10 Weekly Tidbits - 3/17-3/23

Pac Rim Event Finals

Property of Jennifer Buchanan

Pac Rims concluded last Saturday with the American Women earning every gold with the exception of Senior Vault, which no one attempted to earn. (Do any of those girls even have a second Vault?) Arguably, the biggest disappointment of the meet was Victoria Moors of Canada, who many expected to contend for floor gold, who struggled on her final two passes. You can check out USAG Coverage of both Junior and Senior Event Finals on Youtube. 

Spanny tells us "How (she) Learned to Dougie"

Spanny Tampson posted a remarkable tribute this week to Gabrielle Douglas. If you haven't read it yet, you should certainly check it out.

Property of Ryan Schulz

Kamerin Moore to Nebraska, Kiana Winston to Alabama 
The Recruiting Class of 2014 lost two high profile recruits after both Kamerin Moore of Twistars and Kiana Winston of Texas Dreams committed to Division I schools. McKenzie Wofford of 2014 also previously committed to Oklahoma, and Chanen Raygoza to Georgia, but many 2014 recruits remain uncommitted.

Casey Jo Magee Continues to Upgrade

Casey Jo Magee, who Marta seemed to count out for quite a while has been making major upgrades and has the Facebook Videos to prove it. Most impressively, she's got a roundoff-full-beat jump combo on beam. CJM, who looks as fit as ever, could legitimately factor in to this Olympic Picture.

Aliya Mustafina takes Russian Championship
Not shockingly, with Komova out due to an ankle injury and the reigning champion Dementyeva home sick with tonsillitis, Mustafina took the All Around Gold Medal at the Russian Championships. Long time veteran Afansnasyeva and first year senior Grishina earned silver and bronze respectively. Kristina Goryunova, who is unable to compete in London due to testing positive for illegal substances earlier this quad, topped the beam rankings with a 14.933.

Dare Maxwell Returns to Dynamo

Property of Gym Examiner

After Sara Maxwell posted videos of her daughter Dare at Level 10 Oklahoma States, I asked around and discovered that Dare returned home about two weeks ago to train at Dynamo. I've been reassured that although she'll compete Level 10 this season, she will compete both Level 10 and Elite Bars and Beam next year. She's already been working on upgrades on those two events. No word on the reason for Dare's move.

Double Front brings fundraiser to a close

Kristal Bolden of Double Front gained a press pass to this years European Championship and is still looking to raise a little bit of money to get there. If you can help at all and enjoy top notch blog coverage, please help support her!

Cottubus Qualifiers

The Cottubus Cup is underway and qualifications have concluded. Big names on the women's side include Brittany Rogers and Dominique Pegg of Canada who are both returning from injury, He Kexin and Elisabeth Seitz on Bars and Diana Chelaru who qualified to three event finals. 

Ellie Black of Canada is a BAMF

I got a link on Twitter showing "Canadian Olympic Hopeful" Ellie Black's superb combo on beam. She's fairly good on Vault, Beam and Floor and could possibly factor into that picture. But with at least 12 Canadian girls with a legitimate shot, anything could happen.

NCAA Regionals

Property of UGA Gymnastics

Women's NCAA Conference Meets begin this weekend. Keep you eyes peeled on Twitter to see all of the fun  unfold and check out College Gym Fans for links to results and live coverage.

12 New American Seniors for 2012

Kennedy Baker - Texas Dreams
Junior National Team Member
3rd on UB, 7th AA at 2011 Jr. Nationals
6th on BB at 2010 Jr. Nationals
2009 US Junior Bars Champion

Worth remembering for: Double Arabian Beam Dismount, Creative Floor Choreography and her strong bar set.


Mackenzie Brannan - Capital 
5th on VT, 8th on FX and 6th AA at 2011 Jr. Nationals
4th on UB at 2010 Jr. Nationals

Worth Remembering for: Her clean DTY, her strong all around performances and and her tight double front.



Ericha Fassbender - Stars
Former Jr. National Team Member
Jesolo & Top Gym Team Member
2011 Jr. Nationals Competitors
3rd on BB, 9th AA at 2010 Jr. Nationals

Worth Remembering for: Clean tumbling on floor, a beam routine with 10 acro elements most of which are clean.



Sarah Finnegan - GAGE
Jr. National Team Member
2010 Pan Ams Team Member
3rd on BB, 5th on UB, 3rd AA at 2011
2010 US Jr. Floor Champ and 4th BB & 6th AA

Worth Remembering for:  Stated Goal as "to win the AA gold medal at the 2012 Olympics", Turns so good I want to cry, very beautiful clean gymnastics.


Lauren Marinez - Orlando Metro 
4th BB at 2011 Jr. Nationals
2010 National Competitor
Worth Remembering for: Cool split jump beam mount and an aerial on beam to 1 foot (Nastia style, but w/ leg forward).





Dare Maxwell - Texas Dreams 
2011 Jr. Nationals Competitor
8th on UB at 2010 Jr. Nationals

Worth Remembering for: Unbelievable consistency (went 16 for 16 at Visas & American & US Classics), Pretty lines on bars.




