I should wear Al Fong gloves when coaching...

Where to begin, where to begin.
I suppose I should begin at the beginning and discuss the latest news that I have on hand at the moment.
First things first...
Mary Lee Tracy will be in Tricities in 2 weeks from now. All American Gymnastics Sports Center will be hosting a 2 day clinic for optional gymnasts all over the state of Washington July 28th and 29th. This should be epic news to you!

That's my newest bit of information I have.
The rest is mostly just needing to vent about the Olympic Trials craziness. So this will be old news. I apologize beforehand...

Shawn Johnson retired. Fortunately for us all. I never liked her to start out with and I will never like her. Oh and just for extra news for those of you who care, "ashleyakaflipper" blocked me from her youtube channel for writing my personal opinions about Shawny. I was very disappointed by this because I liked writing good stuff about her other montages and I will miss writing mean and nasty messages about the gymnasts I don't like. Oh well, apparently I am just a mean and nasty person...

Nastia...Oh Nastia... And Rebecca... Oh dear Rebecca Bross...

I have similar feelings toward Nastia as I do for Shawn. I think a lot of Nastia's haughtiness comes from her dad, so it's not completely her fault right?... I don't like her dad very much either. I also don't think Valerie was right for Becca. It was like Vanessa Atler all over again. Except Rebecca's experience may have been worse. Like Nessa, 3 years before the Olympics I would never have imagined the team without Becca on it. However, without that knee injury, she may still have had a legitimate shot...maybe.
Going back to the knee injury, rumor has it that during her warm up prior to the horrifying vault, Becca had not landed any of her attempts and both of her ankles were shot. So what does Valerie do? He makes her compete the same damn skill she hasn't landed once... I am thankful that WOGA will not have a three-peat and even more thankful they do not have any of their gymnasts on the Olympic team this year...
Nastia's comeback was humorous, to say the least. She waited too long before deciding to make the comeback. I also find it remotely interesting that Martha let her go through Nationals to Trials. Chellsie Memmel didn't get such fine treatment. Maybe Martha was worried about Nasty-ia's fans. However, they may have been more lenient toward denying Nast another chance because both bar routines were HORRIFIC. At least Chellsie was somewhat ready on other events and just had a fluke beam routine. I am still pissed at the Olympic committee for not letting Chells through for another shot. It hurts my heart they would treat her the way they did.

How about Bridget Sloan...?

     I was saddened to hear about Sloan's injury. She seemed to be doing rather well in training. Likewise, I don't think she really had a legitimate shot at the team either. I had already picked out my team prior to the games and none of the '08 team made the 5.

Alicia. Sacramone.
I was a little surprised they did not pick her as an alternate. A little but not really surprised. I was however surprised they have picked Anna Li as an alternate. That was a cool turn of events indeed!

Another surprise to me was Elizabeth Price. She came out of nowhere! Actually she came from the well known Parkettes of Allentown, PA. She still came out of nowhere as far as performance-wise. I started second-guessing my Olympic Team selection when I saw her performance and placement. If she had just a little more experience, she may have made the team... I was also vaguely touched by the Bill Strauss's reaction.

Mckayla Maroney. I always have to have that one gymnast I don't like on the team. She is my pick right now. Actually I don't like most of the team but that's just me being judgemental again. I love her gymnastics. Her amanar is out of this world! I love that she does hit 180 degrees on her leaps and her dance is lovely. What I don't like about her is the immaturity she exudes.
What did she say about getting a puppy in comparison to the Olympics...?!
And how about the twitter posts she sends to teammates that just annoys the heck out of me.
I actually only decided today that I don't like her so I don't have a whole lot of reasons yet but let me tell you, as soon as I get the opportunity to watch her again, I am going to get irritated of everything she does... That's just how it works when I don't like someone.
Oh and I don't like her floor music.

On opposite spectrums, my favorite gymnast on the team is Kyla Ross! I have been watching that girl for years and have been absolutely astounded with her form, performances and gymnastics. I LOVE her floor music and routine. I love the way she lands on the beam like a cat, elegant and poised. She is superb in her gymnastics! Cannot wait to watch her at the games. I just hope she doesn't pull a McCool move... She would be the one they'd avoid using I think because of lack of experience if she messes up early.

Aly Raisman. Consistent as fuck but I just can't get myself to like her gymnastics. And the tear-fest at the end of the trials was uncalled for.

