Author: Rick Mc

World Champion Uchimura won Horizontal Bar last weekend at the French Invitational over Yann Cucherat and Jon Horton. He didn’t use this new skill, … yet.

Click PLAY or watch him close to catching on YouTube.

Thanks Amanda Turner, who linked to this video on Facebook.

Cam on World Gymnastics posted the most detailed analysis I’ve seen so far:

Now the fun part… My predictions on who might win.

Team: UCLA, Florida or Oklahoma.

All three teams have been exceptionally strong this season, and with UCLA hitting their stride starting with the Pac-10 Championships, they could take it all. But don’t count out Florida or Oklahoma.

All-Around: Vanessa Zamarripa, Ashanee Dickerson, Sarah Shire, Susan Jackson, Casey Jo Magee, Brandi Personett.

Vault: Vanessa Zamarripa, Susan Jackson, Mandi Rodriguez, Brandi Personett, Morgan Dennis.

Uneven Bars: Anna Li, Laura-Ann Chong, Hollie Vise, Vanessa Zamarripa.

Balance Beam: Courtney McCool, Hollie Vise, Casey Jo Magee, Ashley Priess, Vanessa Zamarripa.

Floor Exercise: Jackie Flanery, Brandi Personett, Mandi Rodriguez, Courtney McCool.

Check his rationale – Looking Forward to Nationals

Let’s add my own picks:

Team: UCLA

All-Around: Vanessa Zamarripa

Vault: Susan Jackson

Uneven Bars: Anna Li

Balance Beam: Courtney McCool

Floor Exercise: Brittani McCullough

Susan will win vault again because (stupidly) finalists at NCAA Championships must have two different 10.0 vaults. Many of the top ranked vaulters never train a second.

That fan boy, Aunt Joyce, details the reasons why UCLA will win team in a post called Get It Done, Bruins!.

I just stumbled on a blog called Ellen, You Would Love UCLA Gymnastics!. … Dedicated to getting the team on the TV show.

Could happen …

Big Fake Smile “forever be obsessed with the 1996 Olympic team“.

Along with her great new website, Spanny Tampson is an excellent montage editor.

Click PLAY or watch The Mag 7 Did Somethin’ on YouTube.

Mainly it reminds me how much I miss Compulsory routines.

See more of her uploads on the spannytampson YouTube channel.

Gymnastics Examiner and many other sites are doing detailed in-gym coverage.

Andy Thornton, for one, is already dissecting routines (link fixed) as they appear on the internet.

I’ll wait until the chalk dust settles, and post highlights over the coming week.

Dory Dynna was one of those nuts who tried to watch all 4 of the Gymnastics NCAA Regional championships streamed live online yesterday.

… because of time zones, there was only about half an hour when all 4 were on at once. However, was watching 3 at once for most of the evening. …

It’s still problematic. But improving rapidly.

Leave a comment, good or bad, if you tried watching the streaming yesterday.

The Thursday of Championships is the best, most interesting day.

April 22, 2010
Stephen O’Connell Center
Gainesville, Florida
2010 NCAA Women’s National Gymnastics Championships

Session 1 (afternoon session)
#1 seed UCLA
#4 seed Oklahoma
#5 seed Utah
#8 seed Oregon State
#9 seed LSU
#12 seed Nebraska

Session 2 (evening session)
#2 seed Florida
#3 seed Alabama
#6 seed Stanford
#7 seed Arkansas
#10 seed Missouri
#11 seed Michigan

If you want to win the Team championships, first you must qualify top 3 in your preliminary Session. The strategy is to go “safe” this day. Any team counting a fall is likely out.

In the Team Final you might take more chances in order to (very slightly) increase your possible Team score. Last year, however, I recall that Georgia made no changes from Prelims to Team Finals.

I don’t have a flight to Gainsville nor tickets, as yet. But I’m leaning towards making the trip. It’s going to be great.

That’s the “story line”.

Here’s Anna Li’s most recent “perfect 10” on Bars. Note the slight wow in one handstand. But I was there. It deserved the 10, in my opinion.

Click PLAY or watch the UCLA TV meet summary on YouTube.

(via @Gymbe4, Anna Li)

Peaking early?

Too much hype?

I don’t think so. These girls are believers.

