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NOTES FROMTHE PUBLISHER:

OLYMPIC YEAR FOR THE USA: The Trials are over, the teams are picked and the OL YMPICS are upon us ... How will we do, as a team, as i[ldividuals? .. . Will Cathy, Lynda, Roxan ne, ... Hug, Sakamoto or Crosby come home with a Bronze, Silver or Gold medal? Will either either ofour teams break into the top three . .. is this the year of the Big Win or at least the breakthrough for the USA to be really counted among the top World contenders in Gymnastics? These questions will all be answered by September 1st at the conclusion of the Gymnastic portion of the Olympic Games. In the meantime we can only speculate and hope all goes well with our talented youngsters and their capable coaches. For the girls we should fare well , we have a lot going for us as we field this team of young veterans with extensive International competition experience. This will be the .third Olympic Competition for Lynda Metheny(she made it to the final top six on the BB in Mexico) Cathy has the Mexico Olympics(where she was the top USA scorer), The World Games(a silver Medal on the Balance Beam) and numerous other awards from International I nvitional Competitons. Pierce, Chace, Moore and Hill were on the World Games team of '70 leaving only .Miss Thies a very talented youngster as yet to be tested in World competition . We expect the girls to show very well, both individually and as a team. Our men 's team of Hug, Sakamoto, Greenfield, Crosby Avener, Lindner and Culhane are all veterans of I nternational competition. Based on their final trial scores they have been assigned to top competition group C placing them with Japan, East Germany, Poland, Hungry and Czechoslovakia. Baring unexpected injury this team should be right up among the winners.

OLYMPIC TEAM BOOSTERS: Not only are we sending top teams to Munich, but if the west coast is any example there will be hundreds of USA Gymnastic boosters. The USGF charter out of Chicago, the VTI charter out of Detroit along with special Turner, Sokol and Teacher groups will be winging countless numbers of gymnastic fans to Munich and the Olympic Games. Our teams will be well supported by the spectators and the press. Your publisher and able Associate editor Dick Criley will be in the press section every session to bring you full photo and statistical reports from the Games. Our Olympic accredited photographer, Don Wilkenson will on the main floor with the action shooting hundreds( perhaps thousands) of photos for GYMNAST. All in all we will have a good report for our GYMNAST readers in the October Olympic Preview edition, our November feature Olympic Report and our December Olympic follow-up issue. .

GYMNAST"Girl Friday": The excellent photos of the Japanese USA competion on our March cover were miss-credited-and should have read cover photo(and several inside photos) by Ri chard Kenny of Franklin Park, Illinois. Dick Criley also infQrmed us we mixed up a few names in our lapanese Report in the February issue along with several typo errors in the April-May edition. To help minimize future errors, starting in September we will have a " GYMNAST Girl Friday" to check all the little but important things that get by us, pi us put in order materials that should be included but got buried along the way ... If you have little bits of news 'n such you feel should be noted in GYMNAST, facts that would be of interest to many of our readers or perhaps a thought, idea or complaint you may have bottled up inside until you are abouuo burst ... drop a line to our " GYMNAST Girl Friday" and relieve the pressure, it may be a big help to all of us.

4

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Volume XIV / Numbers 8&9/ June-July 1972

4 NOTES FROM THE PUBLISHER, Glenn Sundby

6 NAMES & NEWS 7 AN OPEN LETTER TO THE GYMNASTIC

COMMUMITY Dr. Joseph L. Massimo NO GYMNASTICS - DON'T LET COLLEGE BE YOUR EXCUSE, Linda D. Law KEEPING WITH THE TIME, Bob Henneche

8 GYMNAST BOOK REVIEW/INTERVIEW: Dr. Eric Hughes, Dick Criley JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOU'RE FINISHED, A.B. Frederick

9 WHY ARE THE SCORES GENERALLY LOW IN THE FINALS COMPETITION?, Frank J. Cumiskey

10 10TH ANNUAL USGF CHAMPIONSHIPS

11 OLYMPIC FINAL TRIALS: MEN, Les Sasvary 13 HUG, 14 SAKAMOTO, 15 GREENFIELD, 25 CROSBY, 17 AVENER, 18 LINDNER, 19 CULHANE

20 OLYMPIC FINAL TRIALS: WOMEN, Renee P . Hendershott

21 PIERCE, 22 METHENY, 23 CHACE, 24 MOORE, 25 THIES, 26 RIGBY, 27 HILL

28 GETTING THE GRIP ON GYMNASTICS, Bill Holmes 29 BEGINNER FLOOR EXERCISE ROUTINE, Jerry Wright 30 SEQUENCES BY SCHULTZ, Dietev Schultz 32 THE BACK KIP, Bill Roetzheim '

33 NEWS 'N NOTES, Renee P. Hendershott 34 ARE YOU A NEW COACH AND AFRAID TO SPOT A

CAST ROTATE?, Renee Hendershott 35 WATCH THOSE CURVES, R.A. Bates 36 REPRINTS FROM THE OLYMPISCHE TURNKUNST 37 HELEN'S CORNER, Helen Sjursen

38 BUYERS GUIDE

39 INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES FOR THE GYMNASTIC SPECTRUM, Gerald S. George

46 LEITERS

COVER: Debbie Hill, 1972 USA Olympic team alternate at GYMNAST press-time.

Publisher: Glenn Sundby Associate Editors: Renee Hendershott and Dick Criley Contributors: A.B. Frederick, Gerald George, Don Tonry, Jerry Wright and Helen Sjursen.

GYMNAST magazine is published by Sundby Publication, 410 Broadway, Santa Monica, Ca. 90401. Second Class Postage paid at Santa Monica, Ca. published monthly except April-May&double edition? and bi-monthly June, July, August and September. Price 75¢ a Single copy. Subscription correspondence, GYMNAST - P.O. Box 110, Santa Monica, Ca. 90406. Copyright 1972@ all rights reserved by SUNDBY PUBLICA liONS, 410 Broadway, Santa Monica, Ca. All photos and manuscripts submitted become the property of GYMNAST unle~s return requ est and sufficient postage are included.

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NAMES& NEWS:

On the Move in Indiana Report by Lloyd G. Peterson

Gymnastics is on the move in Vincennes, Indiana . Growing interest in and knowledge of gymnastics resulted in more than 70 children participating in a 10-week age-group gymnastics program held in the well-equipped South Knox High School Gymnasium near Vincennes, Indiana. Students concentrated on the basic skills involved in tumbling, trampoline and apparatus; workshop personnel consisted of Lloyd Peterson and Ed H.enry of Vincennes University, Cathy Bordinet of South Knox High School and volunteer help from several more advanced students. Plans for the'- future include similar programs and hopefully a gymnastics booster group.

FROM JAPAN We received a report of a 16-year-old

Japanese girl , Miss Korubuto, who topped Russia 's Turischeva in a recent competition (presumably their women's : invitational 12/4/71) . She was shown in the research magazine of the JGA No. 28, 1972, doing a layout back somie to regrasp from the top of the high uneven bars to the top bar again. Her regrasp occurred with sufficient height that she was able to extend her body while still above45 degrees. In the same issue is shown a gymnast performing a straddle toe circle on the high bar (facing outwards as she starts) to a high cast and

Nakayama

6

extension with 'l Y2 turns through the length of the body ax is before completing the regrasp. Another set of sequences shows a back hip c ircle exectued from a mixed grip and into an eagle catch, but the difference is that the cast into the low bar came from above (i.e. , she was facing the opposite way from that usually assoc iated with the cast-wrap) and additionally, the eag le was so high that she was able to bring her hips and legs alii the way over the low bar. In the Japanese men 's final Olympic trials (June 1-3, 1972) vete ran Akinori Nakayama pulled off an upset to claim the No .. l berth on the Japanese Olympic team. His all a round total from the final competition was only 3rd (110.875 to Kato's 112.250 and Kenmotsu's 111 .025) but he had a 111 .80 from the preliminary trials, just 0.05 behind Kasamatsu. In the final optional sets, Kasamatsu had a break on the sidehorse (7.10) to severly damage his point total and drop him to 4th in the final standings.

Name Prelims Final Comp FX Nakayama 111.800 55.65 9.20 Kato 109.925 56.60 9.35 Tsukahara 111 .625 53,85 9.40 Kasamatsu 111.850 56.25 9.15 Kenmotsu 108.775 55,80 8.60 Okamoto 110.275 55.05 9,10 Honma 108.450 54,55 8,90 Mikki 106.825 54.20 9.15

THE INSTANT GYMNAST Although we have not yet developed the

exact ' formula for the production of " Instant Gymnasts" we can at least send you a picture of one. He is William Blume of Tomahawk, Wisconsin recently a Freshman at the University of Wisconsin - Superior and a wrestler but somehow got into the wrong facility and he liked what he saw in the gymnastic gym and d~cided it was for him , Most of the apparatus he had not been familiar with.

He mastered fund amenta ls insta ntly and about two months after his abrupt start was able to score in the low twenti es in the All Around. By the time of the Confe re nce meet at University of Wisconsin - Steven 's Point he was actually enjoying the All Around and managed to place 10th in that meet in the AA Category.

The formula for this phenomenon goes something like this : Willingness Smile Alot - Especially when it hurts Make the other guys teach you at least one thing a day (or in Blume's case . . a thing an hour Tra in like a wrestler Be well liked Say your prayers

PH

In the Japanese women's final trials to select their Olympic Gymanstics team, two of the top competitors were uanable to take part because of injuries. Thus, instead of selecting the 7 girls, 4 were selected plus an a lternate. A special competition was to be held in late June for the final 3 berths with the' 2 missing competitors and the alternate expected to qualify offiCially.

The four selected and their scores from the final trials: Eido Hirashima (Nihon Taikudaigaku) 72.400; Kayoko Saka (Nitta i Swallow) 69.925; Takako Hasegawa (Nihon Taikudaigaku) 69.150; Toshiko Miyamoto (Nihon Daigaku) 68.825.

The alternate from this competitio n was Chieko Oda (Nittai Swallow) with 68.450. Miyuki Masuhisa (Nittai Swallow) and Kazue Hanyu (Bittai Taiku-Daigaku) are expected to earn .the unfilled positions.

R V PB HB Final Opt Total 9,25 9.25 8.825 9.35 9.35 55.225 222.675 8.85 9.05 9.450 9.65 9.30 55.650 222.175 9.15 9.40 9.150 8.70 9.40 55,200 220.675 7.10 8.60 8.850 9.30 9.55 52,550 220.650 9.45 9.30 8.875 9.40 9.60 55.225 219.800 8.15 9.20 9.100 9.25 8.90 53.700 219.025 8.80 9,15 8,925 8.50 8.75 53.025 216.025 9.20 8.85 8.900 9.30 9.00 55.400 215.425

,K&~ RETIRE Kitty and Erik Kjeldsen, longtime coaches of

gymnastics at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, announced their retirement from coaching. Mr. Kjeldsen will continue to teach at the University during the 1972-73 school year while Mr. Kjeldsen will be on a sabbatical leave pursuing a Ph. D. in the Department of Socialogy at the University.

Mr. and Mrs. Kjeldsen joined the faculty of the University in 1962 and have been teaching and coaching there since. Mr. Kjeldsen took over a weak New England independent team and built it into an eastern power in the sport. This past year the men 's team placed second in the Eastern Intercollegiate .Gymnastic League. The ' women's team was founded through Mrs, Kjeldsen's efforts and in the last two years has been among the top teams both regionally and nationally. This year they placed second to nation champions, Springfield College, in eastern competitionand fourth nationally.

Kitty Kjeldsen will be replaced by Ms. Virginia Evans, formly of Towsen State College in Maryland and Erik will be replaced next year by Tom Dunn, a former national parallel bar champion at Penn State University.

GYMNAST GETS PHOTO OF TRICIA (NIXION) COX

David Shimp, of Washington Boro, wore a gymnastics award lapel pin on a recent visit to the White House and it earned him a specially autographed photo of President Richard Nixon's daughter Tricia and her husband, Edward Cox. Shimp, 17, was attending a White House reception for the Young Republican Leadership Conference last month when Tricia noticed his pin and asked what it represented .

She told him that her father has become more interested in gymnastics since his China trip, and a few weeks later, the photo arrived in the mail il t Shimp's home.

'ANOPEN LmER TO THE GYMNASTIC COMMUNITY

This past year the u.s. National Gymnastic Coaching Staff was dissolved. As you may recall the two staffs were formed in 1969 as part of the " Elite 15" program and were envisioned as an aspect of "a plan to create and develop an international caliber, national team for the U.S.A.". ·(The origina l staffs were: Men : Wettstone, Grossfeld, Roetzheim, Mitchell , Schwenzfeier, Frye and Special Assts. Cumiskey and Massimo. Women: Flansaas, Grossfeld, Marquette, Obradovich, Edwards. Lewis and Special Assts. Uphues (Fie and Maddox). Many long months of preparation and initial organization was necessary but gradual ly progress was becoming evident. The reasons for the termination of this program are complex and will no doubt be articulated by our U.S.G.F. central office in coming months as part of their administrative responsibility to the gymnastic community at large.

The dissolution of the National Staff brought to an end my official work as consulting staff

, psychologist. My regret in this regard is that the data was finally coming together (M.G. Nov. 71) and the practical application of psychological theory was becoming a successful reality.

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank my staff col leagues and the many coaches who cooperated and supported my efforts. Most of all, however, I wanted to publicly offer my gratitude to the many gymnasts who patiently tolerated my presense in the gym and who gave so unselfishly of their valuable time to take tests and "rap" about our sport in a mutual effort to understand more about the psychological ·roots . of exce ll ence. The relationships I developed with these ·young. gymnasts were highly rewarding as a very personal experience. I wish you all my most warm regards and again, a genuine "thank you".