Jordyn. Yea, yea, yea I'm bored of this gymnast and bored of writing this blog. She's consistent, fantastic and lacks the personality most first place All Arounders have. Her coach is another one I don't like at all and may account for part of her personality issue...

Gabby Douglas. So young... So innocent... I love her gymnastics. She has no idea how big this is...she is... right now.

There's your 5. The 5 I called. Actually I shouldn't be so pleased at myself, I think a huge percentage of gymnastics followers called those top 5 athletes. I, however, did not call the alternates.

Anna Li was my only shock after the meet.
I was not surprised that Price and Finnegan took the other remaining spots.

I love it when girls who don't have a shot of making the team have a tear-fest... NOT!
Here's some more info about MLT if you don't know who she is, since non-gymnasts seem to have very little knowledge of gymnastics coaches.

http://www.gymnastike.org/coverage/238670-Cincinnati-Gymnastics-Academy/video/495801-Coach-Mary-Lee-Tracy-on-the-CGA-Gymnasts-Through-the-Years

Washington State Championships

Here are some gymnastics routines from last weekend's Washington State Championships.
Clips include gymnasts from: Auburn, Garlands, All American and Gymnastics Plus.
It was a weekend filled with awesome gymnastics. Not only that but everything was done cleanly. I didn't see anything remotely scary, so unbelievably rare in a high level gymnastics competition.
These girls are moving onto Regionals which will be held in Portland, Oregon.
Good luck girls!

*A Bright Star_Tamara Allard*

The future of our leaders lies not in the hands of merely the gifted, but in those who passionately work toward their dreams...

At 17 years old, Tamara Allard has done more than most girls her age. She began her gymnastics career at the tender age of 3 years. In the beginning she simply wanted to play and spend time with fellow teammates. Like most little girls, she did gymnastics because it was fun.

By the year 2010, she was no longer the little girl, interested only in socialization. She had matured into one of the hardest working athletes at Gymnastics Plus. Even so, she barely made level 9, being only 2 levels from the prestigious elite level; it was an incredible feat to overcome. The year proved to be a vain endeavor for Tamara, as she didn’t even manage to qualify to regionals. Yet if anything, not qualifying only pushed her to train harder.
One year later, she proved she had some unfinished business to attend to. Her first home meet provided her the opportunity to show off some new and polished routines, particularly on her two best events, uneven bars and the balance beam. She won both events and took second in the all around standing- improving the score by two points from the year before. Such an opportunity had never been given to her before in her life. She shocked coaches and gymnasts all over the state of Washington with how far she’d come.
One month later, she found herself at the biggest competition of her life. San Diego, California gave Tamara a chance to showcase her new and improved gymnastics. She did just that, earning a 2nd place medal on her best event, bars. Despite a fall from the balance beam, she still managed to pull off 10th place out of a total of 25 people. She continued making improvements during practice and headed to her next large invitational where she landed her first yurchenko-a high level vault.
She stated, “All I could remember was looking down the runway, starting to run and suddenly being on my feet. It was all very overwhelming. I saluted to the judges and all I could hear was my coach cheering excitedly!”
Her next event would give her the opportunity to shine yet a stumble almost took away her chance of taking the crown as bar champion. On one of her newer, more difficult skills, a straddle back, her hand slipped as she grabbed for the bar. She managed to hold on, finishing her routine with a beautiful dismount. She scored her highest score; a 9.05 locking her in the first place standings.
Her beam routine was choppy and shaky, allowing a teammate to edge her out of the top place; she took 2nd, less than .1 behind. However, she triumphed on one of her weakest events, the floor exercise. Not only did she stick all of her tumbling elements but she scored a 9.1 grabbing yet another award, a bronze medal. Her final standings in the All Around would put her in a close second, right behind teammate, Kelsy Hyvonen.
Despite her accumulating accomplishments, Tamara Allard still remains a very down-to-earth and humble person. She even tried out for “Miss Yakima’s Outstanding Teen,” part of “Miss America’s Outstanding Teen program,” for her first time a year ago. Tamara described her experience during the Miss Yakima Outstanding Teen competition, “I remembered wanting to sit down so bad, I had to stand the entire pageant.” (she couldn’t sit because of the dress) She added, ”since I was wearing high heels my toes had also gone numb!” She laughed as she explained the scenario. It hadn’t fazed her in the slightest. Her confident yet equally loving and happy personality caught the eye of the judges. She surprised everyone, including herself as she became “Miss Yakima’s Outstanding Teen” in 2010.

