Degrees of Difficulty by Georgia Cervin

How Women’s Gymnastics Rose to Prominence and Fell from Grace

How the Cold War era changed the trajectory of women’s gymnastics

Georgia Cervin is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia and a former international gymnast.

Electrifying athletes like Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci helped make women’s artistic gymnastics one of the most popular events in the Olympic Games.

But the transition of gymnastics from a women’s sport to a girl’s sport in the 1970s also laid the foundation for a system of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse of gymnasts around the world.

Georgia Cervin offers a unique history of women’s gymnastics, examining how the high-stakes diplomatic rivalry of the Cold War created a breeding ground for exploitation. …

Cervin also charts the changes in style, equipment, training, and participants that transformed the sport, as explosive athleticism replaced balletic grace and gymnastics dominance shifted from East to West. …

Buy it here.

Olivia Karas has a book

She wrote it with her father.

Confessions of a Division 1 Athlete

A Dad and Daughter’s Guide to Survival

A dream is finally a reality. My dad @JimKaras1 and I wrote a book together about my experience at Michigan. It’s raw, it’s honest, it’s funny, & it’s real. And I’m proud of it. You can preorder it at https://t.co/GYVGalrlMl before it launches on 6/15! Forever and always, Go Blue pic.twitter.com/iGXSSlaelB
— Olivia Karas (@lil_livkay) June 8, 2021

meet Kyle Shewfelt

As a promotion for his new book — make it happen — the Olympic Floor Champion is giving away signed copies and meeting with folks like you online.

#PositivePowerContest @GymCastic @kyleshewfelt

CONTEST: Have a coach who made a positive impact on your life?
Enter: who was the coach who made the biggest positive impact on your life and why? Photos encouraged but not required. Use #PositivePowerContest tag @GymCastic & @kyleshewfelt
Win: signed book & 15-min. chat w/ Kyle pic.twitter.com/qDxAYSV4zQ
— GymCastic (@GymCastic) June 2, 2021

Kyle Shewfelt – make it happen

Available on Amazon.

3-time Olympian and Floor champion — Kyle Shewfelt — has finally released his biography. He’d been working on it since 2004.

A great read for everyone. Life lessons through sport.

I still recall Kyle‘s first day at Altadore Gym Club in Calgary, Canada.

He was 6-years-old. And obviously talented.

At age-22 Kyle was Olympic Floor champion.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Kelly Manjak coached Kyle from pre-competitive through two Olympics.

The EASY thing to do in 2004 as Olympic Champion was to retire. At the top.

BUT after a good break, Kyle decided to keep training for Beijing 2008. His 3rd Olympic cycle turned out to be the most challenging.

Changes to the Code of Points in 2006 didn’t help.

Kyle’s idol was Alexi Nemov for his artistry and style. Like Nemov, Kyle was a fan favourite.

Though I knew the story well — coaching at his club in 2004 — I was still enthralled to hear it told from Kyle’s point of view. Know that he’s very modest in this telling.

It’s well written as Kyle worked on his sports biography together with Blythe Lawrence. And had editing by Steve Cooper.

For 10 years, while one of the best in the world on Vault and Floor, Kyle was the most consistent. The more pressure, the more likely he’d HIT.

Kyle took maximum advantage of specialists: sport psychologist Hap Davis, dietitian Kelly Anne Erdman, physiotherapist Susan Massitti, and many others.

Uldi Hajdu, Eugene Galperin, Edouard Iarov and Tony Smith are additional coaches Kyle credits in the book.

Today Kyle Shewfelt is a public speaker, broadcaster, Gym owner and father who believes in “optimism and the power of a high five“.

I’d recommend the audio version, as it’s read by Kyle himself.

Alternatively, you can buy a personalized signed copy online. An ideal gift.

Related – The Hungarian Academy Award nominated film featuring Kyle – White Palms.

Listen to a new interview with Kyle. It starts 1 hour 18min into the podcast.

Lessons From Rotterdam: Robot Judges, Sabotage Chalk and What Worlds Taught Us – GymCastic: The Gymnastics Podcast

