My Olympic team has changed so much over the past 2 years, it's crazy! There are so many gymnasts that I never even considered in the past that are really starting to prove themselves now. There are also many that I expected to be on the team, that I'm sadly not considering anymore. After classics, I think my team is set. I believe this is a good idea of who we will see in London.
Jordyn Wiebr Gabby Douglas Aly Raisman Mckayla Maroney
And a bar specialist- Either Nastia Liukin, Rebecca Bross, or Anna Li (If she can hit!)
The alternates would be Kyla Ross, Sarah Finnegan, and Sabrina Vega. (If Rebecca doesn't make the team, she will be the 2nd alternate)
We all know the USA is extremely deep and a lot of great girls will be left home. What really gets me though is imagining people like Alicia Sacramone, Shawn Johnson, Bridget Sloan, etc not making the team. In 2010, I thought Alicia was a lock. I couldn't imagine Shawn Johnson the world champion and Olympian not making the next Olympics. And the 2009 World Champion isn't really a consideration for the team? The 2 time junior national champion, ended up as an alternate? Oh and what about Chellsie Memmel? It's just so weird to me! If only these girls had dual citizenship! Another country would be grateful to have them!
Then we have the people that I never really considered, that now actually have a shot. (If only the depth of USA wasn't so deep!) Girls like, Kennedy Baker, Elizabeth Price, Sarah Finnegan, and Mckenzie Wofford have really impressed me lately. They could even contend for that final spot, or at least become an alternate.
So there is a lot of possibility's. That is just my opinion on who I think will make the team and anything can happen between now and July 1st!
Four time Olympic medalist, world champion, and Dancing With The Stars winner Shawn Johnson will release her book, Winning Balance: What I've Learned So Far about Love, Faith, and Living your Dreams, on June 5, 2012. The book will provide an intimate look into Shawn's life, including her remarkably balanced upbringing in Iowa, her quest for gold at the 2008 Olympic Games, her hard work and determination in the face of adversity after the Olympics, her turn on Dancing with the Stars, and what she is learning as she prepares for a possible comeback at the 2012 Olympics in London. Here we have an interview with Shawn talking about her book, Dancing With The Stars, popularity in high school and more!
(Photo Credit: Nancy Clausen-Tyndale Momentum)
Why did you decide to write a book?
I decided to write a book because so many stories have been covered about me. People always try to get the story, get the inside scoop. But I don’t think anybody’s really pinpointed it yet and I wanted to tell my story from my perspective and tell people the details and behind the scenes stories that they didn’t know—the hardships I went through, the good times I went through—and hopefully inspire people to do something a little differently and find a passion that can drive them.
Describe what the process of putting your life into book-form was like for you.
The process is really long and fun though. I collected a lot of journals and diaries over the years, poetry that I’ve written, interviews, everything. We kind of put it all together and put it down on paper, tried to organize it, and also put a lot of interviews with the writer, who helped me put it down, and hours and hours and hours each night talking back and forth. A lot of going back and forth editing, trying to make it perfect. Putting my thoughts and my journey and process on paper was a great way for me to kind of put this whole big picture into perspective.
Where did you get the title for your book?
My entire career is about balance. Especially after the Olympics, winning the gold on the balance beam, that’s what people have tagged me to—the balance beam. It’s been my favorite. It’s what I’ve learned the most from and life is a balance beam. Everybody’s presented with fears on a daily basis and when I’m forced to come into the gym every day and face my fears, and not just face them, but do death-defying things on a four-inch beam, it’s something that transfers into everyday life. It makes you rethink the things you’re scared about. Just the feeling of doing a flip for the first time and landing it makes you feel like you’re on top of the world. I think it’s a feeling everyone should be able to have because it teaches you a lot about yourself.
(Photo Credit: Nancy Clausen-Tyndale Momentum)
You weren’t always the popular girl in school. Talk about popularity for girls today.