It didn’t stop there; she also won individual awards in talent and as miss teen congeniality, an award won by the most helpful person. She also had the highest ticket sales, selling around 42 tickets in total. She had originally asked for 100 tickets to sell and was scoffed at. Most people didn’t sell more than 20. Instead she managed to persuade the runner’s of the event to give her 50 to sell, knocking their socks off as she nearly sold all of the tickets. Instead of becoming boastful about her accomplishments, winning has actually caused her to become even more grounded in her personal life. She has begun raising money for numerous charities and treats every person she meets with the utmost respect.
Due to the tumultuous and time consuming training as a gymnast, she has chosen to do online school. She is very driven, always working hard at everything she does and turning every assignment in on time. Her 4.0 GPA proves that she is very serious when it comes to her education. Likewise, she hopes to get into some very prestigious colleges. She plans to apply for UCLA or Stanford but would be equally as happy to get into the University of Washington and to hopefully have the opportunity to one day compete for them in gymnastics. She also plans to double major in Psychology and English. As a career, getting a degree in psychology would be the most direct path, also because ideally she would like to have her own practice. She would however, like to do something with creative writing and wouldn’t mind being an English Professor at some point. She is even working on a novel that she would one day love to publish. Yet despite the fact that her goals lie in English and Psychology, her favorite class is American Government. When asked why, she explained that she absolutely loves the way the government works as well as she enjoys understanding the historical aspect of the American Government.
At her age, the focus in education and her strong determination to excel in anything she does is somewhat rare and unique in today’s world. Yet having something so passionate in her life has given her the focus she needs to succeed in society. When asked about her loftiest gymnastics goals, the answer she gave was remarkable, “Gymnastics is much more than simply the sport of gymnastics. It has taught me a lot of life lessons I would not have experienced if my parents had not enrolled me in the sport.” She then answered more directly that ideally she would like to compete in an NCAA division one school for gymnastics and would be willing to train a couple of years before walking onto a team or attempting to get a scholarship.
The years she spent in the gym definitely caused her to grow up very quickly. The wisdom behind her words portrayed that even though she is not yet an adult, her maturity is almost unheard of for the average girl her age, although calling Tamara average would be anything but the truth. Gymnastics really gave her something that nothing else could provide. The excitement in her voice as she told stories about her gymnastics life was contagious and her final statement she gave me before ending the interview expressed what gymnastics was for her in life. “This sport is so much fun, it’s not just an addiction. It’s like pure ecstasy when I do gymnastics.”

Aesthetic Beauty

Here are some of the pictures I have on my laptop that just capture a sort of essence.

A sort of beauty about that present moment they were taken in.

A powerful reminder of what a still image can show us.

A fragment of the past, captured and held forever in the only form it can be.


A memory. A dream. A thought. A reminder. A glimpse as to what was...

It is but a gift to get to hold that moment.

It brings us back for a moment...

A powerful reminder as to who we are and what we have become. A photo contains so many unspoken words.

Words that will never come about because they cannot be placed.

One day we will only have the memories and photos to remind us of the past.

Forever gone are the moments; good and bad. Buried in the past.

No copyright infringement intended. I do not own the rights to these photos. Please ask me to remove or tell me who to give credit to.

Thank you!

-JD

High Tech Clinic 2011

Region 2 gymnastics held their high tech clinic in Beaverton, Oregon this year.

It was awesome to see some incredible athletes yet also, just as gut-wrenching to no longer be included in the training atmosphere as a gymnast.

Being a coach definitely has it's pros and cons; I am included in the conversations that only coaches of elite athletes have, the secrets of what really goes on at the ranch come out late at night, horror stories that I honestly would rather not know--And we are talking about what goes on in the United States, it's frightening to think about what is happening in other countries around the world. It's also exciting to be surrounded by top level coaches who have personal relationships with other high level coaches and athletes. Likewise, some of these coaches were also high level gymnasts at one point, that's really cool to be treated as equals now in the coaching world.