Dr. Joseph L. Massimo

NO GYMNASTICS -DON'T LO COLLEGE IE YOUR EXCUSE Submitted by: Linda D. Law, girls' physical education teacher, Lawndale, California B.S. SUCCORTLAND, master's degree candidate, Cal State Long Beach

It should come as no surprise to physical educators that gymnastics is becoming one of ·the most popular . activit ies for today's youth. Many schools, however, are sti ll avoiding its inc lusion in their program. Why? The answer is painfully obvious: many educators do not have the background to teach in the area of gymnastics. Hopefully, physical educators will not continu e to "shy away" ·from this area of sport because they were not.taught gymnastics in college.

What can be done? Recently, at our schoo l we began a teaching technique course in gymnastics in conjunction with Cal State Long Beach. This course was designed to offer the young and o lder physical educators, men and women, the tools for them to teach gymnastics, namely, tumbling skills, spotting techniques, skill progressions, safety and conditioning as we ll as knowledge for care and selection of gymnast ic equipment.

The remarkable thing was that we all learned. We had some of our students serve as demonstrators. This gave us a chance to observe how they were being taught, then we could spot and co rrect their errors. In addition, 'when we went back to our classes, we had students who could demonstra te for us.

I am sure each of us feels confident and competent to teach gymnastics after this 15-hour course. Your students deserve the opportunity to lea rn gymnastics. Why not give yourself the opportunity to lea rn?

·KEEPING WITH 'THE TIMES

by Bob Hennecke

'Everyone is concerned with keeping abreast with the times, and of course, gymnastics is no exception. During the seventies we may expect many changes and innovations in the gymnastics world. And I wonder if we can expect to see the following books and/or films to soon appear on the gymnastics scene? "The Senuous Gymnast" - " Wild in the Gymnasium " " Gymnastics in the Woodstock Nation " "Fidd ler on the Floor Pad" "Sex and the College Gymnast" " Gymnastics in Denmark" " Gymnastics in Sweden" '·'Gymnastics in Bolivia" ect...

Or perhaps we may hear news coverage of events such as the following : An expose of Mafia Control of the U.S.G .F.; Nixon beginning the "1973" season by throwing out the first handguard; the YippieParty claiming The Modern Gymnast Magazine is an "establishment media"; news coverage of Gymnastics in China; a television production of the history of minority groups in gymnastics; or Women 's Lib picketing the M .G. Building .... . Or imagine seeing the following

cartoons at the local neighborhood theater : The Mickey Mouse (Gym) Club tours the United States; Charlie Brown loses the N.C.A.A. title; or Donald Duck at the Mid-West Open Championships.

Do you think that the following organizations may be formed in the 70's? A Gymnasts Liberty Union dedicated to liberating American gymnasts. An underground Gymnastics Magazine presenting a lternative points of view. The establishment of a New Mexico Commune on ly for gymnasts. The establishment of a well armed revolutionary party dedicated to the overthrow of the F. I.G . called G.U .P.-Gymnastics United Party. (Any one interested in becoming a Guppie leader or just an activated Guppie please write to Bob Hennecke, 6477 N. 86, Milwaukee, Wi .)

In the seventies the possibilities are staggering. Will we see bell-bottomed pants in competit ion , mod skirts during compet ition, topless performers (topless males that is),or ??????I wonderwhatthis decade wil l be like?

7

GYMNAST BOOK REVIEW /INTBlVIEW: Dr. Eric Hughes by Dick Criley

(A new edition of Dr. Hughes' book, GYMNASTICS FOR GIRLS has been published by tr.e Ronald Press Company, 79 Madison Ave. , New York, N.Y. 10016. At the NCAA Gymnastics Championships, I had the pleasure of talking with Dr. Hughes about the new edition .)

Dr. Hughes, in what ways does this revision of GYMNASTICS FOR WOMEN differ from the original1

It differs in two ways. We've modernized it for one thing. The first edition was one of the · first books on women's gymnastics that came out. It was published' in 1963. Books that are published in a certain year are usually written two years ahead of that time. So it was really written in 1961 when women's gymnastics was in its infancy. It needed to be brought up to date with modern routines and techniques. In order to do this, I had Dale Flansaas co-author with me. I think she is the most knowledgeable person in the country in women's gymnastics at this time. She was able to pick up things that a man might not catch. That really helped as she went through every chapter although she only wrote a few parts. That's really the main way it differs. _ The second big change is the addition of modern gymnastics. It's _ nly one chapter but it includes almost enough for the physical education teacher for class purposes. I don ' t think they' re going to be able to cover much more than that in 2-3 years of high school. It includes drills with balls and hoops.

You have set the book up with routines rather than skill by skill. Why did you choose this approach?

When this book was written back in 1961, I realized that women physical educators knew very little about the sport. It had not been a part of their training in their college days. Most of them had not even been exposed to gymnastics. The logical way to present it to them to re-present it to the s'tudents was to compose the routines for them and in a manner where they could start with a simple routine, and, as their students got better or maybe in their second year of a gymnastics unit, theYt could move to the second routine and so forth . It was all done for them . When the new edition came out, we had a choice to make. Were we still in this stage or was it best to go to some other approach? It was a very difficult decision . Still , I have contact with a lot of physical educators. They say that they are not quite ready to go on our own. Some are, of course; we have some real experts around the country now. But I' m speaking of the vast majority of women physical educators, So, we stuck to this approach for the second edition. I think we're unique in this approach . Other books may

8

include routines but they present the stunts and all they do at the end is briefly outline routines. Ours actually is presented showing how one skill leads to the next.

This book aims more at physical education people than competitive, coaching situations?

Well, yes and no . We' re using the competitive approach even at the beginning level which I think is important. I' m opposed to physical education teachers, man or women, saying, " My students can't do routines yet. They haven't had enough gymnastics." My students can do routines about the second or third period that I have them, and I think that anyone can do routines. You don't have to teach students for 2 years and say, "Now you are ready to do routines." We are using the competitive approach in our book, but it is designed more for the teacher. To be practical about it, this is where the bulk of your books are sold. I believe that this book is also useable for the coach because by the time the girls get to the 4th or 5th routines, they encounter difficult routines, the type that certainly could not be done by the average performer in a physical education class. These would be the right type of routine for a girl on a high school team.

These routines seem to give an idea of how routines are put together ...

I th ink that these routines certainly are composed well. I didn't do it all myself. I got advice from a lot of other people, especially Dale Flansaas. I think these are the type of routines which girls in competition should be encouraged to use. I've been criticized by some people who say that this limits creativity. I realize that this could be considered a weakness, but if you use the book properly, it doesn't have to be. I tell my students that this is ·the basis of the routine, but use your own creativity in putting your own styling into it. Change small parts. Add a different mount of dismount. Insert a new skill somewhere where it fits in . Granted, it is not an optional routine, but they have an opportunity to be creative in this way.

Do you have plans to up-date the men's book sometimel

Yes, in fact, it has already been done. The men's book was not as out of date as the women's because it was written later in the stages of development of men't gymnastics. The revision is in to the publishers now but they have not yet decided when to go ahead with it. Publishers, of course, have to make money and the men's book is only 6 years old at this time. They may decide it is too costly to do at this time and want to wait a few years, but I do hope they will go through with it. The decision should be made in the next few months.

Just When You Think You're Finished Some additional Notes on the Golden Library by A.B. Frederick Education Editor

The Golden Library published in the March -edition of the GYMNAST had some notable deletions either due to omissions of the original manuscript or because the updated version had not been received in time by Publisher Glenn Sundby.

For example you will be disappionted to find that the Library selections en toto would cost $250.00 and not $2.50 as was reported .

Eric Hughes' Gymnastics for Men was also inadvertently omitted on the list although referred to in the body of the report. Other omitted volumes were on an updated manuscript and I shall give some brief description of these below.

The USGF has published Richard Laptad's dissertation on the history and development of the USGF which is excellent and may provide a sueful working model for the United States Wrestling Federation . A new book by Taylor, Bajin and Zivic is the third book combining work for both men and women. This book has a very good chapter on vaulting. Willoughby 's Super Athletes is an exhaustive collection of all sorts of athletic oddities including those from the gymnast domain . Publisher Glenn 's famous hand walk down the Washington Monument and many of the feats already well known by the "Muscle Beach" gang are documented for posterity.

Then, just when you think you're finished, Tonry comes out with what surely will be a popu lar volume (I haven't seen it yet .) in Gymnastics Illustrated, a title he may have borrowed from the Japanese and whose content is apt to be even more valuable than the highly illustrated books we are familiar with by Takemoto et al.

In any event, I am happy to add the following to " finish" the job for now at least knowing that a Hinds or a Kunzle could easily beat this postscript to press. As in the March edition, I have indicated Golden Library selections by the use of bold type.

Addenda Holmes, B. and L. Kalakian , Men's Gymnastics. -Boston : Allyn-Bacon, 1972 $1.25 HUGHES, ERIC, GYMNASTICS FOR MEN. New York: Ronald Press, 1966 $7.50 KUNZLE, GEO. and B.W. THOMAS£ OLYMPIC GYMNASTICS - FREE STANDING (Floor Exercise) London: Barrie and Rockliff, 1956 $2.50 LAPTAD , RICHARD, HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE INITED STATES GYMNASTIC FEDERATION. Tucson, Arizona : USGF, 1972 $6.50 Taylor, Bryce, B. Bajin and T. Zivic, Olympic Gymnastics for Men and Women. Englewood Cliffs, N.J .: Prentice-Hall, 1972 $10.95 Tonry, Don , Gymnastics Illustrated. Northbridge, Mass. : Gymnastic Aides (P.O . Box 475, Northbridge, Mass. 01534), 1972 $9.00 Willoughby, David P., The Super Athletes. (A record of the limits of human strength, speed and stamina.) Cranbury, N.J.: A.S. Barnes and Co., 1970 $15.00

WHY ARE THE SCORES GENERALLY LOW IN THE FINALS COMPETITION?

by Frank J. Cumiskey-Technical Director of the USGF

I have had the pleasure this season of judging the Finals Competition in the Western Athletic Conference Championships, The Eastern Intercollegiate Championships, and the NCAA College and University Division Championships. The scores were generally lower than the preliminary scores. Why?

1. Many gymnasts use the same exercise in the Finals that they use in the Preliminaries. In the Finals, the rules stipulate that in order to receive full value for Difficulty, the gymnast must execute 3 C skills, 3 B ski ll s, and 2 A skills. In the preliminaries the gymnast must on ly execute 1 C skill, 5 B skills, and 4 A skills to receive the maximum under difficulty. Therefore if the gymnast uses Ie, 5Bs, and 4As in the Finals, he w ill be short 2C skills; however, since he wi ll have 2 extra B skills, they can partially replace the 2 missing C ski ll s. Since a C skill is valued at 0.60 and a B ski ll us va lued at 0.40. Therefore the total value that the gymnast could receive under Difficulty would be 3.00. In some cases it was obvious that the gymnasts were unable to do 3 C skills plus 3 B skills, especially in the Team Competition Finals and in some instances it appeared that the gymnasts were unwilling to take the risk involved.

2. The start ing score in the Finals is 9.4-not 10.0. There is a reserve of 0.60 for ROV-Risk, Originality, and Virtuosity. The gymnast can receive up to 0.40 in any of these categoriE's and up to 0.60 for any two of these categories. These are called BONUS POINTS for gymnasts who demonstrilte ROV. Remember there is no mitigation for faults executed during the Finals as there is in the Preliminaries. Let us take the case of the gymnast who competes in the Finals and executes the same exercise as he did in the Preliminaries, 1 e, 5Bs, and 4As. Since he is starting with a 9.4 and he loses 0.40 under difficulty, as described above, his maximum score without ROV is 9.0. Now if he has errors under execution and/or combination of 0.60, his highest possible score is 8.4. The same exercise in the Preliminaries could score a 9.4, since the starting base is 10.0 minus the faults of 0.60 mentioned leaves 9.4.

3. It is possible that the judges have not judged enough under this new Finals system to

really app ly the Bonus Points correctly. This system was devised to give more credit to a gymnast who takes some risks or shows some originality over those gymnasts who merely remain technically correct. The judge must also determine whether the gymnast when executing his exercise remains within the usual adequate limit or exceeds that lim it in the direction of Virtuosity. For example, a gumnast does a back somersault to a handstand on the aprallel bars and drops into the handstand from about 4 or 5 inches. This ski ll is a definite risk and because of the height there is also virtuosity. Itis possible that because judges may have seen this skill many times they may not consider it risky and it is possible that they v iewed the skill as only being within adequate limits. The judges also has to determine whether ROV limits inself to one or two skills or if they influence half or the entire exercise and distribute his Bonus Points accordingly.

4. Vaulting is another matter. Vaults are rated by the asterisk system. 0 asterisks, 1 asterisk, 2 asterisks, and 3 asterisks. For 0 and 1 asterisk, the judge cannot award any of the 0.60 Bonus Points. For 2 asterisks vaults, the jodge can award Bonus Points as follows, up to 0.30 for one factor, up to 0.40 fottwo factors , and up to 0.50 for three factors. For 3 asterisks vaults, the judge can award up to 0.60 for Risk, up to 0.30 for originality and up to 0.30 for virtuosity. The maximum Bonus can only be 0.60.

