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I laughed out loud to see a non-issue continued over on the excellent Australian Gymnastics Blog: Thoughts on Gymbloggery:

”Blogs” and other new media vs “old media” (AP, magazines, national sports media, etc.) … at the World Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam.

Do you find them more or less useful than official reporting sources?
Do you find them more or less credible than official reporting sources?
Do you think they should be allowed to have media accreditation at big events? …

Fact is the line is so blurred now it’s difficult to tell the difference. FIG and USAG were legitimate 24/7 sources of useful news in Rotterdam, same as the blogs. Better, at times.

International Gymnast magazine was excellent on Facebook. Just about as good as THE ALL AROUND blog. (Happily we were spared IG publisher Paul Ziert‘s “ALERTS” this time, though he was there. Paul is only right about 50% of the time in my opinion. A quality source of misinformation.)

Stick It Media actually knows what’s going on.

The biggest difference between new media and old is that new media paid their own way to Rotterdam. And worked twice as many hours as old media. Those who are getting paid treat it as a job, not a passion.

In the middle row is Anne Phillips, founder of Gymnastike.org.

Like every other night, she was always the last to leave the arena. Some nights we were locked into the Ahoy, improvising escape routes.

Anne, Blythe (Gymnastics Examiner) and Brigid (Couch Gymnast) worked by far the most hours and produced more content than anyone else there.

There is no issue.

If you don’t want to read free blogs, don’t.

Wait to watch it on TV. Or read about it on Inside Gymnastics a month or two later.

I feel there are still far too few sources of information. We need a WAG Judging blog. A Beam choreography blog. A Floor Music blog.

If you have a special expertise, please jump in.

Now that Dragon’s new circus show, House of Dancing Water, is up-and-running in Macao, they are auditioning for another.

Franco Dragone and Dreamworks Animation are creating a new sensational international touring show, “Kung Fu Panda” based on the characters “Po” and the “Furious Five”.

APPLICANTS MUST BE 18 YEARS OF AGE AND HAVE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Click through to the auditions page on Facebook for details.

Almost everyone recognizes Carol-Angela, coach of Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs who won beam bronze in Aarhus 2006. She was long time coach at the now defunct Seneca, Toronto.

Carol-Angela left Canada for the U.K. after the 2008 Olympics, and married Eddie Van Hoof, British men’s technical director.

I’m not at all surprised to see this official announcement:

British Gymnastics is delighted to announce the appointment of former Canadian National Technical Advisor Carol-Angela Orchard to the role of Women’s National Coach – Beam & Artistic Preparation. …

… Carol-Angela prides herself on innovation and has the honour of creating 5 original elements on Beam & Floor named by the FIG after her gymnasts, and included in the official Code of Points. …

British Gymnastics appoint new Women’s Artistic Coach

Good call.

(via Full Twist and More Than The Games)

This should be good.

The “Freddy Cup” Grand Prix competition Nov. 13th in Sardinia, Italy.

The new World Champion, Aliya Mustafina, (after a short training break) will compete against 2 wonderkinds:

… Russia’s Viktoria Komova, winner of this year’s Youth Olympic Games and Junior European championships, and China’s Tan Sixin, balance beam and floor exercise champion at the Youth Olympic Games. Both gymnasts were too young to compete at last month’s world championships in Rotterdam, but will be eligible for senior competition in 2011. …

IG – Mustafina, Morandi Headline ‘Freddy Cup’

Blythe of Gymnastics Examiner was impressed with the unusual circus like format of the mixed pairs Swiss Cup. Elisabeth Seitz and Fabian Hambuechen walked off with the $30,000 first prize.

“It’s kind of a show competition,” Jeffrey Wammes remarked. He’s right — the arena is bathed in blue light for the entire meet and each country had a different, carefully selected piece of music played before its gymnasts compete. Before a Romanian competed, we heard snippets of O-Zone’s “Dragostea din tai.” The French had an intriguing techno-mix. The Germans and Italians had big band pieces.

… NCAA men’s coaches seeking to attract people to their meets ought to visit and take notes on the program …

read more – 2010 Swiss Cup notes: A few last thoughts…

more photos

Likely the last in the excellent series of Worlds recap videos produced by FIG.

When have you ever seen 8 vaults simultaneous?

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Another in my ongoing video series – how to void the warranty on your TumblTrak Air Floor. (See also water Air Floor tumbling)

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

At Glacier Gymnastics, this was a blast. Elephant vaulting is one of my favourite gymnastics activities. It teaches motor fitness: agility, balance, rhythm, etc.)

related post – Rec Gymnastics – Elephant Vault

Here are a couple more photos from Glacier Gymnastics.

A nice way to store grips and wristbands:

Another reason not to eat a Rotten Ronnies.

… the latest project of New York City-based artist and photographer Sally Davies, who bought a McDonald’s Happy Meal back in April and left it out in her kitchen to see how well it would hold up over time.

The results? “The only change that I can see is that it has become hard as a rock,” …

After 6 months:

… Wellness and nutrition educator Karen Hanrahan has indeed kept a McDonald’s hamburger since 1996 to show clients and students how resistant fast food can be to decomposition. …

The Upshot

Preservatives help us keep from getting sick. But what are the unforeseen consequences?

My family had a summer home near Nelson, British Colombia for 30yrs. I was pleased to be asked to be guest coach at a clinic / camp at Glacier Gymnastics in Nelson.

In a remote town population 9,258 (2006), this club has 600 kids a week!

The coaches there are doing a great job on this key basic skill. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The plan is to introduce baby sole circles (AKA froggie circles, monkey circles) to the beginners.

Next put them on the Tower of Power. (credit John Carney)

And work up to handstand step down to 2ft sole circle back to handstand, as shown. First on straps. Later on single rail.

When the kids start giants and free hip handstand on the real bar, early grip change will be no issue. It’s already been perfected on the easier sole circle.

related post – gymnastics bar grip changes

A major weakness in the American compulsory program on Bars is that young girls get expert at “mill circle”, not bothering with the much more important sole circle.

Another terrific article by the British journalist Ollie Williams:

At World Championships Rotterdam:

… He, the Olympic uneven bars champion at Beijing 2008 and possessor of the most technically challenging routine in the world, fell spectacularly from the bars minutes earlier – as did her young team-mate, Huang Qiushuang.

… A day later it will be their coach, Lu Shanzhen, standing here under the spotlight of Chinese state television, China’s women having ended a World Championships without a gold medal for the first time since 2002.

As He’s tears flow and the teenager forlornly fights for air beneath a carpet of faces and dictaphones, a journalist from another organisation turns to me and says: “Can you imagine what she’s going to face back home?” …

BBC – Understanding China’s gymnastics powerhouse

(via Full Twist)