Year: 2011

Pixar’s John Lasseter has five children, all boys.

Though they make the most consistently excellent animated films, Pixar is often criticized for a bias towards male characters.

Perhaps that’s starting to change.

… Pixar has a forthcoming full-length movie, Brave, about a Scottish warrior-princess. It was slated to be directed by Brenda Chapman (Pixar’s first female director), then was replaced by Mark Andrews, with Chapman as co-director. …

Pixar’s gender gap

Click PLAY or watch the trailer YouTube.

related – The Fall of the Female Protagonist in Kids’ Movies

Kimberly Murphy announces the launch of their new website:

“Offering cute, comfortable, and affordable gymnastics leotards for gymnasts everywhere”

Check it out – gymnasticsleotards4u.com

Available worldwide.

… Gretchen Goerlitz will take the reigns as the first head coach in history for the Lady Lions gymnastics program. …

Goerlitz hails from Neenah, Wis. where she was a level 10 gymnast for seven years at Oshkosh Gymnastics Center. She has a skill named after her on the uneven bars.

In 2007 Goerlitz graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology with an emphasis in cognitive neuroscience from Denver and in 2009 earned her master’s degree in exercise physiology from Texas Woman’s. …

Gretchen Goerlitz Named Lindenwood’s First Gymnastics Head Coach

Check out the interesting splash screen for their program.

Norwegian Champion Karoline Sandov is on the team. Nice.

Click PLAY or watch an interview with the new coach on YouTube.

If we want the WAG NCAA not only to survive, but to thrive, we need cheer any school brave enough to add gymnastics. Lindenwood is in Saint Charles, Missouri.

(via “Get a Grip“)

Tony Retrosi recommends this drill posted by Mary Lee Tracy.

Shaping drills for twisting and pirouettes

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I’ve never used it before. But will now.

… It’s essentially a Facebook-lite/virtual world mashup that allows prepubescent youth to share, comment and like their friends’ updates, pictures, videos and more, while also meeting the protections dictated by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

… Woozworld now has over 15 million unique visitors per month from over 180 countries. The users have created over 8 million avatars and 16 million virtual spaces, and play for an average of 50 minutes per day. …

Previously in beta, the new social networking service officially rolls out on Tuesday here on www.woozworld.com. …

TechCrunch

I’m not sure I’ve seen a 5yr do a kip. Until now …

Click PLAY or watch her on YouTube.

Leave a comment if you’ve seen 4 or 5yr-olds who could do a kip.

This starts slow. But finishes strong. Just like the athlete who finds motivation.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I assume that’s from the TV show Friday Night Lights. Nope. Whodawhatta knew it’s from the 2006 movie Facing the Giants.

Gymnastics Canada:

… Attending the camp are: Talia Chiarelli and Dominique Pegg of Sarnia, Ont., (Bluewater), Madeline Gardiner, Victoria Moors (Dynamo), Mikaela Gerber (Oakville Gymnastics) , all of Cambridge, Ont., Brittany Rogers of Vancouver, (Flicka), Kristina Vaculik and Natalie Vaculik of Whitby, Ont.,, (Gemini), Bianca Dancose-Giambattisto of Montreal (Gym-Richelieu), Peng Peng Lee of Toronto, (Oakville Gymnastics), Anysia Unick of Calgary, (Stampede City).

“We’ll look at stability, content and difficulty and execution scores and make a decision based on how they perform,” says Canadian women’s program director Kayna Fletcher of Vancouver. “We’ll also look at what happened at worlds and at Pan Ams and at other international meets this fall.”

The women’s team will make its final preparations at a training camp in Essex, England.

source

Seven of those eleven will travel to England.

Is 11 enough? … Perhaps. If they are all healthy. But I’d certainly love to see more in the pool, pushing the top group.

I don’t know the specifics of why Natalie Vaculik is invited, Jessica Dowling and Sabrina Gill not. Some overly complex “points system”, I assume.

via Krystina Sankova Online

Seniors:
V: 1. Maksyuta ISR 14.787, 2. Marachkovskaya BLR 13.813, 3. Pavlova RUS 13.450
UB: 1. Komova RUS 15.850, 2. Mustafina RUS 15.475, 3. Sankova UKR 13.625
BB: 1. Komova RUS 14.700, 2. Maksyuta ISR 13.700, 3. Pavlova RUS 13.525
FX: 1. Komova RUS 14.800, 2. A. Sidorova RUS 14.225, 3. Maksyuta ISR 13.750

Krystina took the Bronze on Bars behind … a couple of pretty good gymnasts. 🙂

Russia has a bonus points system resulting in scores sometimes higher than FIG.

Finals videos via @theallaround. And on tsukaharatucked.

… the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has tried to do away with human frailties and introduced an electronic scoring system, with electronic sensors fitted in the players’ body armour and socks.

“It’s the best I’ve ever seen it,” said former Great Britain captain John Cullen at the recent Olympic test event in London. “It’s the fairest and it’s 99% accurate.” …

Previously, scoring was in the hands of four judges who would press a button to award and deduct points. For a point to register, at least two judges had to press their buttons. …

“Now, it’s a sensor in the sock and the body. When they connect with good power and good contact, the point registers automatically, which removes the subjectivity of it.” …

It is all part of the plan to prove that taekwondo, which only made its Olympic debut at the 2000 Sydney Games, is worthy of Olympic inclusion when, in 2013, the International Olympic Committee reviews which sports will remain.

read more on BBC – London 2012: Technology transforms taekwondo for Olympics

Trampoline added an electronic component to scoring. When will other FIG disciplines try it?

via @Jess_BBCSport