Gymnastics Coaching.com

1 Russia 35.550 points
2 China 35.225
3 Belarus 34.900

4 Italy 34.425
5 Bulgaria 33.550
6 Israel 32.100
7 Azerbaijan 31.575
8 Ukraine 31.100

Russia wrapped up their third straight Olympic rhythmic gymnastics group all-around title Sunday, with China finishing second for their first medal ever in the crowd-pleasing discipline.

Russia rules rhythmic gymnastics – AP

Over the past few years I’ve tried to gain more appreciation for this complicated sport. Certainly the Team is more appealing than the higher profile individual competition.

The general public is generally dismissive. Like this journalist:

… At first look, the sport of rhythmic gymnastics tends to induce a fit of the giggles. The costumes, the dramatic make-up, the ribbons; what’s the deal? And that flexibility? Well, that’s just freaky. How is this a sport?

Since we mock that which we do not understand, rhythmic gymnastics took a mean battering in the mock department in my life. I didn’t get it. So I mocked it.

And then I watched it.

I have now drunk the rhythmic Kool-Aid and am planning to move to Russia to learn to do the splits. Words I never thought I would utter came spilling out after the first night of qualifying; “Rhythmic gymnastics is really, really cool!”

Confessions of a former rhythmic mocker – Stacey Nash – NBC Olympics

My biggest complaint is the costumes. They distract from the extreme feats of coordination and flexibility, I think.

China’s silver medalists perform with hoops and clubs during the rhythmic gymnastics group competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2008.

(AP Photo/Odd Andersen) – ESPN

Looks like China will be future challengers to the domination of Eastern Europe in this sport.

… Several hundreds fans were on hand Thursday afternoon at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to rally around the 18-year-old from Parker.

The flag-waving crowd … included gymnasts she trains with, pint-sized fans and fellow gold medalist and friend Carly Patterson, who trained at the same gym. …

Golden Girl: Nastia’s Homecoming – NBC

Oddly, Carly Patterson was not invited to travel to Beijing by … anyone. It’s nice Carly was there at the airport to greet her successor as Olympic Champion.

The Olympians from my city, Calgary, Canada, fly in (I think) Monday, Aug. 25th at 4:40PM. Congratulations to Kyle Shewfelt, Adam Wong, Nathan Gafuik and Grant Golding!

gleeclub was celebrating the Olympic competition in style …

original – flickr

And, of course, Port finishes off every “meal” perfectly.

original – flickr

The party is over. Is there life after Olympics?

About.com reports:

Beijing (CHN) BTG FIG Office, August 23, 2008: The Executive Committee members of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) held an extraordinary meeting today August 23, to discuss the age of Chinese female gymnasts.

Further to the communication released yesterday regarding the age of gymnasts who competed here in Beijing, the FIG continues to gather information.

The Federation has received a number of documents from the Chinese Gymnastics Federation, including passports, identity cards and family booklets. All information is in Chinese and the IF is making as thorough analysis as possible of the papers.

This process may take some time, but in due course, the FIG will make a full report of our findings to the International Olympic Committee. …

Investigation Still Ongoing for Chinese Women

If, like the general population in China, you are unaware of the controversy, here’s a catch-up video:

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hundreds or thousands of people in China know the year He Kexin was born. It should be easy to prove it with newspaper articles from past competitions that list her age.

Hopefully someone from FIG will get her nose out of the passports and collect some substantial evidence.

The only trampoline athlete to have won a medal at every Olympic Games since the sport was added in 2000, Karen Cockburn will carry Canada’s flag at the closing ceremonies.

Congratulations.

COCKBURN NAMED FLAGBEARER FOR CLOSING CEREMONY – TSN

No surprises. She won all 4 apparatus in Finals.

Russia’s Evgeniya Kanaeva has won gold in the rhythmic gymnastics individual all-around competition …

Kanaeva got identical scores of 18.850 on her rope and hoop routines before wowing the judges with a club routine that earned her a finals-high 18.950.

She finished the competition with a ribbon routine that gave her a total of 75.500 and the convincing win.

Inna Zhukova of Belarus scored 71.925 points for the silver and Anna Bessonova of Ukraine had 71.875 for her second straight bronze.

AP

In the last diving event, Aussie Matthew Mitcham (photos) shocked the home crowd by coming from behind to defeat his main Chinese competitor.

Of the 24 diving medals awarded in Beijing, China claimed 11 of a possible 12: seven gold, one silver and three bronze. The sport has produced the country’s most Olympic medals.

Obviously diving coaches around the World need to raise the bar if they hope to compete in future with China. It has been a very poor Olympics for the USA, for example, though they have a young, talented team.

Young Thomas Daley will contend many more Olympics too, I’m sure.

I know many Chinese coaches who prefer the “buck” horse for young gymnasts. Yet there are mushrooms in China.

I like both, myself. Mushroom for beginners. Buck horse once they show good extension.

One more idea from coach Richard Herb.

He suspends “targets”. The boys swing in cross support and try to touch them with their (extended) feet.

Leave a comment if you’ve read this book. I can’t find a review online.

Balance: The Life of a Gay Gymnast

It’s amazing how little has been written about homosexuals in gymnastics sports. This is the first book or major article I can recall.

UPDATE: In the comments, TCO had an interesting point:

You can tell how few gay male athletes there are in most sports by looking at how few died of AIDS in the 1980s. Figure skating was decimated by AIDS: both Olympic Men’s Figure Skating gold medalists from the 1970s died of AIDS, but AIDS deaths in other sports were quite low: one NFL player, one major league baseball player, no golfers, etc.”

Some great captures from Inside Gymnastic’s Grace Chiu.

The wonderful Anna Pavlova really had a terrible Olympics. What a shame.

see more – Inside Gymnastics