Lightbulb Hands

The Two Best FX Routines of Nationals

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:46:07 -0400

DeJesus, Sophina 2009 US Nationals Prelims FX

Being a huge Twilight Zone fan, I love the music. She not only performs to the music but uses it as well. It's not just ambient background music while she tumbles and prances around. This routine is something more we would see in NCAA, but it's nice to see on the elite stage as well and it obviously gets a high crowd response.

Boyce, Claire 2009 US Nationals Prelims FX

GAGE tends to pump out Terin clones, both music and dance-wise. The music in some parts has the same sounds as Terin's Armenian Tango, but the dance certainly isn't the same. The heartbeat section does have the potential to be a little cheesy and overwrought, but I think it's done well enough to add a dramatic touch to the whole routine. Boyce sells it well.

I hope this isn't crushed out of them if/when these two go senior. Having girls with original choreography could be the thing that sets the USA apart from other countries, especially if the uneven bars situation doesn't improve.

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The Current Junior National Team and Thoughts

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 17:36:46 -0400

Kyla Ross
Bridgette Caquatto
Alexandra Raisman
Sabrina Vega
Amanda Jetter
Madison Kocian
Morgan Smith
Briley Casanova
Sophina DeJesus
Katelyn Ohashi
Jordyn Wieber

Not surprised that Wieber was given a wild card position, being the current Golden Girl and all, not to mention that I'm calling her to be the USA representative for the Youth Olympics in Singapore next summer. It remains to be seen if teammate Kamerin Moore will get one of the remaining 7 spots. She recently had surgery to repair a torn labrum and as Chellsie Memmel can testify, the rehabilitation process is long and hard. Who knows if she'll be available to compete for the next year?

DeJesus impressed many with her FX choreo. Well, aside from the fact that she actually has some. But when you're the 2005 junior international hip hop champion, you have a certain reputation to uphold:

Sophina DeJesus

I fully expect the originality to be crushed out of her soon enough, though. Her UB skills also has potential, but not China potential. I fear that the USA will still be lagging way behind on that event.

Ohashi, while not high on difficulty, has the lovely lines and grace that is typical of a GAGE gymnast. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes from her.

Jetter has recovered nicely from her back injury and a shaky Day 1 to come back strong on Day 2. CGA has strong UB workers, but unfortunately, their backs are destroyed before they can fully realize their potential. It's hard to be a fan of her and Cassandra Whitcomb knowing this.

Raisman just squeaked past Vega to grab the AA bronze. True to a Brestyan's gymnast, her bars are terrible, but her FX is amazing. She has the ability to do a 3.5 twist and could possibly do a quad in the future (she fell on her triple full today due to far too much power).

Speaking of Vega, she is high on the cute factor, but made too many mistakes and didn't quite meet the expectations put on her post-Classics. But she has high political favor given that her coach Teodora Ungreneau is a former Karolyi protégé.

Kyla Ross is the unexpected Jr. National Champion. Given that Vega made some mistakes and Wieber wasn't here to blow past the competition, it was nice to actually wonder who was going to win. I haven't seen much of Ross' gymnastics, but she's from Gym-Max, so I imagine that a German giant is somewhere in her UB routine.

Makayla Maroney is also from Gym-Max (not yet on the National Team) and competes an Amanar. She crashed it Day 1, but landed it well today. And that's about all she has going for her right now. Her D scores on all other events don't even go up to a 5.0. But the Amanar was enough to get Marta on her side. Reportedly, Marta went wild when Maroney landed her vault.

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Dear Universal Sports,

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:53:05 -0400

You provide a great service to sports nuts. You show sports that normally don't get airtime on other stations, like gymnastics, diving, and table tennis. Your online content is accessible to those outside of the United States. You show a great many things live. You don't believe in "if you missed it the first time around, sucks for you." I'm very pleased that you showed Classics and much, much more of Nationals than NBC itself ever has.

But come on! Would it really hurt to show the juniors, too? Today's juniors are tomorrow's seniors and NCAA competitors.

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Things Suddenly Got Interesting...

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:12:22 -0400

IG2 confirms that Alicia Sacramone is making a comeback. Surprising and yet, not totally for two reasons:

1.) Alicia can still fill a hole within the U.S. team. We need vaulters like whoa because it still hasn't caught on that if you train at the very least a DTY and another relatively mid-to-high level tariff vault (like a Rudi), you're likely to be named onto international teams.

2.) Olympic team final = Desire for redemption.

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Dear Valeri,

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 14:03:04 -0400

Teach Ivana a different release skill, please. The Tkachev just isn't working for her. I think she could do a straddled Jaeger nicely.

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Dear Andrea Bieger,

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 12:14:24 -0400

Quit talking to every media head that'll give you the time of day about how it was so unfair that Jana wasn't put in for Chellsie. Even with a broken ankle, Chellsie was going to bring in a bigger bars score than Jana. You're not helping your daughter's case AT ALL. Maybe you should be working on making Jana's gymnastics cleaner and not so labored.

