Year: 2011

ButterflyGymnastics posted many of the top Bar routines in advance of World Championships.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Seitz and Tweddle do the most interesting and most “difficult” routines. I’ll be cheering for Beth.

Komova and He Kexin are the favourites, I reckon.

It’s hard to argue that the Code of Points “doesn’t work” on Bars. Those routines are fantastic. (Yet Pak to kip really is starting to look like a “let down”.)

(via Full Twist)

Recall Thelma Williams?

Couch Gymnast has been following her career: here, here and here.

It’s time for a follow-up chat in Tokyo:

T&T’s highest ranking gymnast, Thelma Williams, will make history as the only female gymnast to represent the country in a world championship next week. …

She has trained with her current coaches, Mc Dowell and Garcia since she was six years old. …

Guardian

She’s a fan favourite, for sure. Like her Facebook page.

(via Couch Gymnast)

T&T have a male gymnast, as well, named … a little bird told me … William ALBERT. He’s from Gymnastics Mississauga and competed at Commonwealth Games for Trinidad & Tobago.

It opens in Montréal.

Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour is an upcoming theatrical production by Cirque du Soleil …

The arena show—which is very similar to a rock concert—begins its tour October 2, 2011. After touring North America for about two years, it will continue on to Europe and the rest of the world. …

Gianinni interviews acrobats on the MJ Immortal World Tour about their experience and what MJ means to them as acrobats. …

Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.

A second Michael Jackson (resident) show opens early 2013 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.

(via Marceline Goldstein on Facebook)

… University of Oklahoma men’s gymnastics coach Mark Williams continued to bolster the international success of OU’s program by naming former Japanese Olympian Norimasa Iwai (pronounced “Nor-ee-mah-sa Ee-why”) as the Sooners’ assistant coach Wednesday.

Along with his numerous accolades as a competitor, Iwai has built up experience of coaching gymnasts at the Gymnastics Network and Swan Gymnastics Club in Japan and recently at the Houston Gymnastics Academy.

As a personal coach, Iwai guided United States gymnast Raj Bhavsar, who claimed a bronze medal in team competition at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China …

Sooner Sports

(via Akiko Kawai on Facebook)

Do we even want to know what she’s working? 🙂

I assume it’s a helmet cam.

Posted by Kazukuni Ohno on Facebook, the same coach who posts those quad turn videos.

Always upbeat and eloquent, Anna is posting from Worlds Tokyo.

AnnaLi.us

Albert Minguillón i Colomer has crunched the numbers more exhaustively than anyone else. Here’s his forecast:

The United States is the team to beat according to scores. They finish in first position in any case studied …

THE ALL AROUND – 2011 Worlds Predictions: WAG Team

1.Top 8: direct qualification to the Olympics.
2.Top 16: qualification to the London Test Event as a team, where top four teams will qualify to the Olympics.

Here’s my own prediction of the top 4 teams from prelims (the Olympic qualifying round) without crunching any numbers at all:

USA
China
Romania

Russia

Without Moustafina, I see Russia 4th. The withdrawal of Sandra Izbasa will not hurt Romania, I predict. (Though I’m going to miss her.)

There are more predictions like that from Albert. Jordyn Wieber will win the AA.

McKayla Maroney wins Vault. Komova Bars. Lauren Mitchell Floor & Beam. Details.

Use those predictions as a starting point, especially if you disagree. 🙂

Pan-Ams: LIVE video streams (multi-sport) | Artistic schedule | results (to come) | Grace Chiu photos
Coverage: Examiner | Full Twist

WORLDS Wrap-up: – wikipedia | Full Twist | Gymnastike | full results

On a “roll out” skill on Floor.

It’s hard to watch. But the video is here. (1min 15s)

Long banned in Women’s Artistic gymnastics, we see more of these dangerous skills in 2011 than ever before. They should be devalued in the next Men’s Code of Points.

What do you think?

Would you use a “Sweet Spot” as a hand mat for Vault?

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The first shown is the Jr. Sweet Spot. The second, the larger and thicker Sweet Spot.

I’d like to give it a try, inflating the mat tight.