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Tree Climbers International must be one of those new extreme sport organizations.

Actually, it was founded in 1983 by Peter “Treeman” Jenkins, a retired rock and mountain climber-turned tree surgeon. They’ve invented specialized equipment.

TCI is a worldwide organization of people who love to climb trees. We do this safely and with utmost care for the trees we climb. We want the sport of “rope and harness” tree climbing available so that everyone can experience the joy and wonder of seeing the world from the heights of the treetops!

Tree climbing is no longer just for children. It’s for people of all ages who are young at heart and ready for the pleasure trees can provide. Why don’t you explore our website and learn more about it? Better yet, come experience the adventure with us!

Tree Climbers International – Home

Gymnasts still remember vividly the day we climbed trees in downtown Christchurch, New Zealand. Me — a foreigner — did not realize that tree climbing was illegal until the parents came to pick up the girls. Oops.

One of the best Canadian gymnasts ever (born Tbilissi, Georgia) has just “officially” become a coach.

The Kingston Gymnastics Club Loyalist Gymnastics Club has landed a former world-class gymnast to fill their coaching vacancy.

Alexander Jeltkov, a two-time Olympian and former silver medallist at the world championships on the high bar, will join the club as head coach early next month.

Jeltkov, 30, hasn’t competed internationally since 2004, when he last went to the Olympic Games, and said he was looking to transition from competitive gymnastics to coaching when the job in Kingston arose. …

The Whig Standard – Ontario, CA

Good luck Sash!

I looked for Jeltkov’s Silver medal horizontal bar routine at Worlds — but couldn’t put my hands on it. This is the best I could find on YouTube. He swings great.

Click PLAY to watch Sasha on pipe in-gym or watch it on YouTube.

One of the most conspicuous problems with the new FIG Code of Points for Artistic Gymnastics is the decline of dance and artistry on Floor Exercise.

Coaches need pack 10 value parts into a routine. The easiest way to maximize the A-score is with tumbling.

From the December issue of International GYMNAST.

Check this post on the Beijing Olympic Games 2008 blog:

Getting to Beijing

Getting around Beijing

Accommodation

Eating

Olympic tickets

How to save money on a trip to the Olympics » Beijing Olympic Games 2008

Related: Can you still get a hotel room for the Beijing Olympics?

… Throughout her elite career she has been trained by former Russian acrobat Evgeny Marchenko. Her teammates at WOGA have included 2004 Olympic champion Carly Patterson and two-time U.S. national champion Nastia Liukin.

Vise is best remembered for her gold medals at the 2003 World Championships in the team and uneven bars events.

Hollie Vise – Wikipedia

I loved Hollie’s bars and beam from the first time I saw her compete as a Junior in Canada. Though she won Worlds 2003 on bars, she sadly did not qualify for the 2004 Olympics.

Last year Hollie competed only beam for Oklahoma. I’m hearing rumours she may compete beam and bars this season. I hope so.

I was reminded of her by a video clip from around 2000 when she was an up-and-coming talent. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Sooners bio.

Hollie’s official website.

Event Final Worlds 2003

more photos – Gymbox.net

An excellent, original, detailed article with great graphics and video animations. It’s posted on the useful Skills and Drills website.

I’ve linked to it before. And will again.

Steve Bonham, Georgia Southern University, lays out “Body Awareness Drills” that build a strong foundation for skill development.

It’s long. I’ve summarized the major headings:

THE DRILLS:

Drills for Body Segment Stabilization

Pressure Stand

Standing Tips

Kneeling Handstand

Candle

Wall Handstand

Half-Wall Handstand

PullMe-PullYou

Drills for Sensitizing Learners to Basic Movement Patterns

Rock’n’Roll

Inchworm

PushAway

Push-up&Away

Body Awareness Drills

I spent a fair bit of time trying to follow his logic.

I conclude: there are some excellent drills included. But many more and better drills could be added. This list is by no means comprehensive.

Alicia Sacramone on Flickr

I’ll be very disappointed if Alicia doesn’t qualify for the Olympics. She is the perfect captain for the US Team.

I don’t normally post gymnastics meet promos unless we are attending them. But this one caught my eye.

I love GYMNOVA equipment, but it’s so bloody expensive in Canada, most clubs cannot afford it. At this competition in Ontario, Canada, they will be selling at a 30% reduction. That might just possibly bring it in your price range.

The competition entry fees are — $85 / gymnast, $20 / coach — so it should be good. Complain if it is not a good meet, at those prices. (Compare what you get in the USA for the same entry fee.)

Contact All Star Gymnastics in Brampton, Ontario for details on the competition.

John Andrews details what you might not know about fast food “healthy choices”:

The movie Supersize Me has probably had more of an effect than the producers anticipated. Since then, in the fast food industry, there has been a market trend promoting menu items that appear to be healthy. But most of these menu items have ingredients that health conscious consumers would prefer to avoid. …

Bad “healthy” choices revealed from:

Burger King

Taco Bell

Wendy’s

Subway

KFC

Surprise Ingredients In Fast Food

ALL WE NEED IS EXERCISE – on Flickr by Way of Living

No one I know liked the effeminate style of the first modern Olympic gymnastics medallist from Greece, but you must admit his routine in Atlanta was as “clean” as any ever shown.

Click PLAY or watch the gold medal set on YouTube.

Melissanidis was astonishingly talented on Floor and Vault, but terribly inconsistent. You’d never guess after seeing his routine in Atlanta.

… Melissanidis began training gymnastics and classical ballet at the age of 9 and a half. His parents were not originally supportive of the idea, and, according to Melissanidis, only relented and took him to the Spartakos Thessaloniki gymnastics club after he refused to eat for two days. …

Melissanidis continued competing after 1996, winning the vault title at the 1998 European Championships in St. Petersburg. He represented Greece at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, but, struggling with injury, competed only on vault and high bar. …

Melissanidis has two vaults named after him in the Code of Points; both are variations of the Yurchenko double back. …

In recent years, Melissanidis has been active in various social and athletic causes. He is a member of Greenpeace, and, in 2003, publicly supported the Melina Mercouri Foundation’s campaign to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece. He was also one of the torchbearers in the 2004 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony in Athens.

In 2004, Melissanidis graduated from Aristotle University in Thessaloniki with a degree in medical science.

Ioannis Melissanidis – Wikipedia

I was reminded of his tumbling after watching a montage of some of the best combination tumbling being done in men’s gymnastics on Gymblog.