Canadian women name Olympians

In the midst of the media frenzy that was the U.S. women’s championships, the Canadians quietly held their own Nationals and named Nansy Damianova and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs as the two who would wear the Maple Leaf in Beijing.

Left out is 2007 Canadian champion Kristina Vaculik, a waif-like 16-year-old who is excellent on bars and beam but a bit weak on vault and floor.

Hopfner-Hibbs, who had been concentrating on her specialties (bars and beam) made an impressive return to the all-around to win the Canadian title over Vaculik and young Charlotte Mackie. Young Peng-Peng Lee was also impressive, winning the senior beam and floor titles.

Adam Wong won the Canadian men’s title, although his victory was somewhat overshadowed by the continuing saga of Kyle Shewfelt, who made a media splash even though he didn’t compete.

Most were betting that the two to go would be Hopfner-Hibbs, the only Canadian woman in about two decades to have won a World medal (bronze, balance beam, 2006), and Vaculik, who was sent to the Olympic venue for the Good Luck Beijing International Invitational in December.

Damianova has been viewed as no. 3 to Vaculik and Hopfner-Hibbs in international exposure, media coverage and probably readiness — everything but the complicated, confusing system Gymnastics Canada Gymnastique installed to choose its Olympians. A month ago, Damianova led the qualifying, having racked up 32 points to Hopfer-Hibbs’ 30 and Vaculik’s 19.

Vaculik has become the first of what will undoubtedly be several women who are Olympic-caliber but will not be granted an berth to the Games because their countries didn’t qualify a full team or because the wildcard process screwed them over didn’t work out for them.

We already know who many of these people are on the men’s side: Krisztian Berki, Vlasios Maras, Yuri van Gelder, Jeffrey Wammes, Philippe Rizzo, Yernar Yurimbetov and others (for full list, see Gymnastics Coaching.)

Damianova was impressive at the 2008 Pacific Rim Championships in April.

Nansy Damianova, 2008 Pacific Rim Championships, Floor Exercise:

Petitioning Kristina Vaculik to Beijing

Someone isn’t happy that 2008 Olympic hopeful Kristina Vaculik is training Nansy Damianova and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs in the points competiton that will partly determine who makes the Canadian Olympic team.

A petition to Gymnastics Canada Gymnastique, the governing body of Canadian gymnastics, has been set up here.

The fairly complicated Canadian selection process was explained well by Hopfner-Hibbs’s coach Carol-Angela Orchard in an interview with International Gymnast Online last week.

Athletes also receive points for their previous World Championships experience.

A minimum standard has been set by Gymnastics Canada for each event: 13.600 on vault (average of two vaults); 15.300 on bars; 15.100 on beam; and 14.300 on floor.

The gymnasts are given Olympic Qualifying points when they hit the minimum standards in meets they are sent to around the world, plus Elite Canada and Nationals. The higher their score, the higher number of points they receive.

Related post: Nansy Damianova, Olympic hopeful

Tanella, Gerber give a clinic in expressive floor routines

Yes, Virginia, you can do an expressive floor routine with a code of points that forces many to do double fulls as side passes.

Cases in point: The dramatic Christa Tanella of World Olympic Gymnastics Academy in Plano, Texas, and Aisha Gerber, formerly of Cambridge Kips and Elvira Saadi in Ontario, now with Canadian great Kyle Shewfelt’s coach, Kelly Manjak, at Oakville Gymnastics.

Christa Tanella, 2007 U.S. Championships Prelims, Floor Exercise:

Aisha Gerber, 2007 Elite Canada Event Finals, Floor Exercise:

Gerber told International Gymnast Magazine in December that she would be trying for one of the two spots on Canada’s Olympic team, likely as a vault and floor specialist. She’s one of the few Canadians to ever throw a double-twisting Yurchenko in competition, and that expressive floor routine is likely to win fans over to her cause.