Yet likewise, having to watch these girls who entered the sport much later than I, and who are now kicking ass at this level is honestly difficult for me to watch. Don't get me wrong, it is really inspiring and cool to see their progression. I love watching high level gymnastics! It's just that sometimes, I wonder what would've happened if I had grown up in a different atmosphere, with more committed, quality coaches who had remained in the gym longer to help my gymnastics progress to the level I had wanted. Maybe I wouldn't still feel like there is unfinished business; this dissatisfaction of never attaining my highest goals, I think, keeps me from putting my whole heart and soul into coaching. Everytime I get too involved, I regret. I think that's why this clinic was so hurtful and left me feeling undeniably sick of the sport again.

Nonetheless, the two girls that I went to coach this weekend did a great job; both listened attentively, gaining some new skills, drills and motivation to continue to progress into season.

Here's a couple of clips of a skill that one of the girls I coach, practiced and got without a coach standing by. First one was perfect timing for hitting handstand, but she apparently wasn't prepared for the catch and crumpled. The second and third were past vertical but not by much, I'd still give her credit if I was judging.









I also gained some new drills to also take back. A few shaping drills that Joe Rapp of HITS showed us were definitely ideal for attaining better bar swinging and controlled, tighter handstands.

Some of the top gymnasts from our region were apart of the clinic as well. Baely Rowe, of Auburn Gymnastics and Destinee Davis, now at MAC, were both present and exciting to watch!

Here's a clip of Baely doing a vault drill.



Overall, it was a good learning experience for both coaches and gymnasts alike from region 2.

The Evolution of Aging Gymnasts & Oksana Chusovitina-Her Gymnastics Purpose

There has been a lot of old faces among the young guns of gymnastics. Of coarse, being "old" by gymnastics standards is a much different interpretation than what it means to be "old" outside of the gymnastics world. Even so, elite gymnasts in their early 20's was virtually unheard of 20 years ago. A sport that was once represented by females no older than 16 has since evolved into a sport shared by gymnasts in their 20's and even 30's.

Gymnasts such as Alicia Sacramone, (24 years of age) and Chellsie Memmel, (23 years old) of the United States:

College Gymnasts who either returned or are, for the very first time, trying out elite gymnastics!





Vanessa Zamarripa, Anna Li & Casey Jo Magee.



Gymnasts who have made the national team well into their teenage years. Prior to Kayla Williams, no one past the age of 15 had made the US National team, competed at Worlds and medaled. Brandie Jay is another gymnast who joined the national team as an older teen and is currently competing at the Pan Am Games for the USA.

Ariella Kaeslin, from Switzerland, seemed to get better as she aged. She retired recently at the age of 24.


Valeria Maksyuta, from Isreal, has added new skills to her gymnastics as well. She is currently 21 years of age.

Even Chinese gymnast, Cheng Fei, currently 23 years of age, announced a planned comeback. China is not known for keeping Elite gymnasts past their teenage years.



Jessica Lopez, from Brazil, also has shown incredible improvement as she's gotten older. Throwing new skills at the age of 25!

Elizabeth Tweddle, at 26 years, looks better than she ever has before and is winning more medals in international competitions than she ever had as a teenager.

Catalina Ponor of Romania, retired from the sport in 2007. 4 years later, she looks as though she never left the sport of gymnastics. At 24, she looks better than ever!


What is it about the sport of gymnastics that pulls girls back into the constant training, day in and day out. What draws grown women back into the structured and rigid world of physical pounding, pain and struggle that they were sent into as children. Gymnastics is a very addicting sport. Not only do girls feel the lowest of lows in this environment, but the exhilerating highs are nothing in comparison to anything in the "real" world; at least not in a controlled environment.

Prior to the 21st century, gymnastics equiptment was a lot less forgiving. A gymnast body was worn down more swiftly and returning to the sport was often not an option. Likewise, information on eating disorders, over-use injuries and training in general was not known or developed. As information has increased and the sport has evolved, so has the ability for gymnasts to return to the sport well past the age of what was originally normal or even probable.

For many of these women, coming back is based on expectation, unfinished business or a need to be in a controlled, structured environment. For many, gymnastics has given a sort of purpose that not many people outside of the gymnastics world could understand. But there is also sometimes a need to fulfill a purpose in one's return to gymnastics.