Popularity for any girl, at any age, seems to be important. I think society puts it in your brain that you have to be cool, and you have to be in the “in crowd,” and do things like everybody else. A lot of girls grow up defining their worth and success based on how popular they are. I went through a really rough time with that trying to decide do I go with them or not? It’s just about being true to yourself and not being in the popular crowd will make you even more successful in the end.
How did it feel in 2008 to have made the Olympic team at trials, but then learn you’ve been taken off the roster at the selection camp?
It was shocking. I don’t think I allowed myself to feel much because I’d finally made it to the Olympics, and then all of a sudden, they’re like, “Oh, just kidding. You need to do it one more time.” And it was the first time I kind of let myself take a breather and accept everything and be like, “I am going to the Olympics.” And God put me right back in my place.
You’re going through that same selection process again for the 2012 Olympics. What’s it like this time around?
Going through it the first time and having to live through the reality at the end of the day that you’re going to be lined up and told you are or aren’t going, I’ve kind of accepted it. I learned the hard way for the first time that you can’t get too wrapped up in it because at the end of the day it’s what’s best for the team. I feel like I’ll take it a little easier this time, but I don’t know. It’s still nerve wracking because it’s a point of a finger that tells you if your dream’s coming true or not. If you let that one line and that one finger point define the rest of your life, then you’re either going to be crushed or you’re going to be mad. And if you let that define you, that’s not fair. You’re worth so much more than that and I’ve learned that and I think that’ll make it a little better this time. Life moves on. It always does. And working your entire life for one moment that lasts a minute and thirty seconds, you have to be okay with the fact that it’s just a minute and thirty and as soon as it’s over, it’s over. And you have to move on and I think that’s what makes it exciting, but makes it nerve wracking because you put so much into that short ninety seconds.
Even before your floor routine at the 2008 Olympics, you knew there was no way you could win the gold medal. What was that moment like?
It was horrible. It was a life changing moment. I always say I’ve been defined by that moment because it was within a matter of ten seconds that I had to decide is my life all about winning? Just getting that gold medal? Or is it about something different? And I remember looking over at my coach and him not even being phased. I knew he knew as well. But he just gave me a nod like everything was fine, you still need to go out there. I told myself it’s not about the medal anymore. It’s just about doing it for you and doing your best. I went out and told myself, “If you can’t get the gold medal, then you need to prove to the 50,000 people in the arena that you deserved it.” And no medal could have ever given me more pride and reward than what I gave myself with that.
(Photo Credit: Nancy Clausen-Tyndale Momentum)
Talk about your decision to do Dancing with the Stars instead of finishing your degree at your high school.
It was probably one of the hardest decisions I've made in my entire life. It was whether I went back to Valley [High School] or I went to Dancing with the Stars. I told my parents from day one that I wouldn't give up anything for my senior year of high school because I kind of balanced school and gymnastics forever and I wanted that normal school life. It was hard. Graduation, prom, everything. The classes themselves. It was a big decision, but Dancing with the Stars has given me so many opportunities and allowed me to do so many things I never thought I’d be able to do. I wouldn't necessarily trade it for anything, but it would have been great to do both.
What message do you hope people will take away from your book?
What I hope people get out of this book, besides getting to know me a little more, is hopefully some sort of inspiration. Some insight that everything I went through wasn’t all glamorous and that I’m just like everybody else. There’s good times, there’s bad times, there’s really bad times. But if you find faith and a path and yourself and everything then anything’s possible. You don’t have to be a born Lebron James or Michael Jordan or anything to be successful. You just have to find something you have a passion for and pursue it. You have to trust yourself before you trust anyone else. Hopefully when they read it they just know that anything is possible if you put your heart into it.