We're back from Rotterdam with our biggest takeaways from the 2026 World Championships: why imposing AI judging a month before Worlds was unfair, how the Netherlands put on an exceptional Worlds, the broken podium and why equipment should be checked every rotation, sabotage chalk, why the U.S. women need a beam exchange in China, deadlines for non-traveling alternates, and how to fix slow event finals. Plus Morinari Watanabe tells The Athletic his dream is "no judges, only computers," Ana Bărbosu loses her whereabouts appeal, Meta keeps hosting AI-generated abuse videos of young gymnasts (report them), and the Swiss Cup shows off mixed pairs. Also: the Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play, Federico Molinari convicted of grooming, the death of legendary coach Leonid Arkayev, and your questions on coaches' travel, starting TeamGym and whether different lineups would have mattered in Rotterdam. Want ad-free episodes and a weekly members-only show, Behind the Scenes, live every Friday? Join Club Gym Nerd. GymCastic Live GymCastic Live in New York City: Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm ET (4:00 pm PT), with special guest Katelyn Ohashi. In person at HERE in SoHo, or stream it live from anywhere. Missed anything from Rotterdam? All 10 of our Worlds shows are at the 2026 World Championship Headquarters. Chapters 00:00 Back from Rotterdam + NYC live show with Katelyn Ohashi 01:39 Youth Olympic Games: China wins the mixed team 03:06 Meta hosting AI-generated abuse videos of gymnasts 06:38 Swiss Cup mixed pairs: France beats Germany 11:41 Ana Bărbosu loses her CAS whereabouts appeal 14:55 Watanabe: "Our dream is to have no judges" 17:59 NYC live show and Club Gym Nerd 20:57 Takeaways from Rotterdam: narratives are fleeting 24:16 AI judging a month before Worlds was unfair 24:52 An exceptional Worlds, and checking the podium every rotation 28:04 NCAA makes world champions 29:15 Watch out for sabotage chalk 30:33 A beam exchange in China, and alternates need deadlines 31:55 Fixing slow event finals 36:17 Gymternet news: breast injuries and sports bras 38:11 Federico Molinari convicted; Leonid Arkayev dies at 86 39:38 Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play 44:24 Para gymnastics rules, Amanda Stroud, Noblesville, American Cup and Champs sites 48:54 Listener Q: who pays for coaches' travel? 51:33 Listener Q: how to start coaching TeamGym 53:34 Listener Q: would lineup changes have mattered? 57:21 Should the U.S. require beam backups? 1:06:55 Live show reminder and see you Friday Links Futurism: Meta and AI-generated videos of coaches and young athletes NBC Sports: Ana Bărbosu's suspension upheld She Leaps: breast injuries in gymnastics and why the right sports bra matters International Gymnast: Leonid Arkayev dies at 86 The Hollywood Reporter: Jordan Chiles documentary Fair Play USA Gymnastics: Amanda Stroud named Women's Program Director Send us your questions: gymcastic@gmail.com

GYMMY THE OWL AND HIS FRIENDS

A delight for all lovers of rhymed poetry and gymnastics, Gymmy the Owl and His Friends offers children and parents entertaining and amusing poems and useful information about gymnastics and gymnastics terminology.

Author Vladimir Zaglada, who worked at the highest levels of Soviet gymnastics during its heyday, created Gymmy and his friends as a way of introducing young children and their parents to the world of gymnastics. Readers of any age will be drawn in by his parallels between the natural abilities of animals and the skills humans must work hard to develop in order to perform gymnastics ….

Illustrator Katya Korobkina brings to life a charming community of “Nature’s Gymnasts.”

details on CoachZaglada.com

Vladimir also authored One Coach’s Journey from East to West: How The Fall of the Iron Curtain Changed the World of Gymnastics.

Gift books for gymnasts

GYMNASTICS BOOK GUIDE

Ágnes Keleti at 100

Ágnes Keleti is a Hungarian–Israeli retired Olympic and world champion artistic gymnast and coach.

While representing Hungary in the Summer Olympics, she won 10 Olympic medals including five gold medals, three silver medals, and two bronze medals, and is considered to be one of the most successful Jewish Olympic athletes of all time.

A new book has been released in advance of her 100th birthday.

🤸🏻‍♀️ Hot off the presses! 📚

Five-time Olympic 🥇 medallist Agnes Keleti 🇭🇺 was delighted to receive a special 🎁 ahead of the holiday season: “Keleti 100,” a new book on her life.

Keleti will celebrate her 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣th birthday on January 9. #Gymnastics pic.twitter.com/Bi3ANvKXBs
— FIG (@gymnastics) November 12, 2020

Journal To Inspire Young Gymnasts

Bulgarian Olympians Dima Raynova and Silvia Topalova have teamed up again, this time to create and publish The POWER in the Hour, a journal and tracker designed to motivate, guide and inspire female and male gymnasts ages 8 to18. …
The journal has quotes, inspirations and stories from all over the world. … There’s also room for writing down reflections, goals and dreams. …
There are several sections that the kids can fill out: healthy habits such as sleeping patterns, food, and other things, goals they want to achieve and how they’ll achieve them, academic activities, books they’re reading, outdoor activities, family and friends time, how they help at home, reflection of their week and improvements. …

Bulgarian Olympians Team Up On Journal To Inspire Young Gymnasts

Details.

https://twitter.com/intlgymnast/status/1319347019744485376

Karen Louise Hollis Gymnastics books

Karen has a number of Gymnastics books.

Her latest is Classic Gymnastics – Issue 2.

… articles on the 1983 World Championships, Natalia Karamushka (and cover), Joanna Sime (GB), Nailya Gabassova (USSR) and more, plus posters of Nadia Comaneci, Inessa Lisovskaya, Maria Filatova, Zdenka Dornakova and more.