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U.S. CLASSIC

Spencer, Lauren, and Jessica discuss everything important and unimportant that happened at Saturday’s U.S. Classic.

• JUNIORS
  • Our favorite, favorite, favorite future presidents
    • Emma Malabuyo basically Simone-ed the entire junior and senior fields
    • The glory of Kara Eaker on beam
    • Annie Beard wins the performance award of the meet
    • Gabby Perea won bars WITHOUT EVEN DOING A DISMOUNT
    • Jay Jay Marshall channeled Kennedy Baker with her Dos Santos
  • Surprises who rocked our worlds
    • Audrey Davis unites the magic of China and Ukraine on bars
    • Madelyn Williams has presence on floor and a bars that’s ready for seniors
    • Lilly Lippeatt and Love Birt are tiny adults made of perfection
  • Moments of the meet
    • Brooke Butler is the QUEEN OF SAVES on beam and floor
    • Adeline Kenlin did the most perfect beam routine
    • Konnor McClain’s beam dismount that broke everyone (and the non-coach, non-controversy that ensued).
    • Sienna Robinson, with a wink and a dab
    • JaFree Scott did justice to her Terin Humphrey tribute leo
    • Shilese Jones saves a Pak and might be a bodybuilder
• Lauren’s inside scoops from the Hopes competition, including the girl who threw off her crutches and tried to do a bars routine and the newborn baby who will soon rule us all on beam.

Want to commission a mini-discussion? Club Gym Nerd members can do just that! We’ll answer your burning questions or passionately discuss your favorite topics, anything and everything even tangentially gymnastics related.

• This week, a loyal Club Gym Nerd member asked us to