Keely Mcneer emerged onto the elite scene in 2009 placing 29th at her first national championships, while training at Elite Gymnastics in Louisiana. In the winter, Keely moved to Iowa to train at Chow's Gymnastics with 2008 Olympian, Shawn Johnson. She qualified to her 2nd national championships placing 15th all around and making the junior national team. In the spring of 2011, Keely left Chow's for reasons unknown. According to the Get A Grip Gym Blog she never really clicked with any of the girls in her training group. She began training at Miss Kims Gymnastics which is a recreational gym in Mississippi. (The highest competitive team is level 4) The last time Keely competed was the 2011 Covergirl Classic where she only competed 2 events and had a scary fall from the uneven bars in podium training and during the competition. Keely left the meet limping and appeared to be in alot of pain. She has been dealing with minor injuries ever since. Keely has not competed since then, but is still doing gymnastics at Miss Kims as an elite according to her coach. So Keely IS still training , just not competing...yet.
Here's Keely's vault from the 2011 Covergirl Classic
The 2012 Secret Classic will be the kick off event for USA Gymnastics heading into the Olympics. For many girls, this will be their final chance to qualify to the National Championships. Below is the list of competitors in the junior and senior division. The girls in bold, still need to qualify.
Juniors (Needs to score 52.50 All Around)
Nicole Lehrmann
Katelyn Ohashi
Amelia Hundley Ashley Foss
Lexie Priessman
Alexis Beucler
Simone Biles
Shannon McNatt
Meredith Sylvia Taylor Lawson Lauren Hernandez
Jessica Wang Lacy Dagen Megan Skaggs Polina Shchennikova
Amanda Huang
Madison Desch
Nia Dennis
Maggie Nichols Taylor Krippner
Bailie Key
Nica Hults Ariana Guerra
Peyton Ernst Macy Toronjo
Ashton Kim
Seniors (Needs to score 54.00 All Around)
Abigail Millet
Jordyn Wieber
Sabrina Vega
Mckenzie Wofford
Mckayla Maroney
Brandie Jay
Anna Li
Brenna Dowell
Kennedy Baker
Sarah Finnegan
Gabrielle Douglas
Mykayla Skinner
Kyla Ross Chellsie Memmel
Grace McLaughlin
Rebecca Bross Casey Jo Magee
Nastia Liukin
Mackenzie Brannan Amanda Jetter
Bridget Sloan
Brianna Brown
Alexandra Raisman
Elizabeth Price
What you can expect in the senior division....
Nastia Liukin will compete for the first time since 2009. She will be doing beam and could possibly add in bars.
The 2011 World Champ, Jordyn Wieber will be competing 2 events...most likely bars and beam.
Rebecca Bross will no longer be doing the all around, she will be focusing on bars and beam.
With Wieber not doing the All Around, the door opens for Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, and Kyla Ross to battle it out for the title.
We will hopefully be seeing some upgraded routines from Kyla Ross, Anna Li, Mckenzie Wofford, McKayla Maroney, Sabrina Vega, Bridget Solan and Chellsie Memmel.
What you can expect from the junior division...
We have a lot of fresh faces on the scene which include Nicole Lehrmann, Alexis Beucler, Nia Dennis, Taylor Lawson, and Megan Skaggs, just to name a few!
The star of junior gymnastics, Katelyn Ohashi will likely take the all around title.
Lexie Priessman and Simone Biles to throw big amanars!
As we all know by now, Romania beat Russia for the 2012 European team title on May 12th. Now everyone is seeing them as potential Olympic medalists! The team consisted of the veterans; Catalina Ponor and Sandra Izbasa, 2011 World team members; Raluca Haidu and Diana Bulimar, and the newcomer Larissa Iordache. Earlier this year, the Romania star Ana Porgras retired. Many people thought that Romania was done and lost their shot at any medal. But at Euro's, Romania is proving that that's not the case!
In the team final, Romania took home the gold medal with a score of 176.288 which beat the Russian team by near 8 tenths! In fact, they had the highest total score on every event except bars, which went to Russia. It's no surprise, that Romania came into the team final with the highest qualifying score, beating Russia by almost 5 points. So winning the title wasn't just luck!
