Gymnastics Coaching.com

The introductory offer of FREE access to a digital version of the hard copy magazine seems to have ended.

It’s now US$24.95 for the digital, US$30.00 for both print and digital for one year.

Subscribe on Grips Etc

Good timing, I think. With the Olympics looming, interest of new subscribers has never been greater.

International Gymnast magazine online is still free. And, overall, the best gymnastics news site on the WWW.

Many libraries carry the print version.

THANKS IG!

Many Canadian athlete associations use Usana supplements: Speed Skating Canada, Cross Country Canada, Biathalon Canada. Others include: US Speed Skating, USA Luge, and the Sony Ericsson Women’t Tennis Association.

My friend (and former gymnastics great) Phyllis Keegan raves:

Great for endurance, recovery as well as the only company in the world that provides a $1,000,000 athlete guarantee of no banned substances in our products.

Contact Phyllis Keegan if you want to know more.

From the Australian Gymnastics Blog:

… Sister of Canadian Olympian Stella, former commentator, now a WAG coach and choreographer, Stacey has been sassin’ up the gymnastics scene from coast to coast here in Oz for more than a decade (two decades?), from the Waverley Gymnastics Centre here in suburban Melbourne to the tropical and topical climates of the Queensland Academy of Sport to the far-flung floor mats of the West Australian Institute of Sport. She not only choreographs routines for some of our top squad members (including, but not limited to, Lauren Mitchell’s funk-tacular new routine and Emma Dennis’ Chinese ballet-inspired exercise) but she lectures at clubs and institutes on coaching and artistic principles (particularly conditioning, flexibility and dance elements). Oh, and she heads the Creative Movement Group, a dance, physical movement and fitness company that tours around the country educating and working with anyone from schools to sports programs and other dance companies. …

Give it Up For Stellar Stacey

She’s great.

Russia was the dominant nation.

4th Children of Asia Games
July 10-11, Yakutsk, Russia

Girls All-Around 1994-1995
1. Valeria Sviridova RUS (Novosibirsk) 58.050
2. Alexandra Yakovleva RUS (Yakutia) 54.600
3. Moldir Azimbay KAZ 53.200

Girls All-Around 1996-1997
1. Yekaterina Shtronda RUS (Krasnoyarsk)
2. Lilia Akhaimova RUS (Primorsky)
3. Yulia Ovcharova RUS (Primorsky)

Boys All-Around 1993-1994
1. Viktor Cherepanov RUS (Kemerovo) 83.050
2. Dmitry Turayev RUS (Khabarovsk) 79.000
3. Yevgeny Vasilyev RUS (Yakutia) 78.950

Boys All-Around 1995-1996
1. Vladislav Polyarshov RUS (Yakutia) 79.650
2. Alexander Mikhailov RUS (Novosibirsk) 76.450
3. Kirill Potapov RUS (Tomsk) 75.900

Report and links to full results – IG

After the 2004 Olympic Gymnastics champion broke his hand on Stutz in Houston, I did not speak to even one person who doubted he’d be ready for Beijing.

This guy is a freak.

Earlier this year John Roethlisberger (who has probably hit more routines in competition than any other gymnast in history) said that, in his prime, he’d never been able to train full routines like Paul Hamm.

When I got back to Canada, some of the Men’s Team told me that Pommels would be the most difficult apparatus while healing. That hand surgery recovery took often longer than expected.

I would have thought PBars might be a problem too … But here’s Paul training Stutz:

In the training video footage posted July 10th Paul is doing long Pommel sequences, as well.

Paul will defend the AA in Beijing. He’s awesome tough.

(via a cool new blog – StickItMedia Men’s Gymnastics)

USA Today’s Christine Brennan threw USA Gymnastics some grief:

… The toughest move Paul Hamm, the 2004 Olympic men’s all-around gold medalist, made at the recent U.S. trials was to get out of his seat in the stands without putting any pressure on his broken hand. Yet he was put on the Olympic team once the trials ended, pending his ability to show his readiness next week. …

Olympic trials can be unjust for the world’s best

Brennan questioned why Hamm got a “pass” while World Champion sprinter Tyson Gay was eliminated from Olympic selection due to injury.

She’s got a good point there. StickItMedia called for a more flexible selection process in Athletics. … Next time.

