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Somehow I missed this.

My favourite to win the World Gymnastics Championships 2007 was Vanessa Ferrari from Italy.

She had problems.

You won’t believe this video. During the TEAM COMPETITION, the Velcro on one of Vanessa’s hand guards tape grips began to unravel mid-routine.

Instead of jumping off the bars — she finishes the set, dropping the hand guard tape grip. Dismounting with one grip on, one grip off.

What a fighter!

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Thanks Jeremy Mosier.

This reminds me of the psychological toughness of another great World Champion, Ludmilla Tourischeva at 1975 Worlds.

That said … Vanessa and her coaches should be reprimanded for not putting athletic tape (or an elastic) over top the Velcro for the competition routine.

Perhaps she should switch to buckle-on grips rather than Velcro.

UPDATE – Kat on the Gym Chat forum has more on this incident.

Canadian coach Sheena Steacy is recently back from a stint with my former club in New Zealand. Just today we were wondering how CSG fared at Nationals.

It went well …

… The honours board of overall individual champions included Kathryn Lewis (women’s level 10), Karla Singh (level 9), Holly Moon level 8, Maddison Lafutianai (level 6), Justine Shawcross (level 5), Aaron Clutterbluck (level 7) and Jorden O’Connell-Inns (level 5) and Logan McKenzie (level 4), all from the Christchurch School of Gymnastics …

Canty gymnasts clean up – Sport – The Press

CSG has been the biggest and overall most successful Artistic Gymnastics club in New Zealand over the past 2 years. Congratulations to Avril Enslow and her team at Christchurch School of Gymnastics.

Photo – Kathryn Lewis, Level 10 Champion

Good news.

Coach, personal fitness trainer, and fitness competitor Tanis Hill is coaching a new Adult Gymnastics program in my town, Calgary.

(Stampede City Gymnastics – directions)

More and more gyms seem to be dropping their Adult recreational program. Almost always due to liability insurance worries.

It’s nice to see another opportunity for Adults open up in my area.

Thanks Tanis.

Note. I learned of the new club on Facebook when Tanis posted a new group – Wednesday Night Adult Gymnastics. (free membership required)

Look who’s doing his first performance for Cirque du Soleil tonight:

Congratulations Bobby. And break a leg.

Eliza (malimalimali123) condensed the women’s Artistic competition — highlights and key errors. A great overview.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Eliza has posted a number of other great montage videos. Check her YouTube page.

(via Gymblog)

Ronny Ziesmer is a German gymnast who was paralyzed just before the 2004 Olympics, under-rotating a Tsukahara double back vault.

But Ronny’s still very involved in the sport.

As a fund-raiser for nerve cell regeneration research, he’s produced a gymnastics calendar that could be used as a prize in gym clubs. If ordering more than 100 calendars your club logo will be added.

WORLD GYM CALENDAR “2007 STUTTGART – BEIJING 2008”
issued by
Ronny ZIESMER, “ALLIANCE of HOPE” FOUNDATION
DEUTSCHE STIFTUNG QUERSCHNITTLÄHMUNG

‘Since my accident just before the Olympic Games in July 2004 my life has changed totally. As a gymnasts, fighting for technical perfection in all dimensions, you tend not to think about risks. But now I live in a completely different world. The first thing that impressed me when I became paraplegic was the solidarity shown by many people, who give up a lot to help handicapped people.

Please support the project!”

Ronny Ziesmer, Germany
Former member of German 2004 Olympic and National Team
Diversity Ambassador “European Year of Equal Opportunities for All” – 2007

International Version cover

Order-Bestellung Calendar

I must be ancient.

Altadore Gymnastics in Calgary, Canada is celebrating it’s 40th anniversary since being founded by Jim McLuskey so long ago.

Nov. 3rd – OPEN HOUSE 3-5PM. Request silent auction item in lieu of entry charge.

Nov. 10th – 40th ANNIVERSARY PARTY & Silent Auction.

Altadore – official website

At a gymnastics coaching weekend in Brooks, Alberta, we had a lengthy discussion about prevention and (inevitable) management of rips on bars and horizontal bar.

On this site are a number of posts on that topic:

gymnastics “rips” – McCharles & Feeney

how to tape your hands – Rif’s blog

using athletic tape GRIPS on Bars – Woodward West

Here’s something new.

The Pickaway County YMCA Gymnastics Team:

Each gymnast must bring their own rip kit in their gym bag for every practice. This kit should include the following: nail clippers, tweezers, manicure scissors, gauze pads, Band-aids, Neosporin or an antibiotic cream, and gymnastics tape. …

Their web page has more good tips: rips

For me, prevention is the highest priority. At the clinic we did many drills on the safety strap bar, floor bar, low bar from trampoline and bar games — all of which had a low risk of hand rips.

The fewer of these we see, the better.

(via kaycie on the Gym Chat forum) – topic Community rip/nail scissors, nail clippers personal products

Featuring Pro Dan MacFarlane, filmed at Woodward Lake Owen, this would be the ideal primer for any acrobat wanting to start training for 2012 Olympics Vert.

The instructional DVD … is currently available in stores like Best Buy, Barnes and Noble, Target, Blockbuster and more.

~ Lake Owen Camp Action Sports Staff

”

Skateboarding Explained – Amazon

Skateboarding Explained – official website

Lake Owen Camp

Before 1980, many IOC (International Olympic Committee) members paid their own expenses to attend annual meetings. The administrative offices in the Chateau de Vidy had fewer than 10 staff.

World cities had to be begged to apply to host the Games after the financial disaster that was Montreal in 1976.

Then the boycott of the 1980 Games in Moscow.

Then the boycott of the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.

Ted Turner started the Goodwill Games as an Olympic alternative. (Unfortunately they were discontinued in 2001.)

Finally the L.A. Games in 1984, out of nothing, made a profit of well over US$200 million.

The money began rolling in. By the Sydney Olympics in 2000, the IOC had a gross income of over US$4 billion for the quadrennial.

How did an organization so undemocratic, so un-businesslike, turn it around?

Much of the credit often goes to Dick Pound from Toronto, the front man in the steady stream of TV contracts and sponsorship deals with the world’s biggest corporations.

The definitive book on the subject is award winning Selling The Five Rings: The IOC and the Rise of the Olympic Commercialism (2002) by Barney, Wenn and Martyn.

But if you really want to get angry about the Olympic Movement, pick up the Lords of the Rings books:

The Lord of the Rings: Power, Money and Drugs In the Modern Olympics.

The New Lords of the Rings: Olympic Corruption and How to Buy Gold Medals