But it doesn't stop there! In the event finals things started off on vault where Sandra Izbasa won the gold medal with a total score of 14.833. On beam, the gold went to Catalina Ponor who scored a 15.200. Larissa Iordache was close behind her with a 15.133. In the floor final, things flipped and Iordache took home the gold with a huge 15.233. Ponor got the silver with a 14.633!
So basically, Romania stole the show at this year's European Championships and left us all wondering what their capable of in London. For the team, it may not be a gold medal, as they will have to out score the Americans, but they could be looking at a silver or bronze medal in our opinions. I think it's finally safe to say...Romania is back!
The World Olympic Gymnastics Academy or WOGA for short is big time in the world of gymnastics. It was founded in 1994 by Valeri Liukin and Yevgeny Marchenko who were both champions for the USSR. Although the gym is very popular in the elite world of gymnastics, it also has a recreational program and an acro team. There is currently 3 gym locations, one in Plano, Frisco, and Dallas. The Plano gym is where the elite and competitive team trains while the Frisco and Dallas locations are recreational. All in all, WOGA has created many champions throughout the year. Below is a closer look at the gym's accomplishments and elite gymnasts.
2 Olympic All Around Champions
5 World Team or Event Medalists
21 US National Team Members
36 Elite Gymnasts
Over 50 college recruits to a divison 1 or 2 NCAA school
Meet the Elites:
Brittany Talbert
Elite from 1994-2000
Junior National Team from 1998- 1999
1999 US Classic Champion
Marie Fjordholm
Elite from 1996-2000
National Team Member from 1998-1999
1996 National Floor Champion
Vanessa Atler
Elite at WOGA from 2000-2001
Senior National Team Member from 1999-2000
1996 and 1997 National Champion
Megan Dowlen
Elite from 1995-2003
Senior National Team Member in 1998
1999 American Challenge Beam and Bars Champion
Scholorship to the University of Georgia
Lindsey Vanden Eykel
Elite from 1995-2004
Junior National Team from 1999-2000
1999 and 2000 Junior National Bar Champion
Scholorship to UCLA
Kaitlin White
Elite from 1996-2003
Junior National Team from 1999-2001
2nd All Around at 2002 Gymnix International
Scholorship to University of Alabama
Stephanie Gentry
Elite from 1997-2004
Junior National Team in 2000
2002 Voronin Cup Beam Champion
Scholorship to the University of Stanford
Brenda Magana
Elite at WOGA from 2003-2004
Represented Mexico at the 2004 Olympics
First women to compete the triple back dismount off bars
Hollie Vise
Elite from 1994-2004
National Team from 1998-2004
2003 Uneven Bar World Champion
Scholorship to the University of Oklahoma
Carly Patterson
Elite from 2000-2005
National Team from 2000-2004
2004 National Champion
2004 Olympic Champion
Nicole Childs
Elite from 1994-2004
Senior National Team in 2002
2001 Go For It Classic Champion
Scholorship the University of Georgia
Meghan Blair
Elite from 2001-2004
2002 Voronin Cup Vault Champion
Allison Taylor
Elite from 2000-2003
2nd placed at the 2003 Parkettes Invitational
Scholorship to UCLA
Alex Gold
Elite from 2001-2004
Scholarship to the University of Missouri
Aagie Vanwalleghem
Elite at WOGA in 2004
Represented Belgium at the 2004 Olympics
Helped the Belgium team placed 6th at the 2012 Olympic Test Event and retired shortly after
Kailey Tissue
Elite from 2002-2007
2007 WOGA Classic floor champion
Scholarship to the University of Florida
Nina Kim
Elite from 2002-2006
Senior National Team from 2002-2003
Scholarship to the University of Utah
Randi Lau
Elite at WOGA from 2006-2007
4th place at the 2007 WOGA Classic
Scholorhsip to LSU
Nastia Liukin
Elite from 2002-Present
National Team from 2002-2009
2005 & 2006 Senior National Champion
2008 Olympic All Around Champion
Rebecca Bross
Elite from 2005-Present
National Team from 2005-2011
2009 World Championships All Around Silver Medalist
2010 Senior National Champion