As a consultant to the Cirque du Soleil casting department, I track the many new roles available around the world to acrobats.

That’s gotten easier since Cirque started distributing a Casting Newsletter by email. I’ve just received the second edition:

In keeping with its global outreach, Cirque du Soleil now has satellite Casting offices in Las Vegas, USA and in Macau, China. …

… The Cirque du Soleil Events team gives you the opportunity to work for Cirque on a short-term or occasional basis, or even just one occasion, in an array of innovative events throughout the world. …

Cirque du Soleil currently offers over 250 male and female dancer roles choreographed by professionals such as Wade Robson, Mia Michaels, Philippe Decouflé, Martino Muller (NDT), Vincent Paterson, Bill Shannon, Dwight Rhoden and Daniel Ezralow. …

With well over 1000 jobs for “artists” on stage, they are by far the biggest employer of gymnasts and acrobats.

If interested in keeping track of opportunities for your athletes yourself, subscribe to the Cirque du Soleil casting newsletter. (top of page)

Just subscribed.

Check it out at The Gymnut

Hey, one post states that “Shawn Johnson has around $1,000,000 in the bank”. Is that true? If so, she’s already the next Mary Lou Retton. A gymnastics millionaire.

Or check the commentary on the Klimenko Memorial Mediterranean Cup won by Vanessa Ferrari.

Is she cool, or what?

… You came close to making the 2004 team, but didn’t quite. This year, you’re practically a lock. What’s changed in the last four years?

I’m in a lot better place this time. I have a lot more experience. I’ve been on the last three Worlds teams, and that’s been a big confidence boost. It’s helped me learn to compete with so much pressure. I had the skills in 2004, but it was all a maturity thing. Now I’m ready.

What kept you going after the disappointment of 2004?

It was really hard, and hard to watch the Games knowing I could have been there. I took some time off and evaluated what I really wanted to do. I realized I still wanted to do gymnastics, and I still had the talent. The year after, 2005, was my best year ever. I won a world title on floor. So that was definitely incentive to keep going!

The U.S. team won the World Championships in 2007. What does the team need to do to win in Beijing?

I think we have to go in there with a positive mindset. We have a really talented group of girls who have worked really hard. We did it once, so we can do it again. We have the skills to win, we just need the right frame of mind. …

Women’s Health

China may have the higher start scores. But they must HIT to stand any chance of beating the vastly more pressure proven USA.

Alicia Sacramone’s iPod Playlist

(via IG)

In a study reputable enough to be published by Pediatrics magazine, school students identifying themselves as gymnasts told researchers they had tried steroids.

I assume these were kids experimenting, not actually trying to achieve high performance in gymnastics through drugs.

If steroids worked for Artistic Gymnastics, we’d know about it by now.

Check the article out out for yourself:

Anabolic Steroid Use by Male and Female Middle School Students (PDF) by Avery D. Faigenbaum, EdD*; Leonard, D. Zaichkowsky, PhD., Douglas E. Gardner, MA and Lyle J. Micheli, MD§. Pediatrics, May 1998.

Not much of a sample, actually, but it’s still — I think — the first paper I’ve ever seen linking gymnasts to Anabolic Steroids.

Thanks TCO.

UPDATE: The Fabulous one later improved his World Record to 16.600 (!!) (start value 17.3) at a meet in DESSAU.

We’re picking another favourite:

… World and European champion Fabian Hambüchen then showed why he is No. 1 on high bar right now: With a world record A Score of 7.3, he earned a personal best 16.350 points. A routine made for Beijing and for sure the news of the day.

German Men Top Romanians, Swiss – IG

There’s simply not much competition on Horizontal Bar for the boy star from Germany. If he hits, he wins.

Hambüchen scored 92.900 in the all-around despite fighting a bit on 2 apparatus. He’s certainly got a strong shot at an AA medal in Beijing.

Click PLAY or watch Hambüchen compete at the 2008 German Championships on YouTube.

I can envision a scenario where Paul Hamm does not compete AA due to his hand injury. And Yang Wei faltering in the AA competition.

Hambüchen could be Olympic Champion. And I think that would be very good for the sport.

See the rest of our Olympic Predictions, so far.

Related post: German Olympic Gymnastics Team