… in a meeting of the Southeast Asian Sports Federation held in Nay Pyi Taw (Myanmar) yesterday, January 29, the host country of the 27th SEA Games officially decided to exclude gymnastics … from the competition program.
This is really a shock to Vietnam because gymnastics is its forte, which brought about up to 11 gold medals at the 26th SEA Games. Moreover, gymnastics is one of the most basic sports of the Olympics …
Another article states that tennis and gymnastics were both dropped. Supposedly the host lacked athletes and facilities. I did visit a very good gym in Yangoon late 1990s.
What a great gymnastics weekend at the Split Rock resort in Pennsylvania. It was filled with lots of good memories for everyone. There was one particular incident however that stands out in my mind. All of the girls in my group had placed in the top 6 on one or more events and they all had some podium time. They get their medal put over their head and then they present for photos. All of them…except for one. And that one gymnast is an extremely kind and sensitive, hard working kid. She did well, 8.5ish, and consistent on all 4 events, but just not quite good enough to medal.
So as the celebration continued, medals jingling as gymnasts ran by to hug parents and teammates, I watched the one kid and I could see she was upset. It was painful to watch as she tried to control her emotions but she needed to be left alone for the moment. As Her teammates were jingling, she stayed in the same spot, sitting on the floor by herself. I was distracted by the others and when I turned back to look for her she was gone.
The awards were held on a large balcony that overlooked the gym. Below us the next session had already started. It really was a great view of a gymnastics meet. As I scanned the crowd, I spotted her standing by herself leaning over the balcony watching the competition. I could tell she was weeping. The whites of her eyes were reddened and it kind of splotched over to her temples, forehead and cheeks, like a pinkish mask across the whole top half of her face. I waited and watched for a few minutes. I was sure she didn’t need to hear anything from me at the moment.
She shifted a bit and so I walked over and stood next to her and leaned on the rail. We didn’t look at each other and I didn’t say anything. I just watched the gymnastics with her. It was only about a minute but it seemed much longer when she turned her head just slightly towards me. It broke my heart to see her face like that. I could tell she wanted to say something but it was hard for her. She looked down again and then she said, quietly and slowly, “I can’t wait to get in the gym Monday night”. I took her chin in my hand and lifted her head up. I paused for a moment and then said to her ”I can’t think of a single better thing you could have said just now”. She smiled a little, looked down for a moment, then looked up to watch the gymnastics. The splotches on her face faded.
Persistence is one of best things kids learn from sports.
This week we talk to 2009 World All-Around Champion and University of Florida freshman, Bridget Sloan. She tells us about the transition to NCAA gymnastics, the athletic trainer who she calls her surrogate father, air pollution at the Beijing Olympics, age falsification and Martha Karolyi commenting on her weight on television.
… We talk about our favorite NCAA meets so far, UW’s bad ass Kylie Sharp who is competing despite needing a liver transplant and OSU’s shocking fashion-related injury that even the writers of Make It Or Break It couldn’t have thought up.
Douglas is giving the museum the leotard she wore during her first competitive season in 2003 (she also wore the leotard when she won the Level 4 all-around title at the Virginia State Championships in 2004); the grip bag, wrist tape and uneven-bar grips she used at the 2012 London Olympics; …
Also on display will be personal photos donated by Douglas and an autographed copy of her new book Grace, Gold & Glory: My Leap of Faith.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture was established as a Smithsonian museum by an Act of Congress in 2003. It is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, art, history and culture.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 