Oksana Chusovitina's reason for returning to the sport was based on a deeper purpose. Her story is a very powerful one that makes her remarkable road back to elite gymnastics an incredible feat; one that could only be achieved by love, passion and an immense willpower to save the one thing that mattered most to her.



Oksana is currently 36 years old. The oldest, female gymnast ever to win an Olympic medal, which she did on vault at the 2008 Games in Bejing, China. An age that is virtually unheard of in the world of elite gymnastics, and even in the world of elite sports.

Not only that, but her son's leukemia is now in remission. After the games in China, Chusovitina announced plans to retire, only to tear her achilles tendon. Returning from such an injury was once unheard of in the sport of gymnastics. Yet upon tearing it, Oksana decided to give it another go. 1 year later, she was once again on the competition floor.

From a recent interview, Octavian Bellu was quoted saying, "Looking to the world, 22, 23, 24 years old is not the limit. I don't talk about Chusovitina at 36, [that's] something strange. It's from another planet." [1]

I don't think there are truer words that could describe her gymnastics comeback(s) and journey. Her career as an elite gymnast has gone on for more than 2 decades! Older than most of the girls she currently competes against!

She holds the record for most medals won on an individual event in the world championships; that event being vault. Just this month she competed at the most recent World Championships and brought home another medal for that event.

She has competed in 5 Olympic Games and I believe she has her sights set on 2012 in London.

What she has done in the sport is unheard of as well as unreal. She has done something no one thought possible, but it was done out of a need to save all she had. It's incredible what the human spirit will go through to hold on to what is most important, life itself. For all she has accomplished and won, nothing compares to what she has saved. The life of her only son, Alisher.

Bibliography:
[1]http://www.examiner.com/gymnastics-in-national/octavian-belli

I do not own the rights to any of the pictures or video footage.

A Brief Overview-Visa Championships 2011

Can we all just say, "WTF!"

Visa Championships were a NIGHTMARE!

Starting from day 1 and going all the way through to day 2.

It's my honest opinion and belief that the elite gymnastics system needs to be changed. I miss the 10.0 start value system. I think it was a safer and was definitly a more artistic approach to the sport of gymnastics.

I couldn't believe the amount of falls we saw. It's unusual to be able to count the amount of gymnasts without falls on one hand and not the other way around. I'm actually not sure if that's accurate, but there was indeed a much lower, MUCH LOWER, amount of gymnasts who stayed on the equiptment verses the ones who fell. It's a sad day when that is the case...

Unfortuantly, due to my living situation and lack of cable and a good wireless internet connection, I have not yet seen all of day 2 of the championships and have only seen the youtube version of day 1; uploaded by: FlippinTitan2010

Where to start...?
I think I should just say before hand that watching these has brought me a little bit of joy and longing to return to the sport I left behind. Even just to be a part of it, in a coaching or judging sense. Lately it feels as though all purpose in my life has gone from me, without gymnastics I feel lost...At the same time, I wish I didn't need gymnastics to make me feel my life has purpose. Nonetheless, writing about it is giving me some hope and allowing me to mix two of my biggest loves in life together: Writing and Gymnastics... Hmmm, can anyone say career? I think I should get out of this school and become an entrepreneur in the writing field... But that's beside the point. Back to Visa's...:

First off, I actually really like Jordyn Weiber's leo for day 1. Bizarre yellow color but she looks good in it.

Next thing is, I am so AMAZED by Chellsie Memmel's comeback! Seeing the footage of her first meet back a couple of weeks ago I was completely astounded! Plus I was asking why the f**k she was back and then I watched her. She looks better than I've ever seen her look before. She looks like she's lost more weight, her skills are solid and beautiful, I am so proud of this girl! Way to make me wanna make a comeback Memmel!...

Gabrielle Douglas has potential, but I feel she is still inexperienced. We'll see if time can change that. For now, 3 falls from beam at a meet is not a good thing...At all...Especially when Martha Karolyi is watching. Fortuantly, for Gabrielle, Martha had a lot more to worry about than just one gymnast...

I love the changes and improvements Alicia Sacramone has shown this past 2 years. Even though she fell on a pass in her floor routine, she is still a huge asset to the team on more than one event. She could potentially be in the line up for all three events she is still competing on! Her beam night one was UNREAL! Both she and Chellsie are just so strong mentally! It was wonderful to watch! And I love ASAC's floor routine. I think the music is perfect for her power and she is no longer doing the sexy, sloppy and prostitute like poses that she did before in so many of her past routines. Thank you Alicia for growing up. 2008 changed her not only as a gymnast, but as a person. She is a much different athlete and human being! Bring on 2012 Asac!