It is required therefore that the judge know every vau lt as far as rated difficulty and in terms of aster isks. There is a problem in 2 asterisks vaults. but the greatest problem wou ld seem to be in 3 asterisks vau lts, since a judge can award up to 0.60 for risk alone. Does that mean that every 3 asterisks vault should receive 0.60 Bonus Points automatical ly? Or should we rate each of the 3 asterisks va ults in the range of 0.10 to 0.60 which wou ld be another form of Difficulty. The whole asterisk system is the rating of vaults of 10.0 since vaults of less than 10.0 have no asterisks. Now should we go one stop farther and rate each of the vau lts under their separate asterisks. In other words under for example the 3 asterisks vaults shall we say that vau lt A can only receive 0.20 under Risk

and vault B can receive 0.30 under Risk etc. It would appear that there must be some system to tell each udge how much of the 0.60 to apply under Risk . Is a Yamashita with a full turn riskier than a Yamashita followed by a Saito or not. Most people wou ld say the second vau lt and allow more Bonus Points under Risk than the first. But is this correct? Since under difficu lty in other events, some Bs are more difficult than others and the same is true for Cs and As, but we can only give the same credit for all Bs, Cs, and As. It appears that the system is use in Vau lting is the judges own opinion as to what is the difficulty of the va ult under Risk and he awards Bonus Points accordingly. It is my opinion that the va ults under each asterisk category be rated for examp le under the 3 asterisk category, maybe they should be rated from 0.10 to 0.60 as far as al lowab le Bonus Points under risk are concerned. FIG may eventual ly rate each vault in total instead of using the asterisk system and then a judge could judge from a set maximum only, since their aim is to get gymnasts to execute more difficult vaults. Let us take for example a handspring which is rated 10.0 as opposed to a handspring followed by saito forward which is rated **10.0. Actually a judge could give each vau lt a 9.40 if he allowed no Bonus Points for the 2nd vault mentioned. Therefore why not rate them in proper prospective to begin with as far as total difficulty is concerned. All vaults could be rated on a scale and then leave a margin for original ity and vertuosity. The judge would then be guided and risk would not longer enter into the evaluation of vaults.

Assuming that Southern Illinois and Iowa State, the Champions and 2nd place in the recent NCAA Championships, performed about the same overall in the Preliminar and the Finals, these were their scores.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS Preliminaries Finals Florr Ex.

Pom Horse

Rings

Vaulting

P. Bars

H. Bars

Totals

Difference of 5.30 IOWA STATE Preliminaries

27.00 27.50 27.45 27.20 27.20 27.35

163.70

Finals 26.40 25.80 25.75 26.725 25 .80 25.80

156.275

27.35 26.45

26.95 25.75

27.25 26.10

27.05 26.35

26.75 26.25

27.70 26.85

163.05 157.75

The scoring of 5.30 and 7.425 less than in the preliminaries is apparently directly arrtibutal to the 4 points as outlined above. In every event their scores were lower in the finals than in the Preliminaries. Even in the individual Finals only 6 gymnasts scored higher in the Finals than in the Preliminaries out of a total of 39 exercises. If it is assumed that these individuals had all the required Cs and Bs, the lower scores wou ld be a result of ROV.

9

10th ANNUAL USGF CHAMPIONSHIPS Photos by G.J. Maher, Jr.

The USGF Championships of the USA were held in beautiful Statesboro, GA at the spacious Hanner Field House of Georgia Southern College. The campus at Georgia Southern is also beutiful and the weather was perfect. Mr. J.1. Clements, the Athletic Director, was a gracious host and provided all the necessary personnel and materials to insure a smooth well-run competition. Mr. Clements really showed us 'Southern Hospitality' . .

Ron Oertley, Head Gymnastics Coach at Georgia Southern, the meet director, ran the meet with smooth precision, anticipating all the needs of the gymnasts and officials. The gymnasium was more than ample and in addition there were two prictice gymnasiums equipped with identical meet apparatus. Ron also supplied a fine social program for all. American, Nissen, and Gymmaster apparatus companies supplied their finest equipment for the competition.

The all around competition was thrilling with Cathy Rigby and Joan Moore fighting for first place right down to the wire and finally ending in a tie with Kim Chace a close third. The men 's all around was also a tight race with Yoshi Takei winning for the second year in a row over Yoshi Hayasaki by 9/10th of a point with Sadao Hamada a close third. There were 38 women all around entrants and 37 men all around entrants.

The Finals were also thrilling and provided a fitting climax to the competition 4 different girls were winners in the women's events while the men's Finals ,. Yoshi Takei won ~ of the 4 events he qualified in only losing to Tom Lindner by .075 on the Horizontal Bar.

We were accepted very gralously and treated extremely well. Our biggest problem was trying to learn in advance of the plans for the week. As an example we were quite surprised to learn that we would return on Saturday instead of Sunday.

The competition was excellent with the Russians obviously dominating, however remember that they had 5 entrants. I was particularly disappointed in our men but the long tLip had taken its toll and Gary Morava was injured. Steve Hug made rather a poor impression with his appearance. I know our young people feel that their dress is indicative of our culture among the young today but I am certain that among other nations the impression is not too good . Our girls did a fine job and Joan Moore was a favorite with the crowd. Ginny CoCo, the Women's coach and Abie Grossfeld did a fine job and the gymnasts Kim Chace, Joan Moore, Gar' \IIorava, and Steve Hug were impressed with the competition. The individual events are discussed in the following Coaches. reports.

10

Rigby

Takei

WOMEN'S RESULTS ALL AROUND Cathy Rigby Joan Moore Kim Chace

BEAM Kim Chace Joan Moore Cathy Rigby Debbie Hill

VAULTING Cindy Eastwood Ann Carr Roxanne Pierce

UNEVEN BARS Cathy Rigby Roxanne ierce Joan Moore

FLOOR EXERCISE Joan Moore Cathy Rigby Kim Chace

MEN'S RESULTS ALL AROUND Yoshi Takei Yoshi Hayasaki Sadao Hamada

VAULTING Mike Kelley Mel Hill Sadao Hamada

FLOOR EXERCISE Yoshi T'akei Bruce McGartlin Yoshi Hayasaki

POMMEL HORSE Sadao Hamada Ray Gura Mel Hill

HORIZONTAL BAR Tom Lindner Yoshi Takei Yoshi Hayasaki

RINGS Yoshi Takei Yoshi Hayasaki Bob Dickson

P BARS Yoshi Takei Yoshi Hayasaki Sadao Hamada

37.90 37.90 37.60

19.10 18.80 18.30 18.30

19.05 19.00 19.00

19.50 19.40 19.00

19.20 19.05 18.90

107.9Q 107.00 106.20

18.675 18.075 18.000

18.550 18.025 17.875

17.700 17.675 17.600

18.900 18.825 18.650

18.70 18.25 18.10

18.600 18.475 18.650

OLYMPIC FINAL TRIALS: MEN MAINE WEST HIGH SCHOOL, DES PLAINES, ILLINOIS JUNE 16-17. 1972

Report by Les Sasvary

Excellent gymnast ics, individual heroism, suspense and great anticipation by the entire gymnastic world , were the main characteristics of the 1972 Final Olympic Trials for Men's Gymnastics. It was no secret to our gymnast ic experts that the United States w ill be introducing its finest and most qualified men's gymnastic team for international competition. Millions of television viewers have already seen our best-ever wome n's gymnastics team with Cathy Rigby being a strong favorite for winning America 's first gold medal in Munich, Germany.

Since the Internationa l Gymnastics Fed eration established a qualification system for teams and individual gymnasts for participation in the Olympic Games in Munich, it was important that each gymnast would score 102 points and that the team would reach 510 points for 5 gymnasts out of 6 for twelve events to qualify.

Examining the results of the previous trials held at Berkeley, California , itwas obvious to all that the U.S. will have no problem qualifying for the Games.

Results, Top 12 Qualifiers, Berkeley, California May 18 and 19, 1972 (12 exercises)

Results: Steve Hug 108.25; John Crosby 107.15; George Greenfield 106.95; Makoto Sakamoto 106.40; Marshall Avener 106.30; Gary Morava 105.80; James Culhane 105.70; Tom Lindner 105.25; Dave Butzman 104.10; Bob Dickson 103.85; Ted Marti 103.35; Jim Ivicek 102.65

The United States Olympic Gymnastics Committee has decided in advance that each gymnast will carry his all-around sco re into the Final Ttials. The philosophy behind this concept was pointed out by Bill Meade, chairman, U.S. Olympic Gymnastic Committee: " We are looking for quality as well as consistency as characteristics for our 1972 Men's Olympic Team."

Chicago was no disappointment to us when we arrived on June 14th at O'Hare Airport in a pouring rain . All gymnasts and officials were housed at the Caravelle Motor Inn and Restaurant in the City of Rosemont, approximately ten minutes drive from Maine West High School, where the Final Trials took place. Sid Drain, meet director a nd the hosting I.H .S.G.C.A. did an excellent job making our stay enjoyab le. They programmed an itine rary which included events such as T.V. and press conferences, the Mayor 's re ceptio n , luncheons at private homes in the community, hospitality room, and a meticulously worked out schedule for meals, workouts and official meetings.

We found out at the T.V. and press conference on June 15th at 10:00 A.M. that Ted Marti injured himself and unfortunate ly would not be able to participate . Gary Morava, who had injured his back during a recent trip to Riga , U.S.S.R., was in bad pain and a doubtful

The twelve finalists: (Back row L to R) Greenfield, Marti , Avener, Lindn er, Culhane, Ivicek, Butzman . (Front row L to R) Crosby, Morava, Hug, Sakamoto, Dickson .

The Who's Who of Gymnastics

entry. Gary, the sensational sophmore from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, has proven several times this year that his place on the Olympic team should not come as a surprise to anyone. His superior skills in Vaulting and on Floor Exercise make him a potential finalist at any international competition.

Talking to Steve Hu g, I have found out that his old shoulder inju ry reoccurred, causing him a great deal of pain. We were lookin g forward with great anticipation to the performance of

these two young stars. The good news was that Sakamoto is healthy again, looking excellent in practice and the rest of the kids were well and eager to co mpete.

At this time I would briefly like to mention the a lways forgotten judges who, equally with the gymnasts, were under great pressure. Due to the new requirements of the F.I.G., qualifying trials such as ours and all dual matches between nations have to be conducted with one neutral superior judge and two neutral F.I.G. judges.

11

Mr. Arthur Gander, president, F.I.G., appointed Mr.Albert Dippong from Canada as superior judge, who has demonstrated great skill and knowledge during the entire competition. The two neutral judges were Mr. Hartmut Fink and Mr. Eugene Oryshchyn , also from Canada. Frank Cuminskey and Les Sasvary were the American judges who will a lso represent the u.s. in Munich, Germany. We found out later on that this group was a truly great representation of international judges. Dippong was born in Zombor, Yugoslavia, formerly a Hungarian territory (he speaks fluent Hungarian, by the way) . Hartmut was from Germany, Oryshchyn from Poland (emigrated to Canada around 1960), and Sasvary was born in Hungry. That left Frank Cumiskey for the u .s . I thoroughly enjoyed working with that outstanding group of gentlemen. We had only two conferences throughout the ent i re compet ition (one was on Bobby Di xo n's unfortunate "hec ht" compulsory vault, 6.50) .

Maine West High School gymnasium was filled to capacity when on june 16th at exact ly 8:10 P.M., Sakamoto stepped into the Floor Exercise are to commence the 1972 Final Olympic Trials with his compulsory Floor Exercise routine. His 9.05 average was the beginning of the many pleasant surprises we had that evening observing the compulsory exercises. It was the opinion of many that the u .S. will finally have good compulsory score which we desperately needed in the past. It s.eemed that the adoption of compulsory exercises for college competit ion is paying off.

Compulsory te·am scores (top 5 on each event)

FX PH R v PB HB TOTAL

45.80 46.25 45.15 47.15 46.60 48.00 278.95

TOTAL RUNNING SCORES AFTER THE COMPULSORY EXERCISES

(18 routines) Results: Hug 164.00; Sakamoto 163.20; Greenfield 162.00; Crosby 161.35; Culhane 160.85; Avener 160.80; Lindner 159.30; Ivicek 158.00; Morava 157.50; Butzman 156.55; Dickson 156.00

Due to his injured back, Gary Morava fell from sixth place to ninth and john Crosby from second to fourth , which was the result of his misfortune on Pommel Horse (8.45) and Rings (8.45). Ivicek did a remarkable job executing the compulsory exercises (55.35), moving up to eighth place in the standing. Sakamoto's progress to second place was anticipated and came as a surprise to no one. Hug stayed in first place but it was doubtful that he can hold that position much longer. Steve was still having ·pain in his shoulder.

The next day, watching the optional exercises, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that we will have a very fine Olympic team. Performances were super, very much up to international standards, combined with excellent execution .

The order of standing did not change as far as the top four were concerned. However, there was a temendous contest between Avener, Culhane and Lindner for the other two places. Finally, Avener moved up to fifth place and stayed there for the rest of the evening. The rivalty between Lindner a nd Culhane provided everyone with one of the most dramatic finishes of any try-out. Culhane had 206.15 to

12

Lindner's 205.80 going into the Horizontal Bar, performed before Lindner and rece ived a commendab le 9.45 average for a total of 215.60. Tom was up next and he needed a 9.8 to tie and 9.85 to become the sixth member of our Olympic team. One cou ld hear a pin drop when Tom walked slowly to the Horizontal Bar and performed one of the most beautiful routines of his lifetime for a 9.8 average (9.8, 9.8, 9.9,9.8,9.8) ; a total of 215 .60. It was a tie for sixth place and Abe Grossfeld , our Olympic coach, will have to worry about the rest. Abe will decide who the alternate will be after the training camp.

INDIVIDUAL ALL-AROUND RESULTS. Final Trials Only (12 Exercises)

FINAL RESULTS (24 Exercises)

Results: 1. Hug 220.00; 2. Sakamoto 219.55; 3. Greenfield 218.35; 4. Crosby 218.05; 5. Avener 217.10; 6/7. Lindner tie 215.60; 6/7. Culhane tie 215.60; 8. Ivicek 213.70; Butzman 9. Butzman 212.70; 10. Dickson 211.30; 12. Morava 211.30

The top seven will be Members, 1972 U.S. Olympic Gymnastic Team.

Since the results of the Fina l Trials had to be sent to Switzerland immediately, the officials computed the team score without delay. The results of the Berkeley trials had been e liminated . Our team scored a remarkable 561.65 points for the third highest score in the world this yea r, behind the Russians and the japanese.