Love,

Gym fans everywhere

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In This Post, There Are No Creepy Men

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 23:36:56 -0400

2009 American Classic/Challenge participants
By state, information shows name, hometown/club (event, level)

California
Kaitlyn Clark, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Precision Gymnastics (Classic, senior)
Sophina DeJesus, Temecula, Calif./Southern California Elite Gymnastics Academy (Classic, junior)
Carinne Gale, Simi Valley, Calif./Monarch's National Gymnastics Training Center LLC (Classic, junior)
McKayla Maroney, Laguna Niguel, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Danielle McNair, Dove Canyon, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Challenge, junior)
Nicolette McNair, Dove Canyon, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Kristen Nogaki, Orange, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Challenge, junior)
Danielle Ramirez, Corona, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Challenge, junior)
Chanen Raygoza, Upland, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Kyla Ross, Aliso Viejo, Calif./Gym-Max Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Ashley Stott, Temecula, Calif./Precision Gymnastics (Classic, senior)

Georgia
Makenzie Kitchens, Powder Springs, Ga./Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta (Challenge, junior)
Eryn Underwood, Kennesaw, Ga./Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta (Challenge, Hopes)

Florida
Morgan Smith, Clermont, Fla./Brandy Johnson's Global Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Hawaii
Randi Lau, Honolulu, Hawaii/What's Up Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Iowa
Kara Lovan, Des Moines, Iowa/Triad Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Massachusetts
Alexandra Raisman, Needham, Mass./Brestyan's American Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

North Carolina
Kimberly Jacob, Raleigh, N.C./Superior Gymnastics (Classic, senior)
Sarah Persinger, Mt. Holly, N.C./Southeastern Gymnastics Center (Classic, senior)

New York
Sabrina Vega, Carmel, N.Y./Dynamic Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Oklahoma
Alexandra Marks, Cushing, Okla./Dynamo Gymnastics (Challenge, Hopes)
Dare Maxwell, Edmond, Okla./Dynamo Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Pennsylvania
Lauren Beers, Warren Center, Pa./Southern Tier Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Jazmyn Estrella, Allentown, Pa./Parkettes National Gymnastics Center (Challenge, Hopes)
Madeline Hanley, Danielsville, Pa./Parkettes National Gymnastics Center (Classic, junior)
Elizabeth Price, Coopersburg, Pa./Parkettes National Gymnastics Center (Classic, junior)

Texas
Caitlin Atkinson, Houston, Texas/Cypress Academy of Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Mackenzie Brannan, Austin, Texas/Capital Gymnastics Super Center (Classic, junior)
Briley Casanova, Dallas, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Ericha Fassbender, Katy, Texas/Stars Gymnastics Training Center-Houston (Classic, junior)
Lillian Hardin, Frisco, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Raven Helland, Oak Point, Texas/Denton Gymnastics Academy (Classic, junior)
Kristen Heuston, Corpus Christi, Texas/Northwest Kids Sports Complex (Challenge, Hopes)
Sophia Lee, Plano, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Grace McLaughlin, Allen, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Abigail Milliet, Denton, Texas/Denton Gymnastics Academy (Classic, junior)
Braie Speed, Schertz, Texas/Olympic Hills Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Christa Tanella, Lucas, Texas/WOGA Gymnastics (Classic, senior)
McKenzie Wofford, Spring, Texas/Stars Gymnastics Training Center-Houston (Classic, junior)

Virginia
Gabrielle Douglas, Virginia Beach, Va./Excalibur Gymnastics (Classic, junior)
Kaitlynn Hedelund, Chesapeake, Va./Excalibur Gymnastics (Challenge, junior)
Krystine Jacobsen, Norfolk, Va./Excalibur Gymnastics (Classic, junior)

Washington
Destinee Davis, Woodland, Wash./Naydenov Gymnastics Inc. (Challenge, Hopes)

This looks more like the WOGA and Gym-Max show. I'm curious to see how Chanen Raygoza does. Like previous Gym-Max gymnasts Shantessa Pama and Ivana Hong, Chanen also does a German giant in her UB routine, however instead of doing a reverse hecht out of it, she does a HB-LB transitional skill:

Chanen Raygoza Bars

I'm also wondering where Randi Lau is at. For having made her first National Team, she really hasn't been given a lot of assignments, though to be fair, there really isn't a lot of assignments for juniors in an Olympic year and immediately after.

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Shawn Johnson Stalker

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 23:25:53 -0400

Everybody knows that Shawn Johnson is on Dancing with the Stars, right? So no other exposition is needed? Okay.

This is really rather creepy. It's fortunate that something was done before this guy could really do anything. Glad Hollywood learned something from Rebecca Schaeffer.

