Nice interview with the always likeable Raj Bhavsar on International Gymnast.
He talks about what he’s doing with the celebrity gained as an Olympic medalist.
One exerpt:
IG: The recent hit film “Slumdog Millionaire” has made the American public more intrigued with Indian culture. How do you hope to influence Americans’ perspective on India?
RB: I hope America already sees India as a prosperous place. While areas of the country need development, as is true with almost every country in the world, I believe India is on the rise to a more shining future. As an American athlete of Indian origin, I believe I am in a unique position, given my recent accomplishments, to do something bigger by somehow merging the benefits of being American with the humbleness and prosperity of the Indian culture. While my path to this endeavor isn’t yet clear, I believe that simply taking an interest in doing this is where most people start. After watching “Slumdog Millionaire,” and witnessing its sweep at the Oscars, I simply said to myself, “I’m proud to be Indian.”
… read more – IG Online Interview: Raj Bhavsar (USA)
original – flickr – sballo
You might assume Raj is getting comfortable in the life of an Olympic medalist celebrity.
Not so.
New skills he’s training:
The first is a double layout somersault with three twists, which has never been performed as a dismount off rings … The second, on parallel bars, is similar to a Tkachev release move on high bar. The latter requires a seemingly impossible degree of momentum to complete, but, he said, “I’m 85 percent there.â€
Years ago coach Kelly Manjak had a gymnast named Ward Allen training fast giants on Parallel Bars into Tkachev. It looked great with spot, but I don’t think Ward ever did the skill by himself.
It looks like an extreme variation of Tippelt.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 