As far as the Olympics go, Gerber’s got strong competition from reigning Canadian champion Kristina Vaculik and 2006 World bronze medalist Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs. In her bid to make the Canadian team, Gerber is planning to upgrade to a double layout (or maybe double Arabian) on floor.

Women’s artistic gymnastics: 12 to watch in ’08

For so long, the Gymnasts to Watch have come from four countries of the world: The United States, China, Russia and Romania. As we move into 2008, it is quickly becoming apparent that the best gymnasts are not exclusively from these four nations.

With the help of coaches who have migrated from South America to New Zealand, Korea, Germany, France, Italy, Australia, Great Britain, etc., international gymnastics is flourishing in ways it never has before.

Some of those who will be contenders for numerous Olympic medals aren’t mentioned on the following list. We know who they are. But sometimes the stories of the underdogs are equally compelling. Oksana Chusovitina’s fifth Olympics? Come on. That’s an achievement even those who snap up most of the gold in Beijing will never accomplish.

Shawn Johnson, USA: The 2007 World Champion will have all eyes on her this season, but she’ll be dealing with maintaining her position at the top of the podium instead of simply claiming it, as she did in every contest she entered last year. Many fans may watch Johnson with apprehension. After all, Johnson’s idol Kim Zmeskal, whose gymnastics greatly resembled Johnson’s own, looked darn unbeatable too going into 1992.

Shawn Johnson, 2007 World Championships All-Around, Floor Exercise:

Beth Tweddle, Great Britain: The most decorated gymnast in British history (a term I never thought I’d hear again after Shannon Miller retired) Tweddle is going into 2008 with what seems like all of England marching behind. Freak injuries in podium trainings and the like have robbed Tweddle the opportunity to compete her best at so many competitions.

Beth Tweddle, 2006 World Championships Event Finals, Uneven Bars:

Jiang Yuyuan, China: She’s China’s rising star and a potential late-blooming all-around threat. With the Olympics being held in Beijing, it’s hard to imagine that Jiang won’t do well.

Jiang Yuyuan, 2007 World Championships Event Finals, Floor Exercise:

Aisha Gerber, Canada: She looked like the next Yvonne Tousek at the 2006 American Cup. After a tumultous 2007, with new coaches Kelly and Sue Manjak cheering her on, a revitalized Gerber wants to compete for Canada in Beijing. In order to do so however, she’ll have to prove she’s more worthy than Kristina Vaculik and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs.

Aisha Gerber, 2006 American Cup, Floor Exercise:

Vanessa Ferrari, Italy: The competitive spirit obviously rages inside this one. The question will be if she can hit all of her events — in the same day.

Vanessa Ferrari, 2006 World Championships All Around, Floor Exercise:

Daria Joura, Australia: She’s been a spunky and well-choreographed presence on the international scene since 2006. If she does everything she’s capable of in Beijing, she could be in the top five on several events.

Daria Joura, 2007 American Cup, Floor Exercise:

Hong Su Jong, Korea: Despite their particular prowess on vault and uneven bars, the Koreans have gone relatively unnoticed internationally. But at the 2007 World Championships, Hong showed the same vaults as Cheng Fei — an Amanar and Cheng’s own signature vault, which some argued Hong did better in Stuttgart. With Brazilian Jade Barbosa also performing the Cheng, it will be a battle to determine who’s going to do what in 2008.

Hong Su Jong, 2007 World Championships Event Finals, Vault:

Anna Pavlova, Russia: The gymnast once deemed Svetlana Khorkina’s successor on the Russian team has limped along since Athens, which was the last competition she really looked alive at. The rudderless Russian team has looked thrown for a loop most of the quad as well, despite immense depth and talent from upcoming juniors. The thing is, Pavlova nearly pulled off the upset of the quad in 2004 (many argue she should have had bronze), and there’s a feeling she does have more to give. If she puts the extra effort into her performance in Beijing as she did in Athens, we could see more from her and the Russians this year.

