Author: Rick Mc

Masako Kardos wrote to tell us of an upcoming FUN meet.

Azarian US Gymnastics Training Center in Aliso Viejo, CA on June 14.

… beginner to advanced, age 18+, are all welcomed to compete! You can choose either competition (scored) or non-scored exhibition … Events are, including Men and Women’s Olympic apparatus, Rope Climb, Tumbling and Tumble trak.

Please contact April Littlejohn, the meet coordinator.

e-mail alittlejohn7 AT cox.com

Azarian USGTC

The left picture shows Eduard Azarian, and the right one shows his father Albert. – source

The Azarian (back roll to Iron Cross on Rings) is named after Albert, the father, an Armenian.

Eduard Azarian, the son, is club President, Program Director & Boys Team Head Coach. And 1980 Olympic Gold medalist.

Is Eduard competing in his own meet, I wonder.

2008 National Champion David Sender of Stanford is going to Philadelphia!

Who else?

Ten of the team members advanced to Olympic Trials based on their two-day point totals. The men’s program committee named the four remaining gymnasts. Six of these athletes will win Olympic berths following the Trials, June 19-22 in Philadelphia.

Both Paul and Morgan Hamm of Waukesha, Wis., made the national team based on their point totals. Paul Hamm, who had to withdraw from Saturday’s competition after fracturing his hand during the opening night on the parallel bars, was still fifth overall with 46 points. Morgan Hamm was one point behind his brother.

Jonathan Horton (55 points)
Kevin Tan (54)
Joseph Hagerty (50)
David Durante (42)
Alexander Artemev (38)
Raj Bhavsar (36)
Sean Golden (36)

In the competition to determine who advanced to Trials, points were awarded on each event. Gymnasts earned 11 points for first place, 10 for second and so on down to 1 point for 10th place.

USA Today

The only question at the arena following the meet last night was: “Which 4 additional athletes would be invited?”

Justin Spring
Tim McNeill
Yewki Tomita
Guillermo Alvarez

These guys can thank the selection committee. They live to fight another day. All are legitimate candidates for the final team.

I talked to Guillermo’s father and he was very positive and confident that his son would be going to Beijing. All 14 athletes believe.

What great gymnasts does this leave off the possible team?

Steve Legendre (awesome Floor and Vault)
Todd Thornton (tons of experience)
Sho Nakamori (great Pommels, elegant gymnastics)
Wesley Haggensen (strong All-around)
Kyson Bunthuwong (young with terrific potential)
Clay Strother

And many more …

Congratulations to those who got through. It was a terrific battle. (If any of the 14 are injured for trials in Philadelphia — Paul Hamm, for example — I’m not sure if an “alternate” can be added. Leave a comment if you know.)

Related:

original posted on flickr by Malingering – who did gymnastics until she was age-20.

UPDATE: Juniors Danell Leyva, Alexy Biloserchev & Edward Mesa competed Senior in order to gain experience in an Olympic Trial meet. Thanks to Coach Sommer for pointing this out.

===== One to watch for the future.

Ishino, the 2007 silver medalist, won the 16-18 age division by nearly three points. He added individual titles on floor exercise, pommel horse, parallel bars and high bar, and won silver medals on still rings and vault.

Ishino said hitting his pommel horse set was the highlight for him. “Vault could have been a little better, but I’m glad I ended on p-bars, ended on a good event,” he said.

Ishino, a high school junior, has committed to attend Cal Berkeley. Sister Allyse Ishino, an alternate to the 2004 U.S. Olympic team, attends Bay Area rival Stanford University. …

International Gymnast

Junior 16-18 All-Around
1. Glen Ishino (SCATS-HB) 87.150
2. Donothan Bailey (Azarian) 84.250
3. Jake Dalton (Gym Nevada) 82.750
4. Russell Dabritz (Legends) 82.500
5. Alexander Naddour (Arizona Flairs) 82.350
6. Austin Phillips (US Dev Center II) 80.950
7. Christopher Stehl (Cypress Academy) 80.900
8. Glenn McCuen (WOGA) 80.400
9T. D.J. Repp (Gold Cup) 80.250
9T. Mackenzie Dow (Surgents Elite) 80.250

The youngest competitors are even better.

