A very detailed and original discussion on this important topic.
… the role human head position plays in Artistic Gymnastics Performance.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (10min)
Nick Blanton‘s is the definitive word on head position. Leave a comment if you know of any other resource similar.
What would change if humans had eyes in the back of their heads? Or on top? 🙂
UPDATE from Nick:
I started my “research” on head position after I went to the UEG Clinic in 2008 in Tirrenia, Italy. One of the coaches, Valentin Potapenko, was the former Soviet Union’s acrobatics coach – the “brains” behind the triple back.
Valentin was a big advocate of positioning of the head during tumbling and acrobatics. Ever since his lectures I have become fascinated with the positioning of the head and its effects. That video was an initial project into the venture – I am sure at some point I will update another video, or paper, highlighting further information…
Gymnastics Coaching.com 