Anna Pavlova, 2004 Olympic Games All Around, Floor Exercise:

Bridget Sloan, USA: One of the USA’s “Bubble Girls,” the 2007 World Championships alternate is getting attention for her clean gymnastics, personality, consistency and self-choreographed floor routine.

Bridget Sloan, 2007 Beijing Test Event All Around, Floor Exercise:

Cerasela Patrascu, Romania: With veteran Catalina Ponor gone for good, this girl could be the top Romanian in Beijing. Her form is good, her skills are difficult and her presentation has a wonderful quality to it. Expect her — and not teammate Steliana Nistor, deserving as she is — to be the one to watch this year.

Cerasela Patrascu, 2007 World Championships Team Prelims, Uneven Bars:

Yulia Lozhechko, Russia: She’s got the long bodyline — if not the sass — of Khorkina, and her quality and steadiness on balance beam is thoroughly impressive. After being unceremoniously thrown off the Russian national team for disobeying her coaches in Stuttgart, one can only hope Lozhechko put her head down and kept training.

Yulia Lozhechko, 2007 European Championships Event Finals, Balance Beam:

Oksana Chusovitina, Germany: It’s taken four Olympiads, three countries and one child for Chusovitina to get to this point. Regardless of how she performs, whether or not she qualifies for vault finals, how could anyone not cheer for this woman?

Oksana Chusovitina, 2006 World Championships Event Finals, Vault:

Vaculik, Hopfner-Hibbs, Lee win Elite Canada event finals

From International Gymnast Magazine:

Canadian world team members Kristina Vaculik and
Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs each won one event and tied for another as Elite Canada concluded Sunday in Abbotsford, B.C.

Vaculik, winner of Friday’s all-around competition, vaulted a clean Yurchenko full (13.7) and an Omelianchik (13.4) to place first, ahead of Missassauga’s Alyssa Brown and Gymnix Montreal’s Nansy Damianova.

Vaculik continued her success on bars (clear hip full to Tkatchev, full pirouette to Gienger, double front dismount), tying Sport Seneca’s Hopfner-Hibbs (Markelov, Jaeger, toe-on piked Tkatchev, double layout) with a 15.1. Ontario’s Peng-Peng Lee, second in the all-around, was third with a 14.2.

On balance beam, Hopfner-Hibbs turned in a solid routine that included a McCool (front handspring) mount to immediate back tuck and a side aerial to two layout stepouts to edge Vaculik, 15.300 to 14.95. Vaculik also performed a McCool mount but wobbled on her switch leap, back tuck combination.

Hopfner-Hibbs, who won the bronze on beam at the 2006 World Championships, said she is focusing on uneven bars and balance beam leading up to the Olympic Games.

“I’m trying to use all the competitions I get to go to as preparations for Beijing,” she said. “For me it’s just practice.”

Lee, who debuted a back handspring, tucked full combination Friday night, missed it Sunday but managed to place third with a 14.35, despite also falling on a tucked barani. Lee’s 7.0 A score was the highest of any in the competition.

Undeterred, Lee turned in a clean, jazzy floor routine (full in, Arabian double front, 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 twist, double pike) to take top honors ahead of Damianova and Oakville’s Aisha Gerber.

Gerber, who formerly trained with Elvira Saadi at Cambridge Kips, took off five months between October 2006 and March 2007. She is now training with Kelly and Sue Manjak at Oakville Gymnastics in Ontario and said she is attempting to make the Olympic team.

“We are thinking Olympic Games,” Gerber said. “That is my goal and we are building step by step toward that goal.”

In the junior division, all-around runner up Ti Liu of Gymnix was the day’s big winner, placing first on uneven bars (13.85) and balance beam (14.4). Kristen Klarenbach of Ortona Gymnastics in Alberta won vault (13.325), while Laurel Clouston of Salta Gymnastics in Alberta was the top competitor on floor (13.85).