Elizabeth Price - Parkettes 
Jr. National Team Member
Jesolo Team Member
4th on UB, 5th on VT at 2011 Jr. Nationals
5th on VT & UB at 2011 Jr. Nationals

Worth Remembering for: Her sky high Tkachev, beautiful leaps, a strong DTY.



Kyla Ross - Gym Max
Jr. National Team Member
Jesolo, Pan Am & Pacific Rim Team Member
2nd AA, 2nd on UB & BB, 3rd on VT & 6th on FX
2010 AA & BB Champion, 3rd on FX & VT
2009 AA & VT Champion, 5th on UB & FX

Worth Remembering for: World class skills on all 4 events, Amanar, mature performances, beautiful lines.


Mykayla Skinner - Desert Lights
Jr. National Team Member
2nd on VT & 10th AA at 2011 Jr. Nationals
8th on VT at 2010 Jr. Nationals

Worth Remembering for: Clean Amanar Vault and Double Double on Floor.




Kiana Winston - Texas Dreams
Jr. National Team Member
7th on BB, 8th AA at 2011 Jr. National Championships
2009 Jr. Nationals Competitor

Worth Remembering for: Beautiful beam set, Clean DTY, mature yet fun style.




Other girls born in 1996 include - Nichelle Christopherson, Abigail Milliet, Keely McNeer & Samantha Partyka.

Your Questions Answered - 11/28-12/4

(Property of  Inside Gymnastics)

Kim asked: "Does Dare Maxwell still train at Texas Dreams? I noticed her sister competes for Dynamo in Oklahoma, so I'm kinda lost on this one!"

In late 2009 Dare moved to Texas Dreams to train with Kim Zmeskal and Chris Burdette. At this time, she began boarding with Chelsea Davis (and her mother) during the week to train while coming home often to spend time with her family. After Chelsea left for college, Dare began living with the Hults family. Dare’s younger sister Teagan still lives in Oklahoma and competes for Dynamo. She's planning to compete as a Level 9 and qualified to the 2011 Level 8 Regional Championships.

Zoe asked: "What do you think of Nastia and her comeback? Do you think she has a shot? What about Johnson?"

(Property of Quinn Rooney)

I am pleased to see that 5 out of the 6 Olympians from 2008 are attempting to make the team. What do I think their shots are? I think that Nastia, if in top, or almost top form, has a better shot than Shawn does. This is for no other reason than we NEED a bar worker. We have plenty of strong beamers, but if Nastia could get into top shape she could fill the hole that the US has right now. If I had to purely guess what I think will happen? I don't think Nastia will be ready in time. She'll probably compete at Classics and then have an "injury" or maybe just announce that she's not ready. I truly hope that this ISN'T the case, I just really can't see her being in a good position the first weekend of June, when Championships begin. Johnson, if she stays healthy, could potentially make the team, but I see her more likely as an alternate, just because she doesn't really "fill in the blanks" with Jordyn and several other likely candidates on the team. 

(Property of the Reeve Family)

Vikki asked: "Do you know if Olivia Reeve who moved from Great Britain to train at Chow's will be going into level 10 or elite?"

I've been told that the plan is to try to qualify Elite. She and her dad traveled to Chow's in 2010 for what a Chow's insider tells me was essentially a "try out". She has officially moved for the long term at this point and has started school in Iowa. Her website says that she'd like to represent GB in the 2016 Olympics, so I'm not sure how far into the USAG program Olivia will go. She's also not currently training in Chow's group but with Neptali Narvaez & Amy Longwill.

If you're not familiar with Olivia Reeve, she's a 13 year old gymnast and diver from Great Britain.  

Kiyal asked: "When did Jana officially retire and what is she doing now? Same 'where is she now' question about Carly."

(Property of Jeff Sipsey)

While I don't officially remember Jana having a statement about retiring, she competed most recently at the 2009 Visa Championships. She did receive an international assignment to travel to a World Cup Competition in Croatia in November of 2009 but she did not attend. Most recently we saw her as fit as ever performing along with many former elite and college gymnasts in Evolution. 

Although Carly briefly talked about a comeback early this quad, she hasn't competed since the 2004 Olympics. She's currently in school and has made several appearances in gyms across the country. No word as to if she's given up the singing dream. 

Do you have questions of your own? Ask Me! 

My 5 Favorite Hairstyles of 2011

5.
Bridget Sloan's at the 2011 Pan Ams, only because for the first time since the Olympics, her hair doesn't look like a family of small animals could occupy it.




(Picture Property of USA Gymnastics)











4.

Dare Maxwell's "double side braid" from day 1 of Championships. This isn't a great picture of it, but if you find a better one, let me know.


(Picture Property of USA Gymnastics)













3.

Danusia Francis of Great Britain at the 2011 European Championships. Although the girls on Ginnaste giggled at Danusia's hair, I ADORE that she keeps her beautiful hair natural, yet pulled together.














2.

Shawn Johnson's curved side braid with bow on Day 1 of Championships. It's somehow young and mature at the same time, and I like it!















1.

Peng Peng Lee at Pan Ams and Worlds AA Final. A loose bun with adorable flowers. I hope she starts a trend; I love it. (Sorry about the awkward screenshot, Peng Peng.)