Results: Makoto Sakamoto 113.15; Steve Hug 111.75; George Greenfield 111.40; john Crosby 110.90; Marshall Avener 110.80; Tom Lindner 110.35

Based on the Final Trials only, our 1972 Men's Olympic Gymnastic Team wou ld be the following : Results: 1. Sakamoto 113.15 (!!!) 2. Hug 111.74;

3. Greenfield 111.40; 4.lvicek 111.05; 5. Crosby 110.90; 6. Avener 110.80; 7. Lindner 110.35

These remarkable trials ended with a truly great celebration. The team was introduced to the crowd, which was still continuously cheering from great satisfaction. Then the kids paraded around the gym, followed by congratulations and handshakes . I was as excited as everyone else around me. I cou ld not help thinking about Gary Morava, competing in great pain until the very end , and finishing his Hori zontal Bar with a double twisting flyaway; he has to wait another four years to make the U.S. Olympic Team. What a truly great sportsman and competitor he was.

Now the rest is up to the kids to prove to the world in Munich, Germany, that we are not a second-rate gymnastic power any more. Under the lead ersh ip of Frank Bare, Frank Cumiskey, and the U.S.G.F ., we are eventually capable of achieving world dominance in gymnastics.

TEAM RESULTS FX PH R V PB HB TOTAL (Best 5 on each event) Compulsory 45.80 46.25 45.15 47.15 46.60 48.00 278.95

Optional 47.00 47.00 46.30 46 .85 47.45 48.10 282.70

Total 92.80 93.25 91.45 94.00 94.05 96.10 561.65

Individual detailed all-around results (final trials only) follow below:

FX SH R V PB HB Total GRAND 1. Sakamoto c 9.05 9.25 9.50 9.60 9.65 9.75 56.80 TOTAL

0 9.30 9.30 9.05 9.40 9.60 9.70 56.35 T 18.35 18.55 18.55 19.00 19.25 19.45 113.15 113.15

2. Hug C 9.25 9.60 8.50 9.40 9.45 9.55 55.75 0 9.05 9.50 9.25 9.25 9.50 9.45 56.00

T 18.30 19.10 17.75 18.65 18.95 19.00 111.75 111.75

3. Greenfield C 8.95 9.05 9.00 9.25 9.30 9.50 55.05 0 9.45 9.15 9.30 9.45 9.40 9.60 56.35 T 18.04 18.20 18.30 18.70 18.70 19.10 111.40 111.40

4. Crosby C 9.40 8.45 8.45 9.25 9.15 9.50 54.20 0 9.70 9.45 9.10 9.45 9.45 9.55 56.70

T 19.10 17.90 17.55 18.70 18.60 19.05 110.90 110.90

5. Avener C 9.15 9.30 9.15 9.25 9.05 8.60 54.50 0 9.25 9.45 9.50 9.25 9.45 9.40 56.30 T 18.40 18.75 18.65 18.50 18.50 18.00 110.80 110.80

6. Lindner C 9.00 9.05 9.00 8.95 8.35 9.70 54.05 0 9.30 9.30 9.15 9.30 9.45 9.80 56.30

T 18.30 18.35 18.15 18.25 17.80 19.50 110.35 110.35

7. Culhane C 9.10 9.25 9.15 9.50 9.30 8.85 55.15 0 9.10 8.95 8.90 9.10 9.25 9.45 54.75 T 18.20 18.20 18.05 18.60 18.55 18.30 109.90 109.90

8. Ivicek C 9.05 9.00 9.45 9.20 9.30 9.35 55.35 0 9.20 8.90 9.45 9.40 9.35 9.40 55.70

T 18.25 17.90 18.90 18.60 18.65 18.75 111.05 111.05

9. Butzman C 8.75 8.45 8.60 8.80 8.45 9.40 52.45 0 9.30 9.30 9.35 9.30 9.40 9.50 56.15

T 18.05 17.75 17.95 18.10 17.85 18.90 108.60 108.60

10. Dickson C 8.65 8.65 9.60 6.50 9.35 9.40 52.15 0 9.15 9.20 9.60 9.00 9.35 9.50 55.80

T 17.80 17.85 19.20 15.50 18.70 18.90 107.95 107.95

11. Morava C 8.45 9.10 8.40 8.65 9.20 7.90 51.70 0 9.50 9.15 8.90 9.20 7.85 9.20 53.80

T 17.95 18.25 17.30 17.85 17.05 17.70 105.50 105.50

OLYMPIC FINAL TRIALS: WOMEN Photos by Andy Witherspoon and Ron Levy.

The Final Trials are over and the United States Olympic Team is in its grueling days of training camp. Roxanne Pierce coached by Ruth Ann McBrid e went into the trials thinking she had a good chance to make third place on the team. On the third day of the trials, Kathy Rigby who was then in the lead, pulled a tendon in her foot during her floor exercise and had to withdraw from the competition. Roxanne, a fine gymnast in her own right, moved ahead and took the lead, stayed there and won 1st place on our USA Olympic Team for 1972!

During the vau lting-eve nt, Roxanne did her Yamashita and stuck it well. Linda Methany did a Yami very cloase to the way now prscribed by the USGF Women's Technical Committee. She opened her vault almost right at horizontal. However, she landed too far forward and had to take a step to maintain balance. This is where she lost her lead to Miss Pierce.

Linda Metheny is 25 yea rs old, coached by Dick Mulvihill and a graduate of the University of Illinois,. She is the Senior Member of the Olympic team, having competed on two previous Olympic teams. She is a real veteran and has a very mature, lovely appearance. During her bar optionals she did a cast to a handsta nd and intended to put her foot down o n the bar for a sole circle, but missed the bar with one foot. She very cleverly extended it forward with good form and control, dropped back into a kip suspension and into a seat circle and completely remade the end of her routine, which she did with the applomb of an artist. Miss Metheny, in the true character of a gutsy competitor has added a back flip on the beam.

Linda' s career has not been without its pain A couple years ago she began to have numbness and pain in her arms and upper body. In examination, it was determined that she had 2 extra ribs that were cutting off the blood supply to her arms. The top ribs had to be removed, and she has made a good recovery since then . This remarkable dilegence reflects the character of this young lady. Through gymnastics, she has gained so very much and wants now to give some of it back. She will coach and she will do a good job.

Roxanne Pierce is 18 years old and from Kensington Maryland . The presence of this gal at the top of the list mayor may not have ­anything to do with the injury of Kathy Rigby. She has her own style and is really a very fine performer. She has been steadily improving over the years and has reached a position of self confidence that fairly gleams. She plans to take a little time off after the Olympics and is uncertain at this time as to what she will do with her career.

She has some unusual moves in her bar routine. She does 4 back seat circle (facing out) on the high bar, and on the return swing, shoots her legs high, lets go and catches the low bar in a handstand . For her mount, she vaults to a squat over the back of the LB catching it in an undergrip. Then she does a front seat circle on

20

distinquished judges for Final Olympic Trials

Competition scenes from U.S. Women's

the LB an d catches the HB with her body in a tightpike (legs under the high bar in kip suspension). Then she extends her body backward, lets go of the HB to catch the LB to a glide.

Kim Chace, 16 year old from Florida, and coached by Bill Chase took the spotlight in third place. Kim excells in tumbling and does a beautiful floor exercise, has good style and swi ngs bars well .

Fo urth place on the team is he ld by Joanne Moore 17 year old from Philadelphia. She excells in floor exercise, interpreting the music with artistry.

Young Nancy Thies from Urbana Illinois, coached also by Dick Mulvihill holds 5th place on the team. This little gal has risen to national fame just in the last year or two and shows great potential.

Debbie Hill of Denver Colorado was in 6th place at the end of the trials and chosen as "alternate.

Kathy Rigby, because of her past record, and because' she was in the lead at the time of her injury was awarded in an unpresedented decision a birth on the team because the Committee feels that she will score well if she ca n overcome the injury by the time the Olympiad rolls around. Four years ago in the 1968 Olympics, Kathy was the first American women to win a Olymipic medal in gymnastics. She has been a favorite in the United States and Europe.

There were 30 women at the finals. They had qualified thru various state, regional and national meets throughout the year to enter

Olympic Trials, held at Lo ng Beach, Calif. .- _ ,-, ' ..

the trials. An average of 9.0 was required even to enter the four day competition. The top 10 women have gone tothetraining camp and the final team will be formed from these women . The gymnastic part of the Olympics in Munich will go on from Sunday, August 27th through Friday, Sept. 1st. Watch for television coverage.

All around scores based on total of two Compulsory and two Optional Competition were: Roxa nne Pierce 151.05; Linda Metheny 150.85; Kim Chace 149.65; Joan Moore 149.05; Nancy Theis 148.25; Debbie Hill 148.05

1972 Olympic Team - Places 1 through 5 plus Cathy Rigby - Place 6 is the alternate.

Muriel Grossfeld, National Coach for the USA Olympic Gymnastics Team 1972, was 15 when she made the 1956 Olympic team. Now, 31 years old, she will coach our women's team". Much success hoped for Munich. "

In an interview by Tom Maloney at AAU Senior Nationals this year she was asked how she would evaluate America's chan ces at Munich? She replied, " It depends on many things, such as the new system and how healthy we are after training camp. But, we have a very realistic chance at third in team standings."

"We feel our three top contenders for a gold medal will be Cathy Rigby, Linda Metheny and Joanne Moore. Cathy has her best chance on the balance beam and uneven parallel bars, Linda on the beam, bars and frre exercise and Joannie in Free X."

With the Final Trials going as they did later in the year, Cathy Rigby's injury, and Roxa nne doing so well, I guess we all are in suspense.

GmlNG THE GRIP ON GYMNASTICS by Bill Holmes Gymnastics Coach Mankato State College Mankato, MN

An athlete in gymnastics is only as good as the condition of his hands. Conditioning the hands for sustained training previously presented many problems. Most of out athletes' hands now seem to present less of a problem . There is

\

r

.r '-' ..

Fig. 3

Fig. 9

28

an indication that the longer training periods do not cause sore hands, it conditions hands. The all around gymnast seems to have less hand problem than the specialist. It would seem this is true because he exposes h is hands to multiple

uses throughout the trainitraining period. Training on each event every day seems to help conditioning of hands. Follows are several hints for conditioning hands : Keepyour hands clean and callouses soft. Contrary to popular belief the callouses that are hard rip easier. If there is a tear, repair it immediately. Keep the injury clean and covered with tape. Do not let the tear harden or it may crack. Some athletes prefer to cover their palms with training tape following a workout. Some athletes prefer to wear gloves. Both methods keep the hands warm and moist. I believe the entire key is daily work and proper care to keep the hands soft . Do not confuse the term " soft" to mean out of condition . Palms can be well calloused, yet soft.

Many athletes now are using the palm straps in a different style. This style will enhance

Fig. 11

conditioning of hands on the rings and horizontal bar. Fo r lack of a better name the grips shall be ca lled a high grip. Th e conventional grip will be termed as such. Th e photographs picture the difference. Figure 1 pictures the conventional grip on the left which is used for pommel horse and parallel bars. These grips may be made of lighter weight leather and use of the post-type buckle. Pictured on the right in figure 1 is th e high grip guards. Th ese guards are made of at least 7 oz. leather and the straps should be buckled with the O-ring buckle . Sources of supply for these high grips are few. These grips should be of a larger size. Note in figure 2 that the high grip is placed on the fingers between the first and second knuckles of the third and ring finger. There is necessi ty for a break-in period with the high grip. You must create a crease near the finger ho les that is permanent. Each t ime the hand closes on the apparatus the crease must automatica lly and naturall y fall into place. Note in figure 2 that the strap is being stretched to fit the gymnast's wrists. It is helpful to damped the straps and apply chalk for this break-in period. Ca re is taken not to soak th e grip.

The entire concept of this high grip is to change th e support from the palm and hand to the grip and wrist. This concept enables th e athlete with sma ller hands to get a firm grip on the rings and horizontal bar. It also is helpful in lea rning to stretch, a technique useful in style and swing. Fi gu re 3 pictures the wrapped wrist. Wrapping the wrist is a necessity due to the pressure ca used by th e guards' st rap on the wrist. One ela st ic bandage cut in half is sufficient for both wrists. Wrap the wrists, tuck the end underneath to prevent unraveling of the wrap. It is also poss ible to purchase the tennis-type wrist w rap. They are ava ilable in different co lo rs . These wraps are elast ic and slip over the hand and stay in place well. Note in figure 3 the O-ring buckle . This buckle is more substantial and will withstand pressure better than the post buckle. Also th e O-ring will not cause injury. Properl y broken in, the O-ring buck le will not slip. Figures 4 and 5 indicate the difference between the conventional and high grip on the horizontal bar. Note in figure 4 that the grip on the bar would seem to be tight. Figure 5 employs the use of the high grip noting the crease between the gingers and the bar. This illustrates the difference between th e conventional and high grip. The pressure is transfered from the hand to the grip. Break-in time for these grips is comewhat longer and adjustment period is rather difficult, however, the athletes that employ the high grip indica te that they would not change to the conventional grip. Figures 6,7, and 8 picture proper use of the high grip on the rings. Figure 6 is an excellent example of the permanent crease in the high grip. Figure 7 again notes the high grip with the guard on the fingers. Figure 8 pictures a support grip on the rings. This high grip aids the athlete in extending for more swing. Figure 9 pictures the conventional grip with the strap on the fingers next to the palm without the crease. Each athlete should use a second pair of grips for the parallel bars and possibly pommel horse. Less friction is caused by these two events so there is no real need for the high grip. Figures 10 and 11 pictures the conventional hang and support on the para lied bars. Support on the pommel horse is similiar to that of the parallel bars.

Conditioning of hands is directly related to the care exercised while training. The method of gripping will enhance conditioning, gripping and extending to swi nging positions.

BEGINNER FLOOR EXERCISE ROUTINE by Jerry Wright Gymnastic Coach San Francisco State College

Illustrated by Patrick Avera

This routin e f its ve ry well on a 34' by 34' wrest ling mat. A. The run can contain from one to severa l steps at the sta rt of the routine. The rou ndoff shou ld be executed as well as possible, although th e sit into the-

8. Backward ro ll must be controlled and is preferable executed through the handstand (back extension).

C. Land on one foot out of the backward ro ll and

o. Immed iately execute Y2 turn. Th e

1. ? .

