“Gymnastics prince and price of glory” plus 3 more |
- Gymnastics prince and price of glory
- Pres. Barack Obama congratulates student-athletes for focusing on both sports and academics
- YMCA gymnastics team to compete in first meet
- SPORTS NOTEBOOK: Gym Dogs start practice
| Gymnastics prince and price of glory Posted: 13 Sep 2010 12:22 AM PDT Gymnastics prince and price of glory Monday, September 13, 2010 China's Prince of Gymnastics Li Ning met the media earlier this month as chairman of Coolpoint Energy to announce plans to develop the company's sports product business.Though he has rarely made business- related public appearances in recent years, Li handled the event confidently. His media skills are not a concern. They have obviously stayed sharp. Rather, the concern is his health. Reporters noticed Li constantly drinking water during the briefing, which lasted only an hour. Towards the end, Li stood up suddenly, and complained about "lower back pain." Li said that after spinal surgery last year, he has a problem staying in a sitting position for too long. I was told the surgery was conducted at a Beijing hospital to remove bone spur on the spine. Li did not blame the problem on the grueling training he underwent as a member of the national gymnastics team. However it is quite likely that years of hard exercise have taken their toll on the bones and muscles of the Olympic gold medalist. Long after retiring from the sporting field, Li continued to impress supporters at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics two years ago with his mid-air "skywalk," a demanding act requiring the highest gymnastics skills, which Li performed beautifully. What the public did not know at the time was that it was also a display of steely willpower, because Li was laboring under a chronic spinal problem during the show. Some said the performance would give a powerful boost to the Li Ning brand, and that was why he was doing it - but Li is already a multi- billionaire.So one cannot help but question this. There is really no need for the Prince of Gymnastics to break his back, literally, for some dubious commercial benefit. Siu Sai-wo is chief editor of Sing Tao Daily This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Pres. Barack Obama congratulates student-athletes for focusing on both sports and academics Posted: 13 Sep 2010 04:31 PM PDT Updated: September 13, 2010, 7:19 PM ET WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama on Monday lauded hundreds of student athletes who play sports as varied as lacrosse, gymnastics and fencing for their championship performances on and off the field. Some 650 students, along with their coaches and staff, gathered on the South Lawn of the White House as Obama continued a tradition begun by George W. Bush. "This is the most athletic talent we've ever had on the South Lawn," he said. Obama applauded the players, who had traded their team uniforms for business suits and sundresses, for focusing on the triple combination of sports, academics and service -- and for winning NCAA trophies. He noted that one team cooks dinner for families with seriously ill children and that another team holds an annual track meet for kids with physical and mental disabilities. Teams have also organized blood drives, built houses, cleaned beaches and reached out to senior citizens, he said. "One young man even donated bone marrow to a little girl he had never met," Obama said. "And as he said, 'Saving someone's life is a lot more important than a football game.' "It's the kind of selfless attitude that's going to stay with you for the rest of your lives and that's incredibly important," Obama said. Obama said all the athletes have a competitive streak "about a mile wide" and he noted that they excelled at sports even while carrying full course loads and giving back to their communities. To the Fairleigh Dickinson women's bowling team, Obama joked, "I need some tips, guys!"