Vaculik wins Elite Canada

From International Gymnast Magazine:

2007 Canadian national champion Kristina Vaculik overcame a fall on floor exercise to take top honors in the senior women’s all-around at Elite Canada, held Friday night in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

Vaculik scored a 56.9 to hold off challengers Peng-Peng Lee of Seneca, Ont. and Nansy Damianova of Gymnix in Montreal. Although she overrotated her double pike on floor exercise, Vaculik said she looks at the meet as just another stepping stone to next summer’s Olympic Games.

“I just came here and basically told myself to do the same thing I did in Beijing,” said Vaculik, who was sixth in the all-around at the “Good Luck Beijing” International Invitational earlier this month.

Vaculik posted the highest score of the night on uneven bars with a 14.8 and balance beam with a 15.2. Lee put up a 14.6 to qualify first to Sunday’s floor exercise final. Damianova, born in France to Bulgarian parents, was the top qualifier on vault with a 14.5.

2006 world championships bronze medalist Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs competed uneven bars and balance beam only. Hopfner-Hibbs matched Vaculik’s 14.8 on bars and qualified third to the balance beam final with a 14.2.

Competition such as Elite Canada have taken on added importance for those vying for the Canadian women’s two individual berths to the 2008 Olympic Games. (Canada finished 14th at the 2007 World Championships; the top 12 nations qualified full teams.) Gymnastics Canada Gymnastique, the governing body of the sport in Canada, has instituted a selection process through which gymnasts earn points based on their apparatus scores at national and international meets.

The two gymnasts with the highest number of points come June will be selected to represent Canada at the Olympic Games, but special consideration will be given to those who excel on one or two events, said Lise Simard, women’s artistic director for Gymnastics Canada Gymnastique.

Lee, 14, had the lead going into the final rotation but faltered on balance beam, falling on a tucked barani and a front flip and balking on her dismount. She did, however, make her back handspring, back full combination, which she said she had been training for only two months.

“It didn’t feel any different competing at a higher level,” Lee said. “Everything felt really good. I was very confident with my performance.”

Competition continues Saturday in Abbotsford with the second day of men’s all around competition. The University of Calgary’s Nathan Gafuik leads Ken Ikeda and Hugh Smith.

2007 Elite Canada
Dec. 14, Abbotsford, B.C.

Senior Women’s All-Around
1. Kristina Vaculik (Gemini, ON) 56.900
2. Peng-Peng Lee (Sport Seneca, ON) 56.150
3. Nansy Damianova (Gymnix, QC) 56.100
4. Sydney Sawa (CalGym, AB) 53.950
5. Aisha Gerber (Oakville, ON) 53.900
6. Emma Willis (Bluewater, ON) 53.750
7. Alyssa Brown (Mississauga, ON) 53.600

Jiang Yuyuan wins Good Luck Beijing

Third after the preliminary round, China’s Jiang Yuyuan rallied to win the Good Luck Beijing International Invitational Thursday, International Gymnast Magazine reported.

Jiang, did not compete beam at the 2007 World Championships, posted the highest score on all four events during the all-around final to edge Australian Daria Joura, who led after the preliminary round. Jiang had a 15.4 on balance beam, a 15.725 on uneven bars, a 15.225 on floor and a 14.875 on vault. Joura also posted a 14.875 on vault.

The tiny, charismatic Jiang is quickly making a case for her inclusion on China’s 2008 Olympic team.

Jiang Yuyuan, 2007 World Championships Event Finals, Floor Exercise:

American Bridget Sloan was third. 15.1 on balance beam was her high.

2005 World Champion Chellsie Memmel came in fifth behind Australian newcomer Lauren Mitchell. Memmel posted a 14.55 on uneven bars and a 14.7 on balance beam, but barely cracked 14s on floor and vault, where she competed a watered down Yurchenko full.

Canadian national champion Kristina Vaculik, Russian veteran Svetlana Klyukina, Great Britain’s Marissa King, Dutch standout Verona van der Leur and Romanian Andreea Grigore rounded out the top 10.