11. 1 2.

performer may land on e ither foot from th e backward ro ll , b ut whichever foot one lands on the turn should be to th e opposite direction (i.e., land on left foot turn to the right).

E. Swedish fall (pushup pos iti on). F. Single leg circle (when moving fro m the

swed ish fall to the leg circles, either foot can be used fo r support-to switch feet, simply do a hitch ki ck and sw itch legs). G. Single leg circle (continue to face Area II) . H. Stand and execu te Va turn to face Area III. I. Straddle stand (could be led up to sp lits so

have performer spread feet as far as possible). J. Lower to headstand and hold from one to

three seconds. K. Tu ck fo rward roll. L. Cartwhee l m ay be executed either to the

right or to th e left moving towa rd area Area III. M. Second ca rtwheel should be immediate

(both shou ld be extended and slow. N. Turn from A rea III to face Area IV (th is turn

will depend o n whether ca rtw hee ls were execu ted to the right or to the left).

O. Run to front handspr ing (ru n from one to three steps-a lso a spotter cou ld be provided here).

Recommended fo r h igh schoo l and co llege P.E. classes and intramural meets .

~ . oac y'I,.,rp_':'d

A~}~" 7. o. 9.

38 .

r 43 .

29

Photos by Diete Shultz

German Gymnastic teacher Dieter Shultz stopped off at the GYMNAST office while touring the USA earlier this year. Dieter was in the USA to take part in the National Trampoline Championships and while here also attended all the College, University, AAU and other National Competitions.

Before leaving Santa Monica for Miami, the Bahamas and home to Germany, Dieter ' ( a photographer by hobby takes sequence photos for instructional aids for his students) gave us some photos to use in GYMNAST. On these pages are a couple of samples of his work and since returning home he has sent us several more sequence studies, so it looks like "Sequences by Schultz will be a regular feature of GYMNAST . .. Thanks Dieter.

Also pictured is a photo of Dieter high in the air overlooking his girls gymnastic team.

Half-in, half-out handspring vault Reinhild Mafejec TurnClub 72; Leverkusen, Germany

30

Moore to Manna Herman Hopfner National West German Team

31

THEBACKKIP by Bill Roetzheim

You have heard the saying "you must learn to walk before you run ." The truth of this statement is quhe vivid when it comes to gymnastics. It has always struck me quite funny to see the beginning coach working diligently with his charges until they master German Giants (Czechstemme) . He usually then attempts to teach them a back kip so they can work into this skill. What a shock to the novice coach to find progress much, much slower on the back kip than it was on the German Giant. In fact , a good many gymnasts never learn the back kip and are, therefore, forced to abandon the German Giant they have already learned. I use the philosophy "never begin teaching a German Giant unless the Back Kip is mastered"!! Since there are many articles on the Czechstemme in past issues, I feel that I must rectify the slighting of the. Back Kip.

Although the Back Kip has been given an unglamorous position in the overall scheme of gymnastics, teaching this trick gives you a renewed respect for this little maneuver. Because the word " kip" appears in this skill's title we think of it as a beginning stunt. Actually, it is a complex movement offering great challenge to gymnasts at various levels .

It is - against my philosophy to begin instruction using a negative approach, but I have seen so many coaches compare this skill to

32

a Back Seat Circle that I must begin by warning against this practice: If your teacher uses a Back Seat Circle as a leadup skill, I believe you are both in trouble. Look at the two photographic sequences and I think you will see many of these diffferences. Notice the lack of extension on the back swing, the differences in the hip and body position, the hyperextended back as apposed to the piked body on the forward swing. Finally, one trick terminates in an extended position while the body is piked at the conclusion of the other skill. It is extremely difficult to get enough swing for a Czechstemme or Czech-Giant Swing when the initial cast is originated from a piked position.

I like to think of the Back Kip as being a five-beat stunt. Although these beats are hard for the observer to distinguish, they are definitely felt by the performer. I find it much more effective describing tricks by performers ' feeling, rather than anatomical positions.

The preparatory swing should be kept to a minimum. The advantages gained by greater swing are far overshadowed by the complexity of timing the skill making use of additional swing.

The first beat comes at the end of the front swing. The body is held in an extended position until the very end of this forward swing. The head is slightly forward . The second phase is

initiated at this point by rapidly collapsing the legs towards the chest passing them between the arms and under the bar. If you are flexible and still have difficulty executing this skill with straight legs, you are probably lifting the hips as you bring the legs into the kip position. The legs must move up and then downward into this position while the hips stay low and their position remains relatively unchanged.

The body remains compressed as it travels to the rear but just as it passes directly under the bar the third beat is initiated. The legs are driven upward and backward forcing the hips to move from a position in front of the arms to an area slightly to their rear. The body begins to open into an inverted " L" position - reaching maximum extension at the end of the back swing. As you begin moving forward and downward, you immediately compress back into a kip position which is the fourth beat.

As you pass once again under the bar the last phases to the stunt is begun . You· pull downward on the bar and explode your body from a pike to a slightly hyperextended position. It is important that the legs are not driven forward but rather backward and upward. This movement corresponds closely to a Basket (Feige) on the parallel bars.

After master ing this skill, you are now in a position to begin to learn the Czechstemme.

NEWS 'N NOTES Renee Hendershott Women 's Coordinating editor

ON THE NATIONAL SCENE USGF SENIOR NATIONALS FOR WOMEN •••

Held in Denver on April 27,28, and 29, this meet, according to reports from Rod Hill, Meet Director, was run off with very few snags.

Wh had to overcome some problems that would have thrown most National Meets into a frenzy, and yet it seemed as if we came through in great fashion. The weather, the drips on the mat, th e first night, the baseball team practice, etc. were against us, but we worked together and all came out very well in the end.

Mr. Hill noted that women handled themselves like champions and that the coaches were very cooperative ... no pettiness. He also noted that the judging was good and efficient and that there were far fewer protests than any meet he has attended recently.

AA Results were as follows; R. Bleamer (Parkettes) 70.25 ; V. Luce (Mulvihill) 68.90; K. High (G rossfeld) 68.90; C. Sturiale (Okla. City) 68.15; S. Akiyama (Denver Sch. Gymn .) 68.05 ; P. Mirtich (KIPS) 68.00; L. Lobdill (SSJ) 67.35 ; D. Shogren (Lkwd) 67.25; P. Simone (SCon) 67.15; K. Brezack (Pkts) 67.00 _

The parketts won first places team hono rs with 204.90 points. Grossfeld School of Gymnastics was second with 197.15, and the Lakewood Y was third with 197.10 points.

USGF JUDGING CLINIC FOR WOMEN To be conducted by Delene Darst, USGF

Chairman of Judges Training and Sandra Stutzman, PIAA and USGF State Chairman for Pennsylvania in the fall of 1972. The course will run from a Friday Evening to Sunday noon . Pre-register now with Mrs. Wilma Warbutton , 518 Short Street, Belle Vernon, Pa. Course will cost $10.00 and is to be held at University of Pittsburgh .

DEBBIE BANDROSKY -Pianist-Gymnast

Report by R.F. livolsy Results were astonishing. In less than a month, Kent State University's Women 's floor exercise event had improved by more than three points .. Three girls had scored in the area of one point higher than they ever had before. Another girl had her best score in over a year. The lowest score on the squad was a 8.4.

Asked for an explanation, Kent State head coach Rudy Bachna offered two words : "Debbie BanDrosky." ·

Debbie BanDrosky is a member of the Kent State University Women 's Gymnastics team. She arranged, played, and recorded her own, plus the entire squad's floor exe rcise music. She had also composed musch of it. A handy talent for a gymnastics team to have around.

Several observers at the 1972 DGWS National Championships claimed that Kent State University 's music was the best and most "ea r-pleasing" there .

Debbie modestly disagreed, but, under the influence of heavy questioning, she offered

Debbie BanDrosky

one reason why her arrangements may have been better than others.

" Being a gym nast myself, I know exactly what the girls need in floor exercise music," she explained. " Knowing thi s, the music can be adapted to the style of the gymnast, and not the gymnast adapting to the music." She added, however, that " 99" percent of the credit goes to the girls for their indiv idual performances. " Many of the girls disagreed with her humble figure.

But, Debbi e's talents are not limited to piano-playing. In the 1971 DGWS Mideast Regional Championships, she qualified for th e Nationals on balance beam, and in the last three years, has been a regular performer on the women's competitive team an d in their annual Gymnastics in Motion Show. She is a figure skater and shop manager of the Kent State University Ice Arena, and is an illustrator and co-editor of a genetics handbook. In addition, she is also an excellent typist, doing typing for the Kent State HPER Department.

And her talents don't end. She was head majorette for four years at Rootstown High School (Rootstwon, Ohio) and she played the tympani in the band.

With all this going on, one would imagine that she would be struggling with her studies. Not so, Debbie, a Junior biology major, maintains a 3.5 average out of a 4.0.

As for her future goals, Debbie is not sure. But, she does know that gymnastics will definately be a part of it.

JUDGING CORNER According to FIG Rules, there are four

judges plus one Superior Judge at each event. The score of the superior judge does not couht. She mearly uses he score to determine if the two middle scores are in range with one another . .. and their average in range with hers. There are certain fine points which beginning judges just do not catch right away. They should be reminded of these.

a. These deductions are not made by the four regular judges at the event. They are taken

from the average score by the superior judge: 1. Out of bounds 2. Time deductions 3. Improper attire 4. extra warmup after competition starts 5. Violations of coach such as signalling or

talking to the gymnast. 6. Failure of gymnast to present herself to

the Superior J. prior to her performance If one of tte four judges sees a violation of

this type, she may notate it on her score ticket for the superior judge to see.

B. If you are serving as Superior Judge for the first time, you may run into these difficulties:

1. Someone from the score table comes over to you and tells you that they are checking the scores and that the average is incorrect for such and such gymnast. There may be no mistake at all, because you may have had to make time or line deductions from the average score, or may have averaged the average of the two middle scores in with yours, because it was not in range with yours. To prevent this, put a notation right on the ticket that will be sent to the score table exactly what you did in the way of time and line violations or range adjustment. It would also save a lot of time if the meet director would instruct the master scorer on what to expect along these lines ahead of time.

2. You nod to the gymnast to begin her floor exercise and nothing happens. You must have some way of communicating with the person operating the music so that she will know it is time to begin . The use of a green flag is much better than a nod since a single nod may not catch both the eye of the gymnast and the music maker.

3. Determining range : Some people are confused about determining range. Just remember that the score of the Superior Judge determines the range. If, for example, it is a final meet, and the score of the superior judge is 9.6 (you will find the ranges in you code) than the range is .2 of a point"The two middle scores must be no more than .2 of a point apart. If they are not, get the judge whose score is furthest from your's to adjust her score so the two will be .2 apart.

33

After averaging the two middle scores, if you find that the average is more than .2 away from yours, just average it in with your own score. If you are new at being a superior judge (or old and humble) and find that the average is quite far from yours, you may want to discuss this with the two judges involved . You could have made a mistake. This would be especially important if the gymnast involved is associated with you in any way. It will help to avoid cirticism later.

4. If your state does not have many rated judges and it finally does get some, the newly rated judges will be involved right wawy in becoming superior judges .. . even before they may be ready. If you find yourself in this position, make sure that you gain some experience at small meets a few times before you must serve as Superior judge at a big meet. It can be firghtening, and you need to iron out all these things before the big meet comes out.

5. Remember that some violations are not taken even by the Superior judge.

One example is the deduction for improper attire. This is not taken by the Superior judge, but is not by her on the score ticket . This deduction is taken by the Meet Jury only once from the gymnast's all around score.

Another example is a whole team using the same mount or dismount. The Superior judge can ' t penalize the team for this ... the meet jury has to do it .. so report it to the jury.

THE CALENDAR It is not too soon to start planning your

1972-72 Calendar, people. Many groups are already holding summer calendar workshops. The idea is to get as many people from different organizations to come to the workshop as possible. They come armed with dates they know are already taken and dates that will be possibly open. Some are even well enough organized to think ahead and find out if their school gym will be available meets they wish to spOlJ.sor during the coming season.

Things to consider are: 1. Have an idea of when the various national

meets of different organizations were held (n the last few years. Some of your more advanced gymnasts and coaches will be away those weekends. 2. Some organizations have it in writing that

their regionals will be held during a specific month, and that their state meets must be held before that . The USGF is specific on these points. Plan ahead here. The AAU has a similar set-up .. . only a little less specific, so pay attention there.

3. Be aware of when the high schools are having their competitive seasons. Some states do not allow their high school boys and girls to compete for private clubs during these times. 4. Those of you who do plan to make a bid for a meet you know you can handle in your area . .. talk to your school officials before the calendar workshop, so that you can make the bid and know the date. If you do this, then people will go away from the meeting knowing just when you do this, then people will go away from the meeting knowing just when and where that meet will be held . . . better communications possible here. , 5, For heavens sakes don't schedule several

meets (even if they are in different sections of your area or state and for different gymnasts) on the same weekend. Although you may have different sets of gymnasts and personal coming to these meets, there are often not enough

34

judges to handle them , Many judges have to travel from area to area and cannot be at two meets at the same time, Remember many meets having more than 100 applicants use 20 or more judges: You schedule 3 meets on one weekend and you are going to end up needing a heck of a lot of judges!

When it comes to making up those calendars, you had better get involved or the calendar might not fit you.

From the NJ Gymnastic News'letter: " What Group do you Fall in? , , . People can

be divided into three groups : Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened!"