Gymnastic Examiner’s Blythe Lawrence is at the French International:

… Qualifiers to Sunday’s finals (full results can be seen here):

WOMEN’S VAULT:
1. Youna Dufournet, FRA
2. Jiang Tong, CHN
3. Melodi Pulgarin, ESP
4. Emily Little, AUS
5. Brittany Rogers, CAN
6. Niamh Rippin, GBR
7. Nastassia Zaitsava, BLR
8. Gabriela Janik, POL

UNEVEN BARS:
1. Beth Tweddle, GBR
2. He Kexin, CHN
3. Wu Liufang, CHN
4. Youna Dufournet, FRA
5. Aliya Mustafina, RUS
6. Pauline Morel, FRA
7. Jessica Lopez, VEN
8. Vasiliki Millousi, GRE

BALANCE BEAM:
1. Wu Liufang, CHN
2. Luisa Galiulina, UZE
3. Aliya Mustafina, RUS
4. Vasiliki Millousi, GRE
5. Ana Maria Izurieta, ESP
6. Jessica Lopez, VEN
7. Pauline Morel, FRA
8. Jiang Tong, CHN

FLOOR EXERCISE:
1. Beth Tweddle, GBR
2. Jiang Tong, CHN
3. Luisa Galiulina, UZE
4. Wu Liufang, CHN
5. Marine Brevet, FRA
6. Jessica Lopez, VEN
7. Ramilya Musina, RUS
8. Niamh Rippin, GBR

MEN’S FLOOR EXERCISE:
1. Diego Hypolito, BRA
2. Alexander Shatilov, ISR
3. Eleftherios Kosmidis, GRE
4. Tomislav Markovic, CRO
5. Du Wei, CHN
6. Gael da Silva, FRA
7. Isaac Botella, ESP
8. Jeffrey Wammes, NED

POMMEL HORSE:
1. Cyril Tommasone, FRA
2. Robert Seligman, CRO
3. Saso Bertoncelj, SLO
4. Donna Donny Truyens, BEL
5. Andrey Perevoznikov, RUS
6. Zoltan Kallai, HUN
7. Pavel Russinyak, RUS
8. Yann Rayepin, FRA

STILL RINGS:
1. Samir Ait Said, FRA
2. Timur Kurbanbayev, KAZ
3. Anton Fokin, UZB
4. Kohei Uchimura, JPN
5. Jonathan Horton, USA
6. Gustavo Palma Simoes, POR
7. Arthur Zanetti, BRA
8. Ihar Kazlou, BLR

VAULT:
1. Stanislav Valeiev, KAZ
2. Isaac Botella, ESP
3. Diego Hypolito, BRA
4. Jeffrey Wammes, NED
5. Sergio Sasaki Junior, BRA
6. Wai Hung Shek, HKG
7. Luis Araujo, POR
8. Yann Rayepin, FRA

PARALLEL BARS:
1. Anton Fokin, UZB
2. Takuya Nakase, JPN
3. Vasileios Tsolakidis, GRE
4. Yann Cucherat, FRA
5. Roman Kulesza, POL
6. Guo Weiyang, CHN
7. Alexander Tsarevich, BLR
8. Hamilton Sabot, FRA

HIGH BAR:
1. Kohei Uchimura, JPN
2. Jonathan Horton, USA
3. Rafael Martinez, ESP
4. Epke Zonderland, NED
5. Aljaz Pegan, SLO
6. Yann Cucherat, FRA
7. Samuel Piasecky, SVK
8. Roman Kulesza, POL

commentary – Beth Tweddle, three French gymnasts lead after day one at French International

The Men’s competition is stronger. As usual.

“Kazakhstan’s Stanislav Valeiev threw a pretty effortless looking Dragulescu (handspring double front half out) and followed up with a nearly stuck Tsukahara double back …”

While He Kexin “struggled” and fell on dismount, still qualifying in second place on Bars.

http://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/PicAppPIS/JavaScript/PisV4.js

From Couch Gymnast, UCLA Qualifies on Top …

197.825 – UCLA
197.675 – Florida
197.400 – Alabama
197.250 – Oklahoma
196.900 – Utah
196.775 – Stanford
196.675 – Arkansas
196.500 – Missouri
196.400 – Louisiana State
196.275 – Oregon State
195.975 – Nebraska
195.800 – Michigan

Most agree that the biggest shock was that the 5-time defending National Champions did not advance.

Here’s the least satisfied man in Gymnastics tonight, Jay Clark, Head Coach of Georgia.

World Gymnastics called University of Missouri making their first trip to the NCAA Championships the biggest surprise of the day. Senior Sarah Shire rocked the house for Mizzou.

Is it true that Sarah was named NCAA Gymnast of the Year?

I’d say she deserved it for leading her team into the big show for the first time.

Update: Florida’s coaching staff “cheered enthusiastically” upon hearing that Georgia had been eliminated.

They are back.

Congratulations to Head Coach Dan Kendig and everyone in Lincoln.

… The 12th-ranked Nebraska women’s gymnastics team posted a score of 195.875 Saturday night at the University of Kentucky’s Memorial Coliseum to finish second at the NCAA Central Regional and earn a berth to the NCAA Championships in Gainesville, Fla. April 22-24.

“It’s good to get back to the big dance,” Head Coach Dan Kendig said. …

<a target="_blank" href="http://www.huskers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=74&SPID=30&ATCLID=204926302&amp;

DB_OEM_ID=100″>Huskers.com

And they did it without Kylie Stone, out with injury.