Tag Archives: gymnastics

A Hamm-less Olympics—A Lesson in Humility

In the world of gymnastics Morgan and Paul Hamm are known for being fierce competitors. The twin brothers from Wisconsin are former world and Olympic champions and both are considered legends in the sport. However, you won’t be seeing either tumbling for gold in Beijing this week. Not because they didn’t qualify to compete, rather they will be watching the Games from their home just outside of Milwaukee because they possess a trait most of us could (and should) exercise more—humility. Three days ago a teary eyed Morgan Hamm officially announced that the bone spurs digging into his left leg … Continue reading →

Morgan Hamm (2008 Gymnastics Hopeful)

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Welcome to our Focus on the Olympics articles that introduces you to our Olympic athletes and hopefuls that will be competing in Beijing this summer. Morgan and his brother Paul were featured as two of People’s “Most Eligible Bachelors” in 2004. Meet Morgan Hamm Morgan Carl Hamm was born to Sandy, a former All-American diver, and Cecily. Their older sister Betsey competed in gymnastics for Iowa State University. Morgan is 30 minutes older than Paul. The twins grew up on a farm in Waukesha, Wis., and trained on makeshift equipment. Their father, Sandy, built a pommel horse from an old … Continue reading →

Paul Hamm (2008 Gymnastics Hopeful)

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Welcome to our Focus on the Olympics articles that introduces you to our Olympic athletes and hopefuls that will be competing in Beijing this summer. Paul and his brother Morgan were featured as two of People’s “Most Eligible Bachelors” in 2004. . Meet Paul Hamm Paul Elbert Hamm was born to Sandy, a former All-American diver, and Cecily. Their older sister Bets competed in gymnastics for Iowa State University. Both Paul and his twin brother Morgan are documenting their return to competitive gymnastics on the road to the Beijing Olympic Games. Fans can watch their progress by downloading clips of … Continue reading →

David Durante (2008 Gymnastics Hopeful)

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Welcome to our Focus on the Olympics articles that introduces you to our Olympic athletes and hopefuls that will be competing in Beijing this summer. In 2004, after not being named to the Olympic team, David traveled to Athens to cheer on his friends in competition and take in the Olympic experience so he’d be ready in 2008. Meet David Durante David Durante is the middle of three children born to Robert and Juliana Durante. He graduated from Stanford University with a major in human biology and a minor in psychology. David’s older brother, Marc, 31, works for Merck Pharmaceuticals … Continue reading →

Alexander Artemev (2008 Gymnastics hopeful)

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Welcome to our Focus on the Olympics articles that introduces you to our Olympic athletes and hopefuls that will be competing in Beijing this summer. Alexander’s family emigrated from Minsk when he was younger and his father is a champion in his own right. Meet Alexander Artemev Alexander “Sasha” Artemev is the only child of Vladimir and Svetlana Artemev, who are both gymnastics coaches. Alexander was born in Minsk, Belarus and emigrated with his parents to the United States in 1994. His father, Vladimir, was a member of the Soviet National Team (1977-87) and was the USSR national all-around champion … Continue reading →

Guillermo Alvarez (2008 Gymnastics Hopeful)

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Welcome to our Focus on the Olympics articles that introduces you to our Olympic athletes and hopefuls that will be competing in Beijing this summer. We looked at swimmers last week, we’re heading inside to the gymnastics floor this week. Meet Guillermo Alvarez Guillermo Alvarez is the youngest child of Janet, who works in the radiology department at Idaho State University, and Amando Alvarez, a Spanish instructor at Idaho State University. He has two brothers and a sister: Jaime, Magdalena and Marco Antonio. In 2005, he graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in psychology and was awarded … Continue reading →

Popular Olympic Gymnast Ties The Knot

She won a gold medal at the 1996 summer Olympics as part of the U.S. women’s gymnastics team dubbed the Magnificent Seven, and in the process she won the hearts of millions-—now she’s all grown up and has a new husband. According to news reports, Dominique Moceanu wed longtime boyfriend, Michael Canales in her hometown of Houston on Saturday afternoon. According to a local newspaper, the wedding was an Olympic gymnastics reunion of sorts. Three of Moceanu’s Olympic teammates– Amanda Borden, Dominique Dawes and Kerri Strug joined some 175 other wedding guests, including Olympic greats Paul and Morgan Hamm, Bart … Continue reading →

Stick It: The Gymnastics “Bring It On”

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When I was in elementary school I was heavily involved in competitive gymnastics. I would spend my summers and my afternoons after school at the gym working with my coach,. For a good deal of time my childhood consisted of gymnastics and only gymnastics, much like the life of the main character in “Stick It”. Stick It is a movie about a girl named Haley. Haley was once a superior gymnast. During the world championship competition she decided to walk out of the competition forfeiting her teams chance of winning. Rather than continue with gymnastics Haley decides that she would … Continue reading →

Just another day at Gymnastics!

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When my oldest was about two, she seemed to have an affinity for jumping on my couch. I thought that maybe a good way of getting her to channel that energy was to have a structured gymnastics class. This would help her develop some more disciplined coordination than bouncing on my furniture, and I also figured that a gymnastics class my save my couch from further pain (on this last point I was clearly wrong, especially after our second girl was born). In any case, we have enjoyed going to our gymnastics place for about four years now, and I’m … Continue reading →