… When we put on a meet we include a playroom for little siblings with a couple of volunteers as sitters/monitors. It really helps with the excess energy and/or boredom that the little ones may have and it frees up mom/dad to enjoy the meet. It has been a successful addition to our meets and we have had some very positive feedback from parents about it. …
Because it’s not a required skill in Canada, we rarely teach front hip circle. And I can’t see that our kids suffer in any way from this omission in their skills repertoire.
On the other hand, I actually like the skill and disagree that it teaches bad habits, long term. … But don‘t waste too much training time on it.
Brigid posted a wrap-up of last weekend’s WAG competitions. And a preview of the terrific meets upcoming.
Yao Jinnan, Julie Croket, Nadine Yarosch, Victoria Moors, Oksana Chusovitina, Bercy, Jesolo, Grishina, Maroney, Sidorova, …
… Nothing is known about the Japanese, whether they are coming or who they are bringing after the terrible disasters they have suffered …
When the 2011 FIG Artistic Gymnastics Challenge Cup series started off last weekend in Cottbus (GER), spectators enjoyed a diverse line-up of former world champions and internationally experienced gymnasts as well as a palette of newcomers debuting as seniors at the Lausitz Arena. The tournament featured … a record participation of some 230 gymnasts.
The medal table reflects a blend of young stars seasoned with the more experienced, titled athletes.
… Mustafina skipped the Russian championships in favor of last weekend’s American Cup, the first all-around World Cup of the year. Mustafina fell on floor exercise to lose the title to first-year senior Jordyn Wieber (U.S.), a controversial last-minute entrant. …
It was a last minute FIG decision to allow the host nation to choose a replacement athlete, not USAG.
… Perhaps we shouldn’t read too much into one throw away (translated) quote:
Valentina Rodionenko:
… Well, America is America. We expected that they would spare no effort to win. But everyone saw that Aliya’s upgraded routines are good. Before leaving for America she was a little unwell, which is also important to note. I think that in a week she will be at her peak. It is too early. The World Cup for us is not as important as the Europeans.” …
Spanny Tampson has done the most detailed analysis Mustafina vs Wieber I’ve seen. She concludes:
… despite an American winning in a last minute upset, there was no SCAM this year. If judges threw anyone favors, they were given to the world champion. All she needed to do was not fall, and the title was hers. She failed …
The most interesting part of her routine-by-routine comparison regards leaps. Mustafina is gorgeous:
But Jordyn’s are not bad, certainly far better than Shawn Johnson:
For larger images and much more click over to Big Fake Smile.
Recall she was injured earlier this season, tripping over a mat. 😦
The Russian team for the European championships, April 4-10 in Berlin, will be world all-around champion Aliya Mustafina, Anna Dementyeva, Tatiana Nabiyeva and Yulia Belokobylskaya. …
Russia’s men’s team for Europeans will be Anton Golotsutskov, Maxim Devyatovsky, Nikita Ignatyev, Alexander Balandin, Emin Garibov and Denis Ablyazin. …
Next week the annual Trofeo Di Citta De Jesolo will be competed.
For those of you who don’t remember last year, it was a great competition, purely and simply because it boasted an incredible field of athletes. Functioning as both a junior and senior competition, the nations slated to compete this year are Italy, Japan, USA and Russia.
You can either bring entire teams of seniors and juniors, or just a few. Last year the US only took two juniors, for example. This year they are bringing a whole lot more! …
… I’m guessing Nastia and Shawn will be there as reserves. 🙂
Even with some of the top Russians competing, I’m predicting we’ll be hearing the Star Spangled Banner a lot in Italy.
… Normally the American girls are reluctant to compete in Europe. They fear getting underscored. (Or fair scores, depending on who you talk to.) But they are taking no chances time.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 