Going back to Jordyn Weiber. She is incredible! As much as her coach drives me completely insane, she is one that much of the world has had an eye on for years! Since 2006, at 10 years old, when she competed at JO Nationals, I think many people knew that she would be one to watch for in the future. They were so right!

Mckayla Maroney...I have a lot to say about this one. Her 2.5 twisting yurchenko is NOT HUMAN!!! I have never, ever, ever seen someone perform that vault like that! I just want to watch it over and over and over again! However, I find the rest of her events to be mediocre...I am unimpressed with her music choice. It doesn't fit her. Her tumbling is good when it's done well. Otherwise, mediocre is the only word I have for the rest of her gymnastics...

Rebecca Bross. :( Poor Rebecca Bross... Maybe if she cracked a smile more often, she'd have more good fortune...Or maybe she and Valerie are pushing much too hard. Either way, if you haven't already heard the news, after an unsuccessful round on day one, she had a horrendous mishap on day 2. Watching her on her vault on day 2 I knew it wouldn't end well before she was even on the mat. It looked as though she tried to pull out of her DTY early, and then in that split second, she was crumpled on the floor, crying out and holding her knee. My stomach gets sick just imagining her desperate cries as Valerie jumped to the mat to try to calm her. I had to watch that vault over and over again, I was so aghast and felt an unbelieveable sorrow for her. Brossy has been through so many injuries, I don't know how's she's going to make it to 2012 at this rate. I think she and Valerie need a new plan...

Aly Raisman. Aly has been Miss Consistent these past couple of years. But there is no denying though that her lack of toe point reminds me all too much of Jana Beiger, and as I recall, I think that was a huge reason Jana didn't make the '08 team...Also really thankful she didn't pull an amanar, I don't think she's ready for that vault...

The Caquatto sister's make a great team! It's neat seeing two siblings competing together and not just against each other. They are both huge assets on bars for the United States. Bridgette needs to seriously fix her hair though...I said that at the last meet I saw her compete at. The flyaways are such a distraction and it doesn't look professional at all... Nonetheless, I love watching her on bars!

Anna Li did not make the national team. Sad day... :( I was rooting for her. Just a few too many falls I guess. I hope this motivates her to work hard and make a comeback! However, her bars could also fill a void for team USA's lack of depth on that event. And doesn't she look like Nina Kim? I keep thinking it is Nina and then I have to remind myself that Nina is done with gymnastics, at least I think she is...

It's so impressive and awesome to see all of these older gymnasts coming back, including the college athletes; Anna Li, Mackenzie Caquatto, Alicia Sacramone, Chellsie Memmel and a newer face, Casey Magee. I was very intrigued by the fact that she had never tried for elite and that her gymnastics improved during her college years. This is exciting news to hear and something you don't hear in this sport. Her gymnastics is unique, but I think the likelyhood of making Worlds or Olympics isn't really realistic. It was still nice to see a new face with a cool story, as well as an impressive skill set.

Sabrina Vega... Oh dear! I really like this gymnast! I love her smile, love her gymnastics, love that her coach is Theadora Ungureanu. But someone needs to tell her that every extra swing she takes is .3 deduction! She would've been better off just jumping off of bars... Oh well, better now than worlds or the Olympics right?...

I know I have to get to her eventually. Shawn Johnson... The most over exposed gymnast on the fricking planet. The less I say about her the better. Mostly impressed with her comeback, kinda wish she didn't make a comeback but I think she'll improve more and more over the next year.

Amanda Jetter didn't make the national team...Anyone else surprised? I read from "The Couch Gymnast" that she face planted her dismount on beam. I didn't see enough of her competition to know what else went wrong.

Why is Nastia on the Gymnastics Commity? I think that is slightly unfair... Am I wrong to think that?...

Poor Martha has to be looking at these last two days and thinking to herself that the USA is in trouble... Knowing her and Bela, they'll get the program back underway and the country will be ready for Worlds and the 2012 Games. They have had the experience and I've seen other teams around the world go through the same obstacles and come out stronger. This is only the first step in these girls road to the games...

2012, here we come...