Nov. 4: Springfield College Gymnastic Exhibition Team, 8:00 PM Hackensack H,S. Gym, Tickets $2,00: Mr, Jeffrey Alino, Maywood Avenue, Maywood, New Jersey 17617 Fall '72: Weekend USGF Judging Clinic and

Rating Exam to be given by Mrs. Delene Darst, .USGF Chairman of Judges Training, Contact Mrs. Wilma Warbutton, 518 Short Street, Belle Vernon , Pa. The Penn Interscholastic Athletic Association 's judging test will also be held around this time. All area people involved with H.S. judging are now requ ired to take the PIAA test.

Oct. 22: N.J . Gymnastics Assoc. Clinic, , , teachers , coaches, and instructors at Butler H.S, Butler N,J. 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM Contact: mrs, Sue Ammersman , 97 Lionshead Dr, E. , Wayne, N.J .

WHERE TO fiND NAMES AND ADDRESSES OF PERSONS ACTIVE IN GYMNASTICS IN THE USA1

You may be moving to a new area, or going away to school and need to know how to contact those persons in your new area who can direct you to the type of gymnastic program in which you are interested, There are a number of valuable guides on the market right now containing the information you need,

AAU Gymnastic Guide has the names and address of every district Chairman in the United States. These people are aware of successful gymnastic programs operating in their areas, Cost : $2.00 Mr . Russell Sneddon , Jr, Olympic Administrator AAU House 3400 West 86th St. Indianapolis, Indiana 46268

Membership in the USGF Women's Committee entitles you to a subscription to the USA Gymnastic Newsletter and other material from the Women's Committee, including a list of all the USGF State and Regional Chairmen and other persons of importance, Membership is $5,00 per year. The USGF Women 's Committee c/ o Judi Sloan 702 E. Algonquin Rd, Apt 208 Arlington Heights, III. 60005

The DGWS Gymnastics Guide -1971-73 has a list of all the DGWS State Chairmen and a surprising number of other persons who can be of help to you , The DGWSChairmen are usually more aware of the various high school programs available in their state s, Cost: $1 ,50. The American Association for HPER 1201 16th St. , N,W. Washington , D,C 20036

Directory of University and Colleges offering courses and or competitive programs, women 's gymnastics on the undergraduate level and graduate level, listing the curriculum and profeSSional preparation and type of competitive program. Cost : $2,25 Mrs, Margit Trieber Dept. of Physical Education for Women Indiana State University Terre Haute, Indiana 47809

Who's Who in Gymnastics will be compiled in the fall and will contain the names and addresses and biography of hundreds of people who may be of interest or help to you , Cost unknown, Write after October 1972 to: USGF Box 4699 Tucson, Arizona

Of course, the "Proof is in the pudding", Read The Gymnast Magazine and local newletters carefully. Note in the meet reports what teams seem to be producing the most winners!

ARE YOU A NEW COACH AND AFRAID TO SPOT A CAST ROTATE? by Renne Hendershott

This basic skill can be especially frightening to spot when the girl is a heavy high school girl just learning gymnastics. About the worst thing she could do would be to let go of the HB too soon and fallon her back, So, just in case, have a second spotter to stand behind the LB as pictured and be prepared to break her fall if she does let go too soon , When she is rotatiflg well without stops and jerks or bounces, then you will know you can dispense with the second spotter, and it won 't be long before our new gymnast can do the skill by herself.

It must be noted that many coaches prefer to just stay behind the LB to spot so that they can deep the gymnast from piking on the way in to the LB and press her hips into the LB as she rotates , In this case spotter number one can be eliminated after the first few rotates , In a way, this is better for the gymnast to get used to the one spotter behind the bars, because when she goes on to learn the Eagle catch this is where the spotter will stand.

Spotter 2 is there mainly to catch the gymnast's back just in case she let's go of the HB too early. Spotter 1 assists the gymnast around the LB mainly by helping to keep her hips against the LB.

I I

WATCH THOSE CURVES! R.A. BATES M.Sc.

Gymnastics is known as one of the best sports for developing a ba lanced posture. However, as t he picture of the gymnast iii figure 1 demonstrates, gymnastics can lead to postural problems. The exaggerated cu rve in her lower back is technically ca lled lumbar lo rdosis and can be associated with lower back pain as the amount of the curvatu re increases.

~~l.I.rlJ Figure 1:

Atop college gymnast in an upright stance exaggerating the curve in her loser back. Pelvic tilt is 30 and lower back pain is experienced.

LINE THEM UP In the liv ing subject it is difficult to measure

what would be a normal pelvic tilt. One simplified method which shou ld work well with gymnasts is to check for a vert ical alig nment of the pubic bone with the front of the hip bones, f igu re 2 line A-B. The female pelvis is tilted forward in compar ison to the male's but the vert ica l alignment holds within a sma ll range (up to a 5 forward tilt). Lacking the inclometer depicted in figure 3, two rulers in the form of a ''1'' will indicate lo rdosis if the ve rtical ruler is tilted forward when v iewed from the side. A horizonta l ruler pushed tight against the front of the hip bones by the teste r will serve as a base. A second vertical ru ler, with one end in the center of the horizontal rul er and the other end pressed against the pubic bone, will if upright (when viewed from the side) indicate normal hip alignment or if tilted forward indicate lordosis of varyi ng degrees. The gymnast should assume a normal standing posture (relaxed) and it is important when testing that the gymnast not attempt to pull in the stomach muscles. NOW WHAT?

Having found a gymnast with forward pelvic tilt, as in figure 4 line B, take another visual check. Viewed from the side ina normal stance, does the lower back look similar to figure 41ine C? Does the line of the hips tilt fo rward as in figure 4 line A? Has the gymnast expe rienced any lower back pain? Competent medical advice is needed if pain is present or if the lower back curve appears worse than in figure 4. (It is wise to know that there can be other causes of lower back pain other than from the source of muscular imbalance that will be described in this article). Referring to figure 5 it is easy to see that the alignment of the pelvis depends on the balance of strength of the four major muscle groups attached to the pelvis. One can appreciate this balance by standing erect and conciously trying to change the tilt of the pelvis by arching the back w ithout allowing the upper body or knees to move. Should the muscles on the front of the thigh (B) become stronger than the abdominal muscles (A) , w hi ch is likely from tmbling and vau lting, etc.; and the back muscles (D) become stronger than the muscles on the back of the thigh (C) , which is li kely in female gymnast ics from the

Figure 3:

Figure 2: In normal posture the front of the hips is in vert ical line with the pubic bone.

Inclometer measures degree of abnormal tilt. This gymnast now demonstrates excellent upright posture (0 tilt). Previously she had complained of lower back pain (15 tilt).

Figure 6: Abdominal cu rl s strengthen the abdomina Is to the neglect of the front thigh muscles. If the abdominals are weak or engaging the thigh muscles ca n't be avoided try the same exercise with the knees bent.

A

B

(

Figure 4:

work on arching the back, etc., then the comb ined result is lordosis.

The cu re is obvious---strengthen the abdomi nals while neglecting the front thigh muscles, and strengthen the muscles on the back of the thigh to the neglect of the lower back muscles. How? 1. Do abdominal cur ls instead of sit-ups. Lie on the back (legs stra ight or bent) and curl the

chest and head approximately 8 inches off the floor, figure 6----don' t engage the thigh

muscles! 2. Lie on the stomach, preferably have someone sit on the hips and press aga inst the back of the thigh with their hands. Lift the leg (straight with foot turn ed out) approx imately 6-8 inches off the floor, figure 7----don ' t engage the lower back muscles!

(More detailed information on the exact muscles in volved ca n be obtained from any basic text o n the anatomy of the human body. Information rega rdin g the inclometer depicted in figure 3 can be obtained from the author at the following address: Department of Physical Education , University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) .

\

B

A relaxed upright posture indicating an abnormal tilt of 10. Idea lly line A should be horizontal and lines Band C shou ld be vertical.

Figure 5: The balance of muscular strength at the pe lvis determines pelvic tilt. Lordosis results if B is st ronger than A and if D is stronger than C.

Figure 7: Leg raises strengthen back thigh mu scles to neglect of lower back muscles if done with ca ution. Shown unassisted in this photo, they ca n be done more effect ive ly with assistance.

35

REPRINTS FROM THE OLMPISCHE TURNKUNST

Novelties in Olympic Women's Gymnastics Reprint from Olympische Turnkunst, July 1970

Vacl av Kubi cka , th e Deutscher Turn erbund 's coach, was so k ind as to translate V. janouse k's va luabl e co ntri buti on to " Sportovni M oderni Gymnastika" (CSSR). Th eme o f th e st udy: New Forms of th e Pirouette on th e Uneven Bars. The pirouette (Y2 tu rn ro und lo ngitudinal ax is), i t is stated, is more and more gai ning grou nd also in women's gymnasti cs. Th ere are th ree ways of beginning i t: (a) from th e feet, (b) from th e hips o r thi ghs, an d (c) f rom the hands by vigo ro usly pushi ng off the bar. Picture 1 gives an examp le of th e impulse by th e fee t. The autho r's advice is th at th e run sho uld not be too fast. But th e takeoff shuuld be vigorous, w ith the direc ti on slightly fo rwa rd . Besides the ta keoff th e arm sw ing provides an important rotat ion impulse. Turnin g left the right arm is energetica ll y swun g fo re upwa rd and then, slight ly bent, towa rd s the middle of the trunk . Th e bent left arm is p ressed aga inst the trun k. To ass ist the rota ti o n hea d and trunk are turn ed in the d irecti on of th e turn (here towa rds the left). Shortl y befo re th e pirouette is completed, the arms are t hrust upward. During th e ro tat ion the body sho uld be comp letely relaxed. When to uching the low ba r more than half t he tota l bod y weight should be above the po int o f suppo rt.

Pi cture 2 illustrates the ro tati on impu lse

Pic. 1

Pic. 2 Q I

Pic. 3

36

f rom the hips and th ighs. Swing downwa rd from the high bar, hip circ le o n t he low ba r and pop backward to a long hang o n th e high bar (th e sequence required in th e world championsh ips compulso ry) must be mastered as well as simple tw ists in o rder to tack le th e move seen in the pi cture. " W hen th e hips are in contact with t he low bar, th ey are bent vigoro usly.

When the body has passed th e ho rizontal p lane in th e circle (witho ut using hands!), th e gymnast must ho llow energeti ca ll y (hee ls moving towa rds back). This produces a good bounce off th e bar." Before the hips have los t contact w ith th e ba r, t he head an d trunk are turn ed in th e direction o f the ro tation. Th e arms support th e ro tation (left) by th e rig ht arm sw inging crosswise in front o f th e ald t arm . Th e tw ist must be compl eted w hil e in f light between the bars ! Th e left arm grasps the high bar in overgrasp an d th e r igh t hand immediately afterwa rds in undergrasp. Good te nsion of th e body during th e w ho le move!

Pi cture 3 gives anoth er exa mp le of rotati on f rom the hips o r thi ghs, a new move of wh ich an important po int is fo r th e gymnast to grasp th e low bar o ne hand after th e o th er in ove rgrasp and w ith arms stretched. The bou nce o f th e hips must be vigoro us, and the tw ist m ust be done w ith li ghtn ing speed. After g rasping th e bar the shoulder angle should not be too narow . Here as in Picture 2 th e spotting sho uld be done between th e bars.

Extraordinary and Ordinary C-Parts on Beam and Uneven Bars Reflexions on Four Japanese Sequence Diagrams Reprint from Olympische Turnkunst, July '70

In Bulletin 16 of the Scientifi c Committee of th e japanese Gymn astic Assoc iation, whi ch has been headed by our fri end and contributo r, Prof. Akitomo Kaneko, since it was set up, w e have fo und four sequence & agrams commented on by th e autho r. We have had "to be content w ith the diagrams o nly and must be th ankful fo r them even with out being able to read th e japa nese tex t. Th ey techni ca lly perfect way, as was to be expected of Prof. Kaneko and hi s fri ends. Far from being products of fa ncy th ey have been drawn after sequence ph otos, the o nly method of o btaining sequence diag rams true to rea li ty.

Diagram I shows a C-pa rt mount co nsisting of two elements: takeoff to handstand (Ph ases 1-4) and slow wa lkover forw . (Phases 5-7). Takeoff to handstan d is rated as a supreme d iffi cul ty if the handstand is no t o nly a momentary o ne. Th e fo ll ow ing element, the slow walkover, must be consid ered a B-part beca use it is th e cru cial part of th e wh o le move. Here we have the sum of an easy C-pa rt and an easy B-part. The mount has recently been seen rath er frequently. It is a dynamic start to a beam routine. Phase 6 seems to us exemplary.

Diag.1

Diag. "

4

~'J ~ f c \~ t 2 3 4

Diag. '"

Dia~.IV

i 2 3

Diagram II shows a seem ingly easy move on the unevens : Swing rea rways backw. from L-support and half turn round longitudinal axis to hang, with a hip circle on the low bar offering itself. The turn must be executed in flight, any supporting action of the hands not being possible. It is a matter of controversy whether the move is a C-part. I n view of th e difficult position before the half turn , I would plead for the category " supreme difficulty," th~ugh in the lower region of that difficulty. Diagram III: It should be obvious that here we

have got a C-part of origina lity va lue. From free hip circle rearways forward (Phases 1-3) the gymnast lowers to hang rearways (Phases 4, 5), thus getting into knee hang on the low bar. Th e move following now, knee circle with half turn round the longitudinal axis to hang on the high bar, is, because of the turn , a C-part of its own. The whole move is therefore composed of a B-part (1-3), another B-part (4-6) and a C-part (7-12). .

There is no doubt Diagram IV shows a C-part of the highest order. It follows from Phase 9 that the circle is executed on the high bar. Note Phase 5 which shows that the half turn round the longitudinal ax is is done in flight and was not decisively influenced by pushing off with the hands. Everything depends on a dynamic circle producing a powerful lift. Phases 7, 8 prove that this rear vault from hip circle is also possible on the low barA3rigitte Doemski (West Germany) has for some time been doing on the low bar a half turn to sole stand from hip circle. The forward sWing In Phase 9 being not

I, particularly pronounced, thought must be \ given to what move will be done next.

k ~l ~

6 7

5

(,

1t:~) .J 1) ;; \ (~v {jYiJ ~"~ Y 8'-.... r" ' 0 ~ 11 i2.