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| YMCA gymnastics team to compete in first meet Posted: 13 Sep 2010 07:58 AM PDT Sports writer pleon@coastalcourier.com 912-876-0156 ext. 28 Posted: Sept. 13, 2010 10:50 a.m.  Liberty County's YMCA gymnastics team will tumble into its first competitive meet in October, and the girls are preparing for their debut by hosting a daylong gymnastics event Sept. 18. "Their first meet will be Oct. 30 in Savannah at Summit Gymnastics," new coach Karissa Thomas said. "It will be their first meet as a team so we are working on letting them practice performing in front of each other. Then, eventually, we'll have some parents watching and then on National Gymnastics Day, Sept. 18, they'll be showing their skills to everyone who is here." Thomas came on board in July, just one month after former coach Michelle Alexander left. Thomas, who is from Seattle, said she grew up competing in gymnastics and later taught it for 10 years. Her family was stationed at Fort Benning, but recently was reassigned to Fort Stewart. "I bought a house, so I'm here to stay," she said. After becoming acquainted with her team, the coach focused on rebuilding the girls' overall strength. "There were some issues with the girls not being able to hold their own body weight up on the bars and, in order to do a lot of their skills, they were missing a few basic progressions," she said. "So we started from the basics going all the way to just doing forward rolls and built the program back up again. We've been working a lot on conditioning and strength." With the first meet about a month away, Thomas thought National Gymnastics Day would be the perfect opportunity for team members to work out any stage fright. The event will be from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at the YMCA's gymnastics building. "The public is invited to bring their children, who will be given gymnastic instructions at the top of every hour, and then the YMCA team will perform for the audience during the 15-minute breaks," the coach said. "They plan to have a snow cone machine, snacks, raffles and prizes." Lauren Parrish is the team's booster club president. Her daughter Nicole is on the team and Parrish said the program has boosted the young athlete's confidence. "She was really shy and we felt this might boost her confidence a little bit and it really has," Parrish said. The president said she started the booster club to help pay for meet costs and uniforms. "We paid half of the uniforms already," she said. "We also provide funds and hold fundraisers to pay for our girls to get into the meets. Where there was no money before we now we have the money so the parents don't have to pay as much (out of pocket) because it is very expensive." Alicia Turner's daughter Hailey Montes also is on the squad. "She is all excited about the fact they are starting to compete. She has friends who are level nine, and she sees that they are doing flips," Turner said about watching Hailey in action. "She has come a long way since when she first started. She only knew cartwheels and she has a lot of her skills now for level three. She has her running around doing back hand springs now and they are starting to work on other stuff." Thomas said she wants the girls to enjoy their first meet instead of worrying about scores. "Because it's their first meet, I just want them to be proud of what they've done and how far they've come so far," she said. "They are working very hard in all their events. I hope by the end of our competition season next May that they'll be scoring very well all across the board." Turner also realizes that hard work and having fun go hand-in-hand. She has high hopes for Hailey, but also wants her daughter to take pleasure in what she's doing. "I just want her to go out there and give her all and be proud of herself," Turner said. For more information about National Gymnastics Day or the YMCA gymnastics team, call This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| SPORTS NOTEBOOK: Gym Dogs start practice Posted: 13 Sep 2010 09:35 AM PDT You are here: Home - Sports - Golf - SPORTS NOTEBOOK: Gym Dogs start practice The Georgia gymnastics team will begin mandatory practices Monday in preparation for the 2011 season. The Gym Dogs return nine gymnasts from a year ago including two SEC individual champions, Kat Ding and Hilary Mauro, along with senior Cassidy McComb and junior Gina Nuccio. Other returners include junior Mariel Box and sophomores Kati Breazeal, Noel Couch, Christa Tanella and Shayla Worley. "Today is about getting our starting point," said Georgia head coach Jay Clark. "We are doing what we're calling verification Monday, our testing day to see where everybody is. We haven't been able to require gymnastics