Christine Nguyen
Elite from 2004-2006
Senior National Team in 2006
2006 Friendship Classic Vault Champion
Scholarship to the University of South Carolina
Catherine Nguyen
Elite in 2006
Junior National Team in 2006
2006 Friendship Classic All Around Champion
Scholarship to the University of Stanford
Christa Tanella
Elite from 2005-2008
2nd place at the 2007 American Classic
13th All Around at the 2008 Visa Championships
Scholarship to the University of Georgia
Briley Casanova
Elite from 2008-2011
Junior National Team from 2008-2009
9th All Around at the 2010 Visa Championships
Scholarship to the University of Michigan
Sophia Lee
Elite from 2008-2011
9th All Around at the 2010 Visa Championships
Scholarship to Stanford
Lily Hardin
Elite in 2009
8th All Around at the 2009 HNI
Scholarship to the University of Arkansas
Grace McLaughlin
Elite from 2009-Present
Senior National Team from 2011-2012
2011 American Classic All Around Champion
Scholarship to the University of Florida
Ivana Hong
Elite at WOGA from 2009-2010
National Team from 2005-2009
3rd on beam at the 2009 World Championships
Scholarship to the University of Stanford
Mckenzie Wofford
Elite at WOGA in 2010
2010 Junior National Team
8th all around at the 2010 Visa Championships
Scholarship to the University of Oklahoma
Lizzy Leduc
Elite at WOGA in 2010
4th on beam at the 2010 Covergirl Classic
Mitzi Undi Sosa
Elite at WOGA from 2009-Present
Mexican National Team from 2009-2012
Member of the 2010 Mexico World Team
Competes as a level 10 in the USA
Katelyn Ohashi
Elite from 2010-Present
Junior National team from 2009-Present
2011 Junior National Champion
Madison Kocian
Elite from 2009-Present
Junior National Team from 2009-2010
5th all around at the 2010 Visa Championships
Alyssa Baumann
Elite in 2010
5th all around at the 2010 Voronin Cup
Jessica Howe
Elite in 2011
12th all around at the 2011 Visa Championships
Scholorship to the University of California-Berkley
She's 38 years old and doing gymnastics like this?Although she missed qualifying to elite again this year I hope she continues on until she reaches that goal. She is phenomenal for almost being 40 years old! Jen Hansen deserves a round of applause!
We won't be seeing Lizzy Leduc at Classics/Visa's this year! :(
The fan favorite Lizzy Leducswitched gyms last year after breaking both of her elbows. She is now training at Zenith Gymnastics along side former WOGA teammate, Mckenzie Wofford. She placed 13th at the National Qualifier and did not score high enough to qualify to elite. (Click hereto watch her beam from the qualifier)I'm super upset that she didn't make it! But on the bright side, there's always next year and plenty of time for her to get in better shape.
Jay Clark resigns from head coach at Georgia
After 3 years as head coach of the Georgia Gym Dawgs, Jay Clark has resigned as head coach. Georgia has struggled over the past 3 years ever since Suzanne Yoculan retired. I would personally love to see her back and she even said herself "Anything is possible."
Katelyn Ohashi, Madison Kocian, and Lizzy Leduc will be seniors next year!
Is it just me...or do Madison, Lizzy, and Katelyn still seem like little kids? With Madison out with an injury and Lizzy not qualifying to elite...the next time we'll see Madison or Lizzy on the elite stage is in 2013 when they become seniors! I feel like these girls just became elites yesterday..
Mai Murakami doesn't make the Olympic Team!
I was shocked when I woke up this morning and found out Mai Murakami was not named to the 2012 Japan Olympic team! With a near perfect quadruple turn on beam and a triple twisting double back in the works, many people thought Mai would be the next big thing in Japan! I think the Japanese coaches made a big mistake leaving her off the team. She may not have a lot of international experience, but in my opinion she was Japan's greatest hope for a medal. Her tumbling on floor is sky high and super clean! Not to mention, she is fricken adorable.
