At MINIMUM your gymnasts age 10-17 should have a place in the Gym where they pencil in their standing height on some regular basis. They should know when they are growing. There are implications for training load.
… the unfortunate reality is that the typical way gymnasts were taught to land growing up (me included) may not be the safest for them and most effective to stick skills. Not to mention coaches are also unfortunately very mis-informed about what the best available science suggests for proper landing mechanics. The concerning typical landing position that we need to move away from is one of
• Knees and feet together
• Glutes engage with the “hips tucked under” into hollow
• Knee dominant landing strategy
• Stiff impact with upright torso
… The reality of the situation is that we need to change the way gymnasts land, starting from a very young age. The more ideal landing we should be teaching and forcing athletes to use is
• Feet hip width apart
• toes, knees, hips, and shoulders close to inline (generally)
• core engaged in relative neutral (not excessively hollowed or arched)
• proper angular displacement of the hip and knee joints
• hip angle generally 30 degrees, and trunk / tibial lines close to parallel …
With greatly increased difficulty being competed now and into the future, obviously the “best” landing positions are the ones that bring impact forces to zero with the least risk of injury, especially major injuries like ligament ruptures.
Most of the top male gymnasts in 2016 land their difficult skills in a very typical way.
Check these successful WAG landing positions. (Some are luck, of course. But many are skillful.)
Olympic gymnast is one of seven contestants to have been injured in Channel 4 ski-jumping reality show just two episodes in to its third series
CHANNEL 4 SPOKESPERSON:
“The Jump is now in its third series and since launch 46 celebrities have taken part successfully. Though it is a new course the events have been designed to be no more difficult than in previous years and all contributors have undertaken a rigorous training programme to prepare them for the show.
” All winter sports carry some element of risk but in light of the number of injuries this year, Channel 4 has asked the producers to review safety procedures again to further reduce the prospect of accident.”
Lee’s injury is a huge loss for the seventh-ranked Utes (3-0, 1-0), who are off until they host No. 20 Arizona on Monday at 6 p.m.
Lee is the only Utah gymnast competing in the all-around this year and was expected to be one of the team leaders after her breakout freshman season. …
Lee suffered the injury on the floor as she pushed off to start a tumbling pass. The Utes had no warning that the Achilles’ tendon might be ready to tear, Marsden said.
The Utes have had a rash of the injuries, with Corrie Lothrop tearing her Achilles in 2013, Kassandra Lopez tearing her’s in 2014 and Tory Wilson tearing her’s in 2015. Each one was similar to Lee’s with the gymnasts going from healthy one second to being done for the season the next. …
Katherine competes for Gymnastic Academy of Rockford.
… Katherine was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia back in 2011. The gymnast and avid CrossFitter needed her leg amputated after doctors discovered an infection in her knee joint. Since then she’s been through remission, relapse and is now once again in remission. …
A do-over was allowed after Katelyn’s foot knocked out the Beam end cap.
UCLA freshman Katelyn Ohashi stood tiptoe on the balance beam in Arizona’s McKale Center. With one more dismount, her debut as an all-around competitor in college gymnastics would be complete. …
“The end of the beam came off,” said coach Valorie Kondos Field. “Her foot stepped on that, and (she) had a very scary fall, landing on her neck.” …
Ohashi, though, was quick to stand on her feet again and Kondos Field said afterward that the freshman was uninjured.
The judge panel ruled that the failed dismount was caused by an equipment malfunction and, to ensure fairness of play, Ohashi was allowed another go on the beam.
“I was definitely not expecting that at all,” Ohashi said. “But they asked me if I wanted to do it again. And I was like, yeah, of course.” …
Kondos Field was not enthusiastic about pushing the freshman to the front line. She told Ohashi that she didn’t have to go and that she could also do an easier dismount. But Ohashi refused both offers, insisting on completing a full routine. …
The judges gave Ohashi a 9.825 – a new career best for the freshman. The beam score was added into the individual total of 39.375 that won Ohashi the all-around meet.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 