West Des Moines gymnast and television star Shawn Johnson remains shaken by the arrest of a deranged fan who came to the set of “Dancing With the Stars” with loaded weapons in an attempt to find the Olympic gold medalist.
Details of a restraining order granted today in California outlined the arrest of Robert O’Ryan.
Documents allege O’Ryan, 34, jumped a fence Monday in an attempt to locate Johnson. A search of O’Ryan’s car revealed two loaded guns, duct tape, zip ties and the 17-year-old Johnson is “in fear of her life,” according to court records.
Johnson’s father, Doug, said his daughter was understandably disturbed by the incident.
“Well, yeah,” Doug Johnson told The Des Moines Register. “It would rattle anybody.”
Shawn Johnson spoke with WHO (TV-13) late tonight.
“We’re doing good. It’s been a little crazy,” said Shawn Johnson, who won Olympic gold in the balance beam at Beijing, China. “I’m so glad my parents are with me.”
Ryan was arrested Tuesday by Los Angeles police.
Court records indicated both guns in O’Ryan’s car were loaded. Duct tape and love letters also were in the car and Johnson’s mother, Teri, said police told her O’Ryan believed he was meant to have a child with her daughter.
Documents also alleged O’Ryan “believes that she speaks to him personally through the television set and through ESP."
Doug Johnson said there have been concerns with fans before, “but not to that extent.”
He indicated that the family could not comment on the situation, because they’ve been advised it involves an ongoing investigation. He said the family feels more comfortable, though, since the restraining order was granted.
“She’s doing fine — and everything seems to be under control right now,” Doug Johnson said.
In the brief interview with WHO, Shawn Johnson search for a bit of humor in the fact that she now employs a bodyguard.
“I have a new big brother who goes everywhere with me,” Johnson joked. “He weighs about 400 pounds.”
According to court documents, O’Ryan was stopped by security at CBS Studios, where “Dancing With the Stars” is produced, after he jumped on a fence.
A hearing on whether to grant a lengthy restraining order will be held on April 14. O’Ryan is in jail on $35,000 bail on suspicion of carrying a loaded firearm in public.
Records allege that O’Ryan told security guards and police that he packed up all his belongings and traveled to California from Florida in the hopes of being with Johnson.
A report by security guards at CBS Studios states that O’Ryan was carrying an expired concealed weapons permit.

Source

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WCF WAG Results Day 2:

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 13:45:53 -0500

Sanne Weavers withdrew; Yang Yilin withdrew due to a back injury. She's had that injury for a while, I think. Too bad Weavers withdrew from the BB finals. NastiaFan101 mentioned her excellent turn (I completely forgot about that) and she could have gotten it named after her (completely forgot that you could have skills named after you at WCFs).

BB:

1. Lauren Mitchell (!) 15.250
2. Yulia Lozhechko 15.200
3. Li Shanshan 15.150

Very close final! Cheng Fei had a very wobbly set, ultimately falling on her sheep jump (it took me awhile to find out what she fell on; the feed I was watching kept screwing up). Izbasa was very close to bronze, but knocked out by Lozhechko and Li. Dariya Zgoba had a decent set, but dismounted with a RO-LO. Must be that injured foot, but still, it's kind of odd to do a level 7 dismount at a World Cup Final.

The feed I'm watching is a Brazilian one and a Portuguese gym fan said that the commentator was rather biased in the fact that throughout the rotation, he was saying, "Next up is Hypolito, just wait to watch her fight for gold and don't forget that Diego won!" (Diego won FX, IIRC). Of course, Daniele fell on her mount, effectively removing her chances for gold...

And then the feed cuts out right to a lottery right after Daniele finishes her routine...

FX:

1. Cheng 15.375
2. Jiang 15.225
3. Izbasa 15.000

Suzanne Harmes, what horrible luck. She hurt her ankle on her FHS and on the video, you see her ankle snap. Ugh. Koko Tsurumi was doing so well right up to her dismount, where she fell on her double pike. I really think Zamo has given everything that was left in her to this sport. She seems so empty now.

Izbasa fell short on her triple and that really cost her. Cheng rocked her set. I think she has atoned for Beijing now. I think the biggest surprise of the rotation was Jiang's Gomez. When was the last time we saw that skill, aside from Gomez herself? I dunno if she was actually credited for that, though.

All in all, a very satisfying final World Cup final for the women. I would have liked to have seen Yang Yilin, since she's my favorite of the Chinese, underage or no. Can't have it all.

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WAG World Cup Final Results Thus Far:

nobody@vox.com(janghwa_hongryeon) — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:30:23 -0500

A couple of surprises:

VT:

1. Cheng Fei (not a surprise) 15.050
2. Ariella Käeslin 14.912
3. Aagje Vanwalleghem 14.425

Zamo splatted her vaults, unfortunately. Elsa Garcia was so close to bronze, but knocked out by Aagje.

Uneven Bars had an East Asian sweep:

1. He Kexin 16.250
2. Jiang Yuyuan 15.7
3. Tsurumi Koko (yush!) 15.250

Interestingly, He nearly peeled off the low bar like she did in Beijing. She saved it, but her B scores were rather funny. The Australian judge gave her a 7.5 while the Chilean judge gave her a 9.0.

Yang Yilin scratched. No reason has been given yet. Likely injury.

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