new Iowa Gymnastics coach – J.D. Reive

CONGRATS.

Nebraska grad J.D. Reive, who spent six years as an assistant at Stanford, will replace Tom Dunn, who retired after 29 years at the Hawkeye helm, as the University of Iowa’s men’s gymnastics’ head coach.

“We are very excited to announce J.D. as our new head men’s gymnastics coach,” U of Iowa A.D. Gary Barta said of today’s announcement. “J.D. brings a wealth of coaching experience from the Junior Olympic and senior National Team ranks, as well as from a highly successful and academically demanding Division I institution. He shares our Iowa values, is a proven winner and a tireless advocate of men’s gymnastics. We are very confident in his ability to develop our student-athletes and move our men’s gymnastics program forward.”

At Stanford, Reive, a former U.S. National Team member, helped led the Cardinal to a National Championship in 2009, as well as a runner-up spot in 2008 and two third place finishes in ’06 and ’07. He was named “NCAA West Regional Assistant Coach of the Year” in 2006 and was the National Assistant Coach of the Year in 2009. He has also been the College Gymnastics Association’s “Assistant Coach of Year” three times (2006, ’09, ’10).

“I am extremely excited about the opportunity to represent the University of Iowa,” Reive said in a statement released today by Iowa. “The athletic department’s continued support of men’s gymnastics is a testament to the great legacy of Hawkeye gymnastics; a legacy that I fully intend to build upon. There is a great deal of potential in this program that will soon be realized. It’s great to be a Hawkeye.”

Reive and his wife, former U.S. National Team member and UCLA star Doni Thompson, have one son, Dante, 2-1/2. …

Inside Gymnastics – ticker

fantastic acrobatic dance

An act in Les 7 doigts de la Main‘s show La Vie.

This video is from (I think) the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain competition in Paris.

Hand to hand circus act by Sébastien Soldevila et Mimi Bonnavaud.
(The 7 Fingers)

Numéro de main à main par Sébastien Soldevila et Mimi Bonnavaud (Les 7 doigts de la main)

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

This is something like La La La Human Steps meets Acrobatic Gymnastics. Wow!

Mimi is like an acrosport version of Louise Lecavalier.

(Linked by senior Cirque coach Tom Otjes on Facebook.)

related – SFGate backgrounder (2007) on Sebastian Soldevila and Emilie (Mimi) Bonnavaud.

Dariya Zgoba – Bar transfer

Dariya Zgoba (Ukraine) won gold on Bars at the 2007 European Championships and was a finalist at the Beijing Olympics.

I’d call her unique transfer a Stoop Stalder on low, “hecht” to high. Love the Pak to Stalder, too.

Click PLAY or watch it (10sec) on YouTube.

ComeBackCathy calls it a “Zgoba”. I’ll buy that.

Dariya Zgoba UB Glasgow 2006.

There’s a discussion thread on that skill on IG forum.

related – DariyaZgoba.com (English)

more feats of strength – Cisco

Remember Cisco, the one arm rope climb guy.

Here’s another version. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

One comment suggests it’s fake.

It’s not. I’ve met Cisco. He’s the real deal. He told me he could do many feats of strength on 1-arm without much intense training.

Check this out …

Click PLAY or watch Cisco on YouTube.

See more videos on the Gibson Saltocafe YouTube page.

2000 Olympic Bronze Medal gymnasts

Congratulations.

… the 2000 U.S. Women’s Olympic Gymnastics Team will be awarded their Olympic team bronze medals at a special ceremony on Aug. 11 in Hartford, Conn., in conjunction with the 2010 Visa Championships. …

Amy Chow, Jamie Dantzscher, Dominique Dawes, Kristen Maloney, Elise Ray and Tasha Schwikert. Morgan White was named to the team but withdrew just prior to the Games due to injury, and Alyssa Beckerman was the alternate. …

The IOC recently stripped China of its 2000 Olympic Games women’s team bronze medal because one of its athletes did not meet the age requirement.

USAG

handstand on Mt Remus

This is coach Krista Morris. She’s celebrating her brief holiday from the gym by doing gymnastics atop Mt Remus, Alberta.

Krista Morris

besthike trip report

gymnastics – vault in a twist belt

Great idea.

This week’s gymnastics technique video features a low impact yurchenko full vault drill used by the University of Minnesota women’s gymnastics team and Coach Jim Stephenson …

Click PLAY or watch it on Gymnastike.

http://c1403192.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/player.swf

They have a traveling rig connected to a twisting belt set up above their trampoline. Jim takes us through the drills they’re able to do on the station to teach all types of vaults: yurchenkos, tsukaharas, and even handspring entry vaults. The biggest advantage of a drill like this is that it’s low impact for the gymnast meaning they can do high reps of them without the pounding on their bodies.

Click PLAY or watch U Of Minnesota Traveling Rig Vault Station on Gymnastike.

http://c1403192.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/player.swf

Here’s a similar twist belt concept. This is Calgary Gymnastics Centre Trampoline sports, coach Brett MacAulay.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

It slows down the skill brilliantly.

… Ultimately, however, I’d prefer not to use a belt, if possible. Or to use one as little as possible. Better the athlete do it themselves.