:pc;!,Y PA~ ,/"F,I' , '// /"

4- 5 6 7 8 9} J

HELEN'S CORNER LET'S TAKE THE "TARZAN" MOVE OUT OF UNEVENS

Did you ever see this move? From a stoop, squat or straddle stand on HB (grasp on HB), the performer stands and stretches her arms up (presumable to show balance????), then regrasps HB again and continues on. When I first saw this stand my first impression was that the beating of the chest should have followed

Stand, jump to handstand (Donkey Kick)

, , ,

( Ft ~

~~ stoop through

•

Free hip circle to stomach whip

while in the stand , and having no rope to grab and swing from, the performer decided to regrasp the bar. Nothing is done at the end of this stand so, person'ally, I wou ld put this stand in the same class as an " extra sw ing" . I do not know who originated this " out-of-place" stand, but I do give this person credit fOr" opening the door to more origina l moves, with a li ttle bit of imagination . It would be great if the performer would stand leaping upwards and immediately pike to catch a handstand position. This wou ld give the stand on the HB much more va lue.

pirouette (V2 turn while inverted)

,

0 J11~

or '~

straddle down

•

37

BUYER'S GUIDE Hand Guards

If you are having trouble with your handguards ri pping try these. They are being made privately b)' a leather craftsman for members of the Louisville Gymnastic and Dance schoo l, 5303 S. Preston St. Louisville, Kentucky 40213. Try a pair. Th ey are $2.75 and ca n be ordered thru the school. Judging Guide for Women Compiled by Carole Liedke using the latest rules. $1 .50 plus postage. Order thru the address above. Annotated Gymnastics Bibliography $.50 available now t hru Miss Judy Hall Women 's Physical Education , University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106. Women's Gymnastic Highlights on Film High lights of the 1971 USGF Women's Championships and AAU Women ' s Championships have been captured on 16mm. black and white films, timed at approx. 22 minutes. Featuring such top gymnasts as Linda Metheny, Joan Moore, Kim Chace, Cleo Carver and Roxanne Pierce, the films directly from Donald Clegg. For further info., contact him at 301 South Wheaton , Champaign, III. 61820. Elementary Floor Exercise Routines Grades 4-6 by Dick Bramlish, Ph. Ed . Teacher, City School Dist. Shaker Hgts. , Ohio. Coach and Dir. of the Girls's Jr. Olympic and Gymnast ic Exhibition Team, and Director of the Northeastern Ohio Elem. Gymnastic Clinic. Album KEA 9030 - 1 - 12" 331/3 rpm RECORD, $5.95

This album contains 24 bands of piano accompaniment for floor Exercise routines, using one piano, correct time limi t and appropr iate introductions and conclusions. Side 1 is for Beginning Gym nasts and Side 2 for Intermediate and Advanced Gymnast. The music is var ied and played with enthusiasm. Fun to listen to - stimu lating to work with. Avail. at above address (Ed. Act. Inc.) Ballet for Gymnasts By John Begg, Choreographer - Cleveland Ballet Guild Album K 8020 - 1 - 12" 331/3 rpm RECORD, manual $8.95

A co nc ise introduct ion to the fundamentals of Classical Baller, and most important, how to app ly them to t he gymnast's own work. Familiarity with basic body positions and basic arabesques gives the gym nast a knowledge that can be app lied to jumping turning, and space covering movements, giving excit ing var iety to the simplest of steps. The illustrated manual is easy to follow a nd should prove to be an invauluable aid to moth male and female gymnasts. Avail. at above address (Ed. Act. Inc .) Girls's High School Rules Book $.70 Available at: Nationa l Federation of State Hig h School Associati.ons, PO Box 98, Elgin , Illinois 60120.

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Judges and other off icials will find so me new mate rial concerning the internationally accepted met hod fo r describing body positions with or without the apparatus, describing skills, punctuating co mpulsory exe rc is es, internati ona l abbrev iations, with English equivalents and a 13-page glossary of terms. Potential judges may test th eir knowledge of ABC parts, uti liz ing the space that is provid ed for the readers ' inc lu sio n of the current FIG difficulty ratings.

How were the skills drawnl Most of the sequence drawings were developed from th e film projection method. Others we re taken from photograp hs (snapshots from Polaroid seq ue nce camera) of actual performance and some from personal ex perience ' (when research sou rces were not readily availab le). Many skills cover an entire 8'I2" x1 1" page, some are o ne-half page, and others are three or fou r to a page.

catalogue of skil ls for gymnastics, coaches, General Outlin e of GYMNASTICS teachers and judges. Over e ight hundred sk ills are illustrated with up to 13 sequence drawings ILLUSTRATED per ski ll (over 7,000 illustrations). The ski ll 1. Brief o utlin e of terminological term in ology that is used was de rived from a problems in the U.S.A. master 's degree theses study tha t won thee. H. 2. Explanat io n of nomenclature study. McCloy Hono r Resea rch Award in 1967 at the 3. Illustrated g ui de for body positions, Nati ona l Gy mnast ics Clinic ("A Study of the written descriptions, basic positions and Nome ncl ature Used to Describe Sk ills in th e th e apparatus, etc. United States of America o n the Six Men's 4. Over 7,000 technical ill u st ratio ns of Olymp ic Gymnastics Events" ). . I 800 d ' ff k' ll II

The attitude of the book is that of "se rvice." app roximate y I erent S IS o n a d d men 's Ol ympic events .

Hopefully, it will provide the much-nee e 5. All sk ill s are rated from 1 10 guid e to the gymnastics com munity and -potential authors of gymna,.st ics texts that has (diff iculty) for structured learning . long been needed. 6. Space provided for personal or FIG

How may the book be usedl Briefly, rating next to each ski ll. gymnasts and coaches ca n look up and st.udy 7. Skills are grouped accord ing to point most of the known skills that stem from va rious of initiation and direction of rota tion. sta nda rd positions o n any eH·nt. It b 8. Exte nsive glossary of common terms.

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INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES FOR THE GYMNASTIC SPECTRUM A Paper Presented To Th e Seventh Annua l U.S.G.F. Congress Chicago, Illinois November 6-7, 1971 by Dr. Gerald S. Geo rge, Coordinator Human Motor Ana lys is Laboratory Old Dominion Unive rsity Norfo lk, Virginia 23508

A review o f the o ri gin , th e p rog ress and th e developmental pattern of competiti ve gymnastics in the Un ited States clea rl y revea ls th at we have, at long las t, transcended into the ado lescent stage o f techni ca l maturation . Although our deve lopment has been, in the main , haphazard , we have p rogressed to a point of functional readiness. This fact is revea led in the eyes of all w ho have had the fo rtune to view intern at iona l compet ition. In essence, we possess the potentia l for wo rld domi nance.

Our gymnastic progress has indeed been remarkabl e, yet no more remarkab le th an th at of our competitors. One need, on ly to hi sto ri ca ll y rev iew ou r country's pos it io n in terms of wo rld dom inance to conclude that our relative progress has been at best negligible. In th is li ght, let us cons ider an approach and methodology th at w ill signifi ca ntly improve ou r progress rate. Th e author beli eves that we must now emba rk upon an o rgani zed, consistent Prpgram-System that incorpo rates reli able, innovat ive techn iq ues based upon relevant research findings from the interdisciplinary standpoint. The degree to w hich the wo rl d dominance objective ca n be real ized w ill be irrevocab ly p red ica ted upon scient i fic methodo logy. It is o n t hi s premise th at th e author critiqu es gymnastic progress in the United States and offers th is in it ia l presentat ion on innovat ive techniques specifi c to increasing progress rate.

Th e critique of gymnast ic prog ress in the United States is borne outof read ings, research studies from th e interdi scip linary standpoint and personal invo lvement in almost every contem porary phase of th e gymnastic spect rum. The fact th at o ur progress has been con"tingent upon the progress of the more superior co un tr ies suggests our lack of ab ility in pinpo inting th e source, the causative factors, the controllable variables that significan tl y influence RATE OF PROGRESS. Let us then locate and seriou sly consider some o f the more obvio us contro llable va ri ables that affect ultimate performance in the gymnastic discipline.

To insure maximum progress rate, the difficulty level of the task must be

commensurate with the experience and ability level of the performer. How often, in our blind · asp iration for short-cut success, do we fall prey to th e misuse o f this most important learn ing principle? The difficulty syndrome is su re ly more preva lent in this country th an in all other supe ri o r gymn as tic countries comb ined. W e mistaken ly employ task-complexity techniques rath er th an task-execution techniques in sea rch for the spectacular. D iffi cu lty leve ls are p rematurely advanced at the expense o f : 1. execution; 2. natural mechanica l progressio n; and 3. to tality of experience in basic movement pattern and sequence.

Task mastery of the essential basic movement patterns is the single most important criterion for prediction of future success. Th e degree of ultimate success in term s of performance is pred ica ted upon the d egree of basic- to-comp lex task mastery. Here, too, we appear to have fall en special prey to premature diffi culty- level advancement. The author suggests th at th e ca usative factors center about our misconceived and incomplete techni ca l know ledge and concepts specific to basic level sk ill s. A p icto rial and descriptive analys is for anyone basic sk ill by several lead ing United States gymnast ic authori t ies wi ll revea l strikingly d ivergent results! Such im pl ica tions trul y suppo rt th e initial · premise for a much-n eeded Program-System.

Task mastery of the simplistic level skills PRIOR TO reasonable difficulty increments will significantly facilitate acquisition of the ultimately desired performance. Since th e co ncept o f " diffi culty" is a direct fun ct ion of the degree of task complex ity as perceived by the performer, we should guard aga in st th e tendency to ca tegorize sk ill progressions based primaril y o n the ascribed FIG rating ·sca le. It would be wise to co nsider the relat ive difficulty leve l o f task prog ressions in terms of the exper ience and ability leve l of each individual performer.

Even a consideration o f th e FIG Abso lu te Point Sca le clearly supports evidence in favo r o f initial mastery of simplisti c tas ks. Th e absolute point va lue for technical execution is substantiall y greater than that for skill level

difficulty. Hence, the classical comparison between the difficult exercise of average execution to that of the intermediate difficulty exercise of excellent execution will at best reveal no significant difference in terms of final average score!

There are , however, many significant long-range advantages in favor of the intermediate difficulty exercise of excellent execution. The methodology of limiting the difficulty level for the sake of ma ximum technical execution has the following noteworthy advantages:

1. It will significantly increase the degree of performance CONSISTENCY. ' At every level, implications relative to this fact are obvious. Consistency becomes a LEARNED experience INITIALLY, not finally. Hence, consistency is no longer a problem, rather it becomes an ASSET. There's an old Chinese saying, " it's never too early to start winning" .. . think about it.

2. It will significantly reduce the freql,lency and intensity of INJURIES. " Injuries consume potential at a rate similar to that of fire-consuming fuel! " Again , the implications are obvious. Not one of us can deny that injuries are of paramount concern in terms of both immediate and long-range success. All too often have we heard it said , " he 'd been a great one .. . too bad he 's a bandade gymnast . . . comes apart too easily." Let 's stop for a moment and asko urselves WHY? Why does he come apart so easily? In most, if not all, instances, the reason can be found in poor training methodology rather than in some anatomical deficiency.

3. It will insure efficient, productive use of TIME. A review of " psychological readiness precepts" and " critical learning periods" support the theory that quality learning is largely dependent upon maturational readiness. Why then do we persist in the UNTIMElY pursuit of difficulty at the expense of technical excellence? The author contends not only that our national gymnasts are particularly venerable to this syndrome, but also that they, in addition to most coactesare basically unaware that incorrect training methodology, rather than any other conceived causation, is the major limiting factor relative to ultimate success. .

4. It will afford the performer ample opportunity to fully experience and develop all relevant biomechanical, physiological and psychological parameters necessary to optimal maturational progression. A. Biomechanical parameters. Who among us can deny the fact that although heredity factors are presently outside of our controllable domain, environmental factors such as the methodology of our teaching-learning progressions are well within the scope of controllable biomechanical var iables? Optimal maturat ional progression is indeed dependent upon the degree of accurate biomechanical experience.

B. Physiological parameters. And to those coaches who have advanced the statement that lack of stamina or " staying power" is the central reason behind our limited success in international competitions, it is strongly suggested that deeper consideration and study be afforded the ca usative factors. Lack of physiological readiness specific to the given task , more often than not, points to the fact tha t such a task is too difficult at the present stage of performance level. An increase in the inten sity of practice is

but a partial answer. Its complimentary counterpart can be found in a decrease of task level difficulty.

C. Psychological parameters. Psychological resea rch supports the theory that initial success increases aspiration levels. Success in the basic skills in terms of excellent technical execution inevitably inspires an upgrading of task difficulty while still maintaining "execution level " as the measurement criterion. Also success tends to increase motivation and motivation in turn is considered to be the essential prerequisite for further success. Failure and unrewarded efforts in terms of training can serve either to motivate or not to motivate the performer. In the main, however, the latter outcome has been found to be most prevalent.

In viewing Olympic and World Games competitions, have you ever considered why our gymnasts look like pintos among stallions, boys among men? This difference is the very same difference that is observed between high school competition and university competition. The discernible difference is found in the degree of MATURED movement patterns. Difficulty per-se is of little consequence, especially in the final analysis . All the finalists possess "difficult" routines, yet the margin of victory is inevitably awarded based upon the degree of correct technical execution!

Another concept that essentially relates the very same findings has been most aptly termed "compensatory techniques." Compensatory techniques refer to any and all movement sequences and patterns commonly employed in place of correct technical execution. Some degree of compensatory techniques is characteristic to all movements. Look to any competition, any athlete, any movement sequence or pattern, and one can observe scores of them. Yet the author is speaking in terms of DEGREE, not kind. Movement-analysis research indicates that progressively poorer performances are characterized by progressively higher degrees of compensatory techniques. In essence, immature movement patterns are the direct result of appreciable degrees of mechanical compensation. This is undoubtedly why we appear to be pintos among stallions ....

