clarissa Rinaldi ITA 53.066
5. Minamino Yume JPN 52.599
6. Togo Nanami JPN 52.532
7. Xie Guying CHN 51.299
8. Helena Finc GBR 50.031
9. Lilou Marliac FRA 49.432
10. Emma Sneessens BEL 49.065

So, Putin’s dictatorship had the top AA gymnast in both Men’s and Women’s Artistic Gymnastics. The future for that nation looks as good as ever despite the years banned from international meets.

Polina Dmitrieva produced a decisive final performance to win the women’s artistic gymnasticsall-around title at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on Tuesday (10 November), with France’s Louane Plisson and the People’s Republic of China’s Zhong Qi joining her on the podium.

Representing the Russian Federation, the 14-year-old had qualified third in the preliminary rounds but raised her game in the final, finishing on a winning 54.665 points. …

Dakar 2026: Polina Dmitrieva sets the bar by taking gold in closely fought women’s all-around final

Lauren posted a LIVE blog.

Mexico at World Gymnastics Championships Rotterdam

Everybody happy. A terrific showing.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Cecile Landi is one of the coaches.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

improving Cartwheels

Great cartwheels lead to great Round-offs. And to great Yurchenkos.

Power Tumblers train cartwheel series, for example.

Here are some advanced Cartwheel drills.

Click PLAY or watch it on Instagram.

Skye Blakely inspired by Gabby Douglas

At Rotterdam Worlds, Skye’s 1/1 twist on Beam instantly reminded me of Gabby.

Click PLAY or watch it on Instagram.

Click PLAY or watch it on Instagram.

Men’s Gymnastics Online European Club Cup

European Gymnastics is launching a brand-new competition for Men’s Artistic Gymnastics (MAG): the MAG Online European Club Cup (ECC).

The pilot season will bring together up to 32 leading clubs from across Europe, competing entirely online from their home facilities through the Elevien platform.

  • Prize pool & recognition – Compete for a share of the prize pool while gaining recognition at European level.
  • Fan & media exposure – Bring your club into the spotlight and create new opportunities to engage with fans and media.

Great idea. Save money while offering more opportunities for competition.

  • Group Stage – Matchday 1: 23-29 November 2026
  • Group Stage – Matchday 2: 30 November – 6 December 2026
  • Group Stage – Matchday 3: 7-13 December 2026
  • Knockout – Round of 16 & Quarter-finals recording: 11-17 January 2027
  • Final 4 – Reconrding window: 28-30 January 2027
  • Final 4 – Results: 31 January 2027

Details.

Worlds 2026 Rotterdam Fujitsu Judging Support System Webinar Summary

Well … I’m a supporter of the Fujitsu experiment. But it’s early days.

The software in 2026 is limited. It can’t analyze curved lines of the body, for example.

In Rotterdam we ASSuMEd the software resulted in more severe evaluation of layout and pike positions, downgrading some that had not been downgraded even weeks and months before Worlds. Unethical and unfair.

Here’s a summary of the 2 hour and 40 minute webinar. That link takes you to the video on YouTube.

JSS – Fujitsu Webinar SummaryDownload