Inspirational true story

One of the greatest of Olympic history.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Are you crying?

Derek Redmond … is best remembered for his performance at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona where he tore his hamstring in the 400 metres semi-final but fought through the pain and, with assistance from his father, managed to complete a full lap of the track as the crowd gave him a standing ovation. …

Here’s the VISA commercial.

Love Actually

Looking for a good Christmas movie?

Dave and Lisa Adlard recommended my favourite, Love Actually. (2003 R-rated)

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

related – Billy Mack (Bill Nighy) horrible Christmas variation of The Troggs’ hit “Love Is All Around”. (VIDEO)

best Men’s Floor 2011

Gerard Atzeni pointed out that the 2011 Tokyo World Championships Men’s Floor Final was pretty good.

A new Examiner post is related – Best of 2011: The men’s floor exercises.

One routine linked from that post:

David Belyavskiy, RUS. The Russian men have been lifted by youngsters like Belyavskiy and his powerful routine, which includes a stunning double full in back pike out and an easy looking triple full to end. In addition, there’s a hint of style and choreography in the sequence after his tucked Thomas. …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

A hint of style and choreography does elevate you above the likes of Zou Kai and Stephen Legendre. I like David’s routine.

However … the vast majority of FIG Men’s Floor routines in 2011 are rushed, ugly and repetitive. The rules are responsible. They must be improved in the next Quadrennial.

As you can see, I’m not convinced that the current rules are the best they could be, even though a handful of the best gymnasts in the world are able to show quality routines. They are succeeding despite the rules.

related – IG – Belyavsky Aims for All-Around Maximum in 2012

Seasons Greetings from London Olympics

A festive look at how the London 2012 team are gearing up for the holiday season.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

helmet cam for Christmas?

Did you get one? 🙂

In 2011 we started to see hundreds of acrobatic videos from the ‘point of view‘ of the athlete.

GoPro cameras are used more than any other.

Click PLAY or watch a GoPro promo on YouTube. Helicopter skydivers, skiers, wing-suiters, surfers, scuba divers and more.

This video is © GoPro Inc. and shot entirely on the HD HERO2 camera …

(via Gear Junkie – Best Adventure Montage of 2011: GoPro Promo)

Front Flip – Touchdown!

Jerome Simpson, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver, does a front flip into the end zone to score a touchdown, Dec. 24, 2011.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (slow motion at 50sec)

Thank George Thomas for the link. 🙂

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas and all through the gym…

Bekah’s Christmas poem:

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the gym,
All the gymnasts were gone even little Ashton Kim.
As I sat by the beam and composed a new post,
I heard a loud sound I thought must be a ghost. …

There’s a bit of a mystery to solve. A surprise ending.

… As the man walked away, I exclaimed “Holy Moly!
That man isn’t Santa, he’s …

Find out on Bekah’s “Get a Grip” Gymblog