of them until this point, so we're going to get a good look and see where we are. What we are really hoping for is a continued level of enthusiasm and a real commitment to discipline. That has been our theme to this point and we want it to carry over into mandatories. We want to create a real competitive environment, and we have been emphasizing that." Georgia welcomes four newcomers this fall: Bekah Bennetts, Kaylan Earls, Cat Hires and Laura Moffatt. Bennetts, a native of Woodstock, Ga., trained at Georgia All-Star Gymnastics and was the vault champion at the Level 10 Regional Championships in 2009. Earls, from Chicago, trained at Arena Gymnastics and was a seven-time national qualifier and was twice crowned the Junior Olympic National All-Around Champion. Hires, a native of Tampa, trained at LaFleur's and was the 2009 all-around state champion. She also won the bars title at the 2008 and 2010 Junior Olympic National Championships. Moffatt, a native of Kennesaw, Ga., trained at the Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta and won the bars title at the Georgia state meet earlier this year and was a two-time national qualifier. "In a perfect world, you would expect all of them to contribute this year, but a couple of them are out with injures," Clark said. "Kaylan Earls in healthy and has shown that she is a very athletic, powerful athlete who can tumble and vault really well. She is going to make a big splash and will become a fan favorite." Georgia will hold its practices in the afternoons, and the workouts are open to the public. The Gym Dogs open the season at Denver on Jan. 8, while the home opener is slated for Saturday, Jan. 15 against Utah. Freshman tennis player posts top Bulldog finish at SEC Fall Coaches Classic Auburn, Ala. – Georgia freshman Alex Anghelescu earned the big win of the day Sunday when she claimed the 2B flight title at the SEC Fall Coaches Classic. Georgia had three freshmen make the finals in their respective flights in the first fall tournament of the season held on the Auburn campus. Anghelescu was extended to three sets before finishing off Ole Miss senior Laura van de Stroet 7-5,3-6,6-1. She went 3-0 on the weekend. In the 1B flight final, Georgia's Lilly Kimbell fell 7-6(5),6-2 to South Carolina junior Anya Morgina. In the 3A flight final, Florida sophomore Caroline Hitimana edged Georgia's Alina Jerjomina 6-1,7-6(4). In other singles action involving the Bulldogs Sunday, junior Nadja Gilchrist lost a tough three-setter to Whitney Wolf (LSU) in the 1A flight, falling 3-6,7-5,7-5. In the 2A flight, freshman Maho Kowase dispatched junior Abby Guthrie (Ole Miss) 6-1,6-2.In the 3A flight, freshman Kate Fuller defeated junior Emily Carbone (Arkansas) 6-4,6-2. In the 3B flight, senior Cameron Ellis cruised past freshman Jacqueline Kasler (Auburn) 6-4,6-1. In the 5B flight, Vanderbilt junior Megan Gornet defeated Bulldog freshman Rachael Hart 6-2,6-4. A day after going a combined 10-1 in singles and doubles action, Georgia went 4-4 in singles on Sunday at the Yarborough Tennis Center. Georgia used an array of combinations in doubles this past weekend. In flight one, Gilchrist /Fuller went 1-0 while Gilchrist/Kowase went 1-1. In flight two, Kimbell /Anghelescu went 2-0 while Kimbell/Fuller went 0-1. In flight three, Ellis/Kowase went 1-0 while Jerjomina/Anghelescu went 1-1.The Jerjomina/Hart duo went 2-0 in flight four. Up next, Georgia will travel to Atlanta Friday for the Georgia Tech Invitational, a three-day singles and doubles event. Golfers take sixth at Carpet Capital Collegiate ROCKY FACE, Ga. – The third-ranked Georgia men's golf team finished sixth in the season-opening Carpet Capital Collegiate on Sunday at The Farm Golf Club. The Bulldogs fired a third-round 16-over-par 304 to wind up at 12-over 876. The team title went to Alabama, which finished at 8-under 856. Sophomore Bryden Macpherson led Georgia on Sunday with a 3-over 75, while seniors Harris English and Russell Henley signed for 4-over 76s, and senior Hudson Swafford and freshman Michael Cromie posted 5-over 77s. English placed 12th individually at even-par 216, 10 shots behind medalist Lee Bedford of Wake Forest, while Henley came in 19th at 3-over 219. Macpherson wound up at 4-over 220, Cromie finished at 7-over 223 and Swafford came in at 9-over 225. "This was not the start to the season that we hoped for, but we'll make this into a positive," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "This will reinforce to us how hard we need to work each and every day. That's exactly what we'll do before the next tournament." The Bulldogs will return to action Sept. 26 in the Ping Preview in Stillwater, Okla. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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