Last time I took Canadian boys to a U.S. competition I was reminded of the biggest problem with the American development program — they push young boys on to the F.I.G. pommel horse too soon.
Forcing kids who cannot do excellent circles to do routines on the Olympic horse ruins technique. At that meet — Peter Vidmar 2004 (photos) — every coach I spoke with agreed. As did the judge on pommels.
I know because I forced the issue by taking the pommels off the horse. The Canadian boys looked great — but scored 0.0 — as we had been informed in advance.
We learned from the Chinese in the 1970s to delay the start of high pommel training for as long as possible. When will the USA catch up?
Also, I’m concerned about injuries on pommel horse. The falls are much more dangerous than they look. If I have extra mats, I use them on pommels.
photo – 16-year-old Ivan Bulyha
Gymnastics Coaching.com 