Lee Ann Gschwind posted a nice profile on Universal Sports:
from Aug 2010
With her fluidity, form, and old school Soviet style, Komova has drawn comparisons to a young Nastia Liukin. And while she’s not yet as polished as Liukin was when she won Olympic all-around gold in Beijing, Komova -with two years to go until London – is already more powerful.
Like Liukin, Komova is the daughter of former Soviet gymnasts. She too was a shoo-in to start the sport: as a toddler, she spent most of her time hanging around the gym. Komova’s mother, Vera Kolesnikova, never had the chance to compete at an Olympics, but scored a big win at the 1986 Goodwill Games, defeating teammates Yelena Shushunova and Oksana Omelianchik, then the reigning co-world champions, for the all-around title. (Shushunova, of course, would go on to win Olympic gold in 1988.) …
The article questions current FIG age restrictions:
… Designed to “protect the athletes,” the rules instead prevent many talented gymnasts from winning major titles. (If they are cutting back their training time, competition schedules or difficulty levels because of the rules, it’s certainly not evident.)
The age restrictions also make 2010 something of a no-man’s land on the gymnastics calendar. Many of the likely stars of the London Games aren’t yet old enough to compete at the World Championships.
At least Komova and Wieber will be eligible to compete at 2011 Worlds; gymnasts born in 1996 won’t even get that chance. A loophole that allowed 15-year-olds to compete at Worlds in a pre-Olympic year – without which Shawn Johnson would not have won the 2007 world title – has been eliminated this quadrennium. …
Leave a comment if you have an opinion on that. I’m hearing about 90% of people in favour of dropping the age restrictions completely. Age can’t be scientifically tested. And the argument that older gymnasts are safer than younger doing high difficulty gymnastics, specious.
… Although the 2011 Winter Cup was marred by scratches and injuries, it still was an enjoyable meet to watch. It’s very confounding as to why this meet does not rate even a simple webcast. The technology is free and there are plenty of knowledgeable personalities to provide commentary. …
On this site I don’t talk nearly as much about injury in MAG vs WAG. The guys are, in general, older and more ready to decide personally on what skills they will put into their routines.
Obviously, Men’s Artistic Gymnastics is ALSO a dangerous sport:
… The big disappointments, of course, were Paul Hamm’s recent surgery and Jonathan Horton’s injury that prevented them from competing. Ohio State’s Brandon Wynn was a late scratch and Glen Ishino peeled off high bar during warm-ups and had to be carted out of the arena. Ishino appeared to have aggravated his back, which is reportedly a similar injury that he suffered about this time last year. That was a real shame, since he was contending for the all-around title. Paul Ruggeri landed awkwardly on his first vault (first event for him last night), and was helped out of the arena as well. The Illini star has reportedly dodged a bullet and will probably end up with a sprained ankle. Ruggeri looked great in warm-ups. …
Click though to read about the highlights: Jake Dalton, Danell Leyva, Alex Buscaglia, Daniel Ribeiro, Sho Nakamori, Sam Mikulak, Cale Robinson, Jesse Silverstein and Andrew Elkind – Notes from the 2011 Winter Cup
The USA has tremendous depth. But comparatively few routines that can contend for medals at Worlds 2011.
With Hamm and Horton healthy, they can compete with Japan and China. Missing one or the other of those stars, they will have to fight it out with Germany and Russia for Bronze.
Pommel Horse Exercises
Methods, Ideas, Curiosities, History (1998)
by Istvan Karacsony and Ivan Cuk
Forward by Hardy Fink.
The history section is fascinating, dating back to Alexander the Great. Of course the “horse” was used for military training.
Jahn was the first to document the difference between a “swinging” horse and a “vaulting” horse.
Emil Hafner (Switzerland) is given credit for the first “circle” (1868). Yu-Lienfeng (CHN) get credit for the first circle on one pommel (1954).
I learned of Julius Stockli (SUI) circa 1886.
Author Karacsony is from Hungary, a nation famous for Zoltan Magyar, Berki and many others. It may be that the Hungarians were first to train the “pig” twice a day.
Canadian Phillippe Delasalle gets credit for the “Flair” (1975). In Russia the skill was long called “Delasalle”.
Kurt Thomas is praised for the “Thomas Flair” (Flair Czech Flair – 1976). We are reminded that in 1980 he may well have been the best all-around gymnast in the world, … but the USA led a boycott of the Moscow Olympics.
A sad omission, though, are the true inventors of the Flair: Ted Marcy and his teammates from Hinsdale Central High school in Chicago.
Magyar‘s wonderful story is there. He was undefeated for 8yrs in any competition, twice Olympic champion.
9.9 … No deduction back then for “lack of extension”, obviously.
Here’s one Magyar story you’ve not heard. When I was a young man he came to Calgary, Canada to compete in an international invitational. Equipment was supplied (as I recall) by Mike Jacki, AAI.
Magyar warmed up his full routine with Spindle and Travel. No problem. Then the other gymnasts complained that the horse was “wrong”. The holes had been drilled incorrectly so that the horse was not close to symmetrical. Magyar hadn’t even noticed!
Jacki stayed up all night (as I recall) “fixing” that horse.
Bill Roetzheim (USA) was not the best judge in history. But he gets fair credit for the invention of the “flop rule”, greatly simplifying judging.
Another judge getting a shout out is Ron Smith (GBR) who simplified pommel scripting.
These authors, both University educators, have 4 apparatus books for Men’s Artistic Gymnastics (FX, PH, R, V) and are working on the other two.
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to get your hands on them as there’s no world wide distribution, as yet. Ivan tells me they plan to sell them online in the near future.
Disclosure: mine is a review copy given me by the authors.
A $2.5 MILLION war chest has been assembled to help Australian athletes take medals from their British arch-rivals at next year’s London Olympics. …
More funding was announced for these sports: swimming, cycling, rowing, sailing, canoeing, athletics, diving, gymnastics, triathlon and equestrian.
… Australia dropped out of the top five, to sixth, for the first time in a decade at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, when it was replaced by Britain, which came fourth.
Australian Olympic Committee secretary-general Craig Phillips said the most effective way for Australia to climb back up the medal table was to take medals from its direct rivals, Britain and fifth placegetter Germany. …
Individual athletes who have British arch-rivals include Olympic champion diver Matthew Mitcham (world champion Tom Daley), world champion gymnast Lauren Mitchell (Beth Tweddle), international sailor of the year Tom Slingsby (Paul Goodison) and track cyclist Anna Meares (Victoria Pendleton). …
Stanford will be tested next weekend against Oregon State, UCLA, Nebraska and Michigan. That should confirm whether or not they are the default to win NCAA Championships this year, … should Florida falter.
That from Cerasela Patrascu, the Romanian gymnast who retired after the 2010 World Championships.
In this interview she eloquently communicates the mixed emotions of the elite gymnast.
… “I am not happy with what I have accomplished in gymnastics, because I know I could have done more. My dream was a medal on the uneven bars and to go to the Olympic Games. I, however, don’t have any regrets that my parents took me to gymnastics. I don’t miss anything, I had the best life a child could ever have” …
Gymnastics Coaching.com 