Junior 14-15 All-Around
1. John Orozco (World Cup) 86.000
2. Sam Mikulak (SCATS-HB) 84.450
3. C.J. Maestas (Gold Cup) 84.000
4. Jacoby Rubin (Buffalo Grove) 83.800
5. Cameron Rogers (Weyandts) 81.100
6. Dylan Akers (Cypress Academy) 80.650
7. Preston Ellsworth (WOGA) 80.450
8T. Matthew Del Junco (New Hope) 80.350
8T. Devin Burnett (WOGA) 80.350
10. Sean Senters (Parkettes) 80.250

U.S. Men’s Olympic Gymnastics Team prediction:

The first place I look for analysis on the Olympics is Andrew Thornton:

… at this point, my Olympic team would consist of Paul Hamm, Jonathan Horton, Sasha Artemev, Morgan Hamm, Kevin Tan, and still waiting to determine the last spot! Things can definitely change at this point as there are several guys right on the bubble. …

read why on Gymnast.com

Of course it is very, very early to be making these predictions. Not even the Olympic Team selectors will be looking that far forward yet.

Artemev needs a good meet tonight, Day 2, for sure. Certainly I expect him to hit and win Pommel Horse.

Who is the 6th man?

It may come down to who can score highest on pipe. Joseph Hagerty placed second on HBar Day 1 with a 6.60 A-score and a 8.700 B-score. 15.300 total. Plus he could be the second All-Arounder ahead of Horton and Artemev. Doing the AA gives Joseph an advantage, I think, over Justin Spring who finished 5th on HBar with 14.900 and 3rd on PBars with 15.350. Justin competes only 4 apparatus.

Under this scenario I would have Tan, Horton and Paul Hamm doing rings, still the team’s weakest apparatus vs the friendlies, China.

Paul Hamm has been through this twice before. I heard him say that the real contenders for the Olympics tend to stabilize performances as the Games approach. The team will become more obvious with each successive trial meet.

Chloe is a brilliant but inconsistent gymnast who surprisingly retired in the months leading up to Beijing.

I was sad to hear the reasons why. From a newspaper article:

… Battling an eating disorder and mental fatigue, [Sims] chose personal happiness over the ultimate prize of a shot at winning gold. It was the most difficult decision of her life, but for Sims it was the only way she could overcome her inner demons. “I was mentally unhealthy. I had a lot of problems. I had an eating disorder and I was under a lot of pressure,” she said. “Every morning I woke up and didn’t want to go to training. It felt like I was wasting my time and other people’s doing something I didn’t want to do.” …

Since severing ties with the inner-circle of the Australian gymnastic squad, Sims said she has experienced feelings of social alienation.“It’s hard not to go to the gym every day and see all my beautiful friends. We were very close but it’s hard to maintain that bond outside the sport,” she said. “My parents and my brother and sister are very supportive and have been incredible through all this.”

read more on the Gymnastics Australia blog

Chloe is only one of a number of Olympic candidates who stopped training in Australia. All for different reasons. Still, the National Team program, excellent in the past, needs to reassess.

Gymnastics Australia bio

larger photo – Chloe Sims official website

Only one man and one woman will compete in Beijing. The VISA Championships are the first step. (I was told the American alternates will also travel to the Olympics.)

HOUSTON, Texas, May 23, 2008 – 2005 U.S. trampoline champion Alaina Hebert of Broussard, La., and Steven Gluckstein of Atlantic Highlands, N.J., lead men’s and women’s trampoline, respectively, after the preliminary round at the 2008 Visa Championships at Reliant Park in Houston, Texas.

… read more — including Tumbling and Double-mini results — on USAG: Gluckstein, Hebert lead men’s, women’s trampoline at 2008 Visa Championships

The post links to photos and results. Here’s the ranking, so far.

You can get one of these cakes for yourself … if you live in Israel.

original – flickr

lilach cake company

In Second Life, some avatars are gymnasts.

larger version – flickr

Here’s a Second Life balance beam.

Senior – 2008 U.S. Classic, May 23, 2008, Reliant Arena, Houston, Texas.

* All-Around – Ashley Stott
* Vault – Mackenzie Caquatto
* Uneven Bars – Christa Tanella
* Balance Beam – Ashley Stott
* Floor Exercise – Randy Stageberg

UPDATE: full results – USAG

This small, little publicized competition actually drew a good crowd.

A number of NCAA coaches were in the audience, as well. Randy Stageberg, for one, has already signed with Florida.

Click PLAY or watch Randy on Floor at Gymnix 2008.