The answer to success in the world dominance objective has been secretly lurking in our own backyard ever since the beginning of time . Why then have we neglected it by our refusal to assign it top priority within the gymnastic spectrum? Why do we choose to program our gymnasts to an inevitable second-rate success? The author believes that such a choice is made out of ignorance and not volition.

At this point, le t us rev iew some of the more obvious and immediate improvements that we, as a national organization, have implemented in order to hopefully realize our central objective of world dominance:

1. Improved organizational structure and administrative procedure. All concerned gymnastic people are well aware of the past AAU controversy. Our new governing body, the United States Gymnastic Federation, has done a most commendable job in terms of revamping organizational structure and pattern to better meet the needs of those concerned. And, too, its administrative procedures are at least somewhat more democratic than previous. Such improvements

truly help to bridge the communication gap among all areas within the gymnastic discipline.

2. Increase in funding. This decade is witnessing significant increases in gross capital outlay for gymnastics. While we have not had an abundance of monies historically speaking, we are beginning to accrue sufficient funding to warrant emergence as the world gymnastic power.

3. Increase in participation. As is the case with most sports in the United States, we are realizing a significant increase in participation. Sheer numbers do not insure quality performance. They do, however, serve to statistically improve our chances for success.

4. Increase in national and international competitions. This is perhaps one of the most important improvements in our gymnastic life style. Upgrading competition in terms of frequency and quality helps not only to improve performance but it also lends perspective and insight into the methodologies and movement patterns of other countries. It serves as a catalyst to transcend what was considered to be the upper limit of any given parameter at that time.

5. Increase in quality of gymnastic's related associations. One need only look to the tremendous upgrading of our National Judges Association to discover its immediate impact upon United States gymnastics in general. Upgrading is also characteristic on the secondary school level by virtue of our National High School Association. And, too, organizations such as the NCAA and the NACGC are making quality headway. All of these contribute to a more successful national program. -

6. Increase in the number and quality of gymnastic publications. Publication-communication is now no longer the exception but the rule. Gymnastic books, periodicals and research studies both in this country and abroad are on the increase. The Modern Gymnast magazine can boast of being the largest publication of its kind in the world . Communications from our national and local organizations help keep us abreast of current happenings. Research publication , both pure and applied , is at last finding its way into our discipline. In short, we are rapidly becoming a well-informed public.

7. Implementation of the National-Olympic Coaching Staff. This perhaps has been the most important step thus far taken for the realization of our world dominance objective. While the methodology for selection and evaluation of such staff members has not as yet been clearly established, the underlying concept of assign i ng specifi'c positions based upon abilities and interest is sound.

8. Increase in the number and quality of clinics and camps. This improvement holds special significance for the upgrading of our core gymnastic programs . The person-to-person interchange of ideas and concepts through participation is a very old approach, but still it is second to none.

All that has thus far been advanced is very commendable and points to the general direction of our central objective. It has been necessary if only to maintain our present rate of progress. Yet while the scope and breadth of our programs are easily comparable to that of our competitors, the assignment of priorities within our programs is not fully consistent with our central objective.

fl • • • and now the very silence of the crowd becomes deafening. Electricity

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permeates the air as the performer walks onto the floor, The awesome, bland countenance of the 'technical evaluators' seem to employ X-ray vision as they pointedly stare through the performer's eyes and into the back of his skull, The stage is set and irrevocable judgment will now be rendered. That automatic pilot inherent in all great gymnasts is now called upon to tell its story, .•• "

It is a story of performance quality, centering solely upon the product and not the manner in which it was constituted. For in the f inal analysis, judgment is rendered primarily on the criterion of technical mechanical exactness. Look to the FIG Code of Points and discove r by sheer vo lume where the emphasis lies. The manner in which the product has been const ituted is of no concern. Only th e final product, as perceived by the technical eva luators, counts.

Organizational improvements, increases in ' funding, participation, compet ition , publication and clinics, and implemen tation of a national-Olympic coaching staff are adm ittedly ve ry impo rtant means to this end. Yet these emphases fail to center upon the most important controllable variable and that is MKHANICAL TECHNIQUES SPKIFIC TO CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE. We have thus far failed to incorporate a valid and reliable Program-System to study correct movement techniques based upon the Biomechanical Discipline. Rather we have allowed past experience, mimicry and conjecture to primarily dictate our knowledges and understandings of correct technical execution.

A past Internat iona l Gymnast ic Symposium Report emphasizes that la ck of accurate knowledge and app licat ion of biomechanical techn iques is a central weakness of the United States gymnastic system. A major problem in the selection and assessment of quality

. regional , national and Olympic coaches centers about our inability to eva luate 'their competencies in the biomechanical domain ... the only true Grass Roots Domain. A majority of our gymnastic leaders shy away from this most important issue beca use .of ignorance in this area. Instead they tend to concentrate upon the concomitant phases of the program such as o rganization , public relations, travel, competition reports and the like. The fact of the matter is that such tasks, while important and commendable, are actually peripheral to the core task . In effect, we need to reassign priorities in favor of a Biomechanical Task Force for the realization of the following objectives:

1. To obtain an accurate unders tanding and working technical knowledge of core movement patt~rns and sequences, especially in terms of their re lationship to the more progressive and comp lex skills and combinations.

2. To disseminate and app lysa id knowledges and practices on a consistent basis (Program-Sys tem) to coaches and gymnasts of all levels.

3. To estab lish and emp loy long- range training procedures that are both commensu rate with relevant resea rch findings and consistent with our world dominance objective.

The recruitment and selection of a Biomechanical Task Force should be a prime function of our national gove rning body, the United States Gymnastic:; Federation. Its central

mission would be to provide a Program-System of national impact so that our world dominance objective becomes a reality. One need only to review both the number and quality of participating personnel in our national and international gymnastic scene over the past decade to discover that scores of qualified gymnastic resource people have virtually remained untapped. The strength of any fede ration is in va ri ab ly dependent upon the degree of quality participation of its members. When shall we begin to capitalize upon thi s rea liza tion . .. ?

Another innovation t hat would sighif icantly increase our progress rate centers about a revis ion in training and competit ion methodology for our gymnasts. By vi rtu e of the implications thu s fa r presented in thi s paper, cons ider the feas ibility and desirability of w hat th e autho r has term ed "Graded-Difficulty Competitions." Such a procedure infers a COMPULSORY limitation of the difficulty requirements for the sake of emphasizing technical execution. This procedure should not be co nfused with our tradition al novice, junior and sen ior level competitions. In the latter instance, difficulty is not a controllable va riabl e. Hence our current system encou rages the attai nment of complex skill patterns at the cost ly expense of correct technical execut ion .. . at the expense of ultimate failure in our world dominance object ive.

A feasible examp le of the former innovative competition methodology would be to provide a U.S.G.F. National Championship Meet with a COMPULSORY liMITATION OF "B" LEVEL DIFFICULTY. This would require our gymnasts to emphasize task-execution techniques rather th an task-complexity techniques in thei r aspiration for victory. The innumerable implications are, of course, obvious.

Such an innovat ion is quite feasible on all levels and in all phases of our national program. It would be especially relevant in t he following areas: (1) Our Olympic Developmental Program; (2) Our Secondary School Competitions; (3) Our University Level Competitions; and (4) During the off-season for International Prospects. The initiation of this innovative me'thodology would merely require an administrative revision of the competition guidelines by the above executive bodies.

An add itional advantage of "Graded-Difficulty Competitions" focu ses upon concepts in routine construction. Since the gymnast would be compulsorily required to limit hi s exerc ise in terms of a specified difficulty level, it would also force him to more closely scrutinize the quality of routine construction. Selection of skills would not only be dependent upon core requirements but also they would be contingent upon both an in-depth consideration of his specific body line and style and .an assessment of his potential to ·approximate the desired technical execution. The tendency to contour routine construction about the specific body potentials of the gymnast would be rea lized rath er than vice versa .

It is truly hoped that our national governing body affo rd s this presentation serious study and considerat ion from all standpoints. Its prime intent is to serve · as a catalyst in th e estab lishmen t o f amore comprehensive nationa l gymnastic program. Let us now act upon this delicate and timely period of functional readiness so that we might embark upon a r_oad, the only road, to inevitable world dominance.

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LETTERS

SOCKED IT TO ME-

Dear Sirs: In competition recently a deduction was given

to my routine that I would appreciate being explaided. The first deduction was given to me for being " out of uniform " . I was attired in regulation pants and a regulation top. The deduction was given to my socks? The socks were blue and orange, our school colors. Is this deduction justified? The second deduction was given to my hand form. I work floor exercise and have found that more and more gymnasts are going to the " open hand ' · form , with fingers and thumb apart. Yet the judges insisted that only the " closed hand " form is acceptable.

Gymnastics is on the move. Let us not fall behind with archaic dress codes and unchanging styles. I 'm sure we a ll remember when the arched handstand was the only way to do a handstand.

Your comments on this matter wi ll be greatly appreciated.

University of Florida Gymnast, Louis A. Brancaccio Gainesville , Florida

Editor: All uniform and body movements should add to the elegance of the gymnastic routine. If a uniform socks, or movement distract or disrupt the flow or beauty of the routine, a judge may find himself making what you may feel are unnessary deductions. We all should be aware of our time and styles and whenever possible give full consideration to the individual expression. Hopefully expressive in his or her way. The joy and elegance of "Gymnastics the Beautiful Sport".

NEED GYMNASTIC COACH?

Sixteen years experience in teaching and coaching men 's and women's gymnastics . Master Degree. Contact: Richard L. Gaskell , Dept. of Phys. Ed. San Bernadino Valley College, 701 South Mt. Vernon Ave. , San Bernardino, Ca. 92405.

NO MATS?

While I was reading Mademoiselle Gymnast in our library, I was very astonded to see no! mats under the Balance Beam and the Uneven Parallel Bars while people were on them. This is dangerous. This was the September-October 1971 , Volumn 5 Number 6 issue, on the page after the contents. As one who enjoys gymnastics very much, I know you should always! have mats under the equipment. Sincerely yours, Barbara Buell age 14 Editor - you are right Barbara, Mats should always be used ... However, an ad can be the exception. As the object is to illustrate the construction of the apparatus, and the girl is just posed for show appeal.

USAIGC

Dear Glenn, One of the largest promoters of age group

gymnastics in the US today is the private club. This includes privately owned gymnasiums, recreatIOn departments , or otherwise unaffiliated teams. These groups are where our national champions get started. This is where the grass roots program is going on, right now.

46

As a group, this segment of American gymnastics does not have a vo ice in policy making in the USGF. It should , but these groups do not belong to any organization in the USGF. . Another common characteristic of these groups IS the problems that they face. How to raise money to support their gyms, to buy equipment, to travel to out of town meets. What are different ideas for meet formats , to draw a crowd, etc. And what about conferences?

A number of us have put our heads together and come up with a plan to solve many of these problems. It is called the United States Association of Independent Gymnastics Club. If any of your readers are interested in finding out more about this , they may write to me or to Tom Heineike, 3641 North Hillside, Wichita , Kansas , 67219. There will also be more information availab le at the excutive committee meeting at the Congress. Yours , Graham Bartlett GymnastiCS Unlimited 505 Acoma Rd SE Albuquerque, NM 87108

TURNER GYMNASTIC CIRCUS Dear Glenn:

I am sending you some pictures taken during the 44th Annual Circus presented by the Buffalo Turn Verein on March 18.

Their annual show, even though of a non-competitive nature, fe atured many outstandlllg gymnasts coached by our instructor Mr. Jack Gibbons.

We hope their performance will encourage others in the fast growing sport of gymnastics here in Western New York. Tino Prado

YOUR A GYMNAST subtitle (The pain of learning giants)

Dear Sirs: I am a high school gymnast, and for some time I

had trouble with my giant cast.. The trouble consisted of falling from the horizontal bar a number of times. One day as I was flying through the air a few thoughts entered my mind before I hit the mat. Upon landing I told these thoughts to my friend who is also a gymnast. In which we later made in a poem. We feel that this poem does reflex the hard working gymnast, and we would like to see it published in your magazine.

I dedicate this poem to a ll Gymnasts and to those who have fallen.

When life starts to get you down, and when you fall from the high bar and hit the ground. And when you get back up and stagger around, you look at the bar as it seems to sway around. But when your head clears a nd your senses are once again reframed you mount the bar once again.

And even though competition gets tough and your hands get blistered and callous rough. Even when you get to the point of justfeellike giv ing up, but sti ll you strive even though the judges mark you th ree point five. If you can work while others watch and work by the ticking of a clock. If you can fall and try again " you " are a gymnast my friend.

By John Pisano & John Smyth Gymnasts

AN OLD FAITHFUL

Dear Glenn .. I enjoy a permament holiday because I live in

retirement; though by no means in retirement from the most glorious sport in the world: GYMNASTICS.

An I right in supposing I am perhaps the oldest subscriber in Germany, oldest referring to age as we ll as to length of subscription ? I am 73 and , if my memory does not fail me, have been a subscriber since about 1960 when my friend Dr. Goehler told me of the Modern Gymnast's existence in words of high praise.

THE BEST OF LUCK TO THE " GYMNAST'" I eagerly await each copy.

Yours sincerely, Dr. Reinhard Becker West Germany

Editor: One of the longest, oldest and bps',

Dear Editor, In reference the letter by Helen Sjursen in the

February issue, page 6. Another variey of the mount illustrated was

demonstrated by Sahardi in a USSR-France exhibition in Lyon, France, last November. Stick figures are show below.

• L~

TAKE OFF UNDER HB , '12 TWIST

•

CATCH LB AND ....

•

KIP TO ..... . FRONT HIP CIRCLE

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