I wish I was there. But it sounds like the 2009 Women’s National Gymnastics Championships is … lacking.
Dwight Normile’s take on Day 1 Senior Women:
With such a limited field, there was a definite lack of drama and energy in the air compared with a year ago, when so much was at stake. Nastia Liukin’s return to competition was highly anticipated, but she did not compete on bars, even though she warmed up the event prior to the meet. She did perform on beam, much to the delight of the crowd. Liukin executed with great caution most of her Olympic routine (front aerial, flip-flop, layout; Onodi, sheep jump; side somi; switch ring leap) and even added a side aerial. She dismounted with a roundoff double twist and scored 14.45 (5.6 difficulty).
Rebecca Bross (WOGA)
Nastia’s father and coach, Valeri Liukin, told IG earlier this summer that his daughter would not compete at worlds unless she was ready. And although this routine was clearly not Nastia’s best, it showed enough progress to make London a possibility.
“To be able to compete here (at home) was so cool,” said Liukin, who later explained her one-event showing. “I’m just not ready to perform yet. It’s a step-by-step process.”
Hidden beneath the great expectations was the battle among Sloan, Rebecca Bross and Ivana Hong, each of whom had something to prove. For Sloan, the lone Olympian among the trio, a victory would mean her assumption of the top rank in the country. For Bross, a former junior champion who has been slowed by injuries, a win would confirm her successful jump to the senior ranks. And for Hong, the title would validate her post-Olympic move from Great American to WOGA, as well as a realization of her immense potential. …
NBC did a good job in Beijing. This is a smart move, I think.
USA Gymnastics signed a deal yesterday with US broadcaster NBC and cable partner Universal Sports to air its biggest events until 2012, upping its challenge against the yet-to-be-launched the US Olympic Committee (USCOC) network.
The deal, combined with domestic and international contracts NBC has with swimming, skating, track and skiing, gives the network the broadcast rights to a significant share of key US Olympic sports. …
Here’s a strange story we missed in Florida in 2006.
… One of the coaches admits to stabbing training gymnasts with drywall screws for years. Investigators said it happened at Ace Gymnastics in Longwood, where one of the owners is an Olympian.
The phrase “stick it” is used in gymnastics about dismounts and landings, but one of the coaches told investigators he was taught to stick them when the gymnasts don’t have perfect form. …
Seminole County sheriff’s investigators said Coach Mike Turner and another coach repeatedly stabbed one of the boys and a brother repeatedly with dry wall screws, breaking the skin on their buttocks, leaving permanent scarring.
Last year, their mother noticed the scars during bathing and found out what was happening. Investigators said she told the owner, former Olympian Joan Moore Gnat, about it and they said Ace Gymnastics hired a new head coach and made sure the practice stopped.
But Ace never told all the other parents about it, never reported the alleged abuse to law enforcement and kept the two coaches on staff.
… A second mother has since come forward, saying her son was also subjected to the drywall screw for less than perfect form.
“If they weren’t tight enough or in the right positions,” the mother, who didn’t want to be identified, told Eyewitness News. …
IG Editor Dwight Normile blogs from the 2009 Visa (U.S.) Gymnastics Championships, which began Wednesday in Dallas.
DALLAS — …
David Sender, who did not make the Olympic team because of a fluke injury (sprained ankle) on the eve of the U.S. Olympic Trials, came to Dallas as the defending national champion. And after his first two events, he looked like a man on a mission. After hitting rings, he boomed a Yurchenko-double pike that landed quietly with only one small step. Sender pumped his fist, a rare show of emotion from the guy so many felt sorry for last year. Then he followed with a handspring-layout front with a double twist (and another fist pump). After a couple of medium errors on parallel bars (low peach) and high bar (tucked giant after Kovacs), Sender threw a marathon on floor to pad his lead (Lou Yun mount, double layout dismount).
In the final rotation, both Sender and his closest pursuer, Hagerty, fell from pommels and rings, respectively. Horton, who had fallen from pommels in the second rotation, needed to nail high bar to take the lead after day one. And that’s what he did. It wasn’t the crazy routine he used to win a silver in Beijing, but Horton, who is back with his old club coach, Tom Meadows, still threw a layout Kovacs, Kolman and Kovacs. He stuck a conservative (for him) dismount of layout full-out and scored 15.900 to lead Sender 91.250-90.600. Cal-Berkeley’s Tim McNeill climbed to third at 88.500. …
Stay tuned for Friday’s competition, when the senior national team will be decided, as well as the six-member squad to worlds.
Steven Legendre (Oklahoma): running double front, punch double-twisting layout front (hand down)
Jake Dalton (Gym Nevada): Lopez vault worth 7.3, which scored 16.25 (Kasamatsu-double twist)
Danell Leyva (Universal): jam, dislocate, immediate hop to undergrips on high bar (and he got some air!)
Jonathan Horton (Cypress): roundoff, 1-1/2 twist, punch double front
David Sender (Stanford): Yurchenko-double pike (like it was nothing); handspring-layout front with double twist
Alex Buscaglia (Stanford): roundoff half-on, layout rudi vault; full-twisting Tkatchev on high bar
Tim McNeill (Cal-Berkeley): his peach handstand on parallel bars was so good it looked like a free hip on high bar
Just arrived back to civilization after 8 days without internet. I’m trying to get up to speed on the action at the USA Gymnastics Championships via twitter.
Actually, it’s quite good. Twitter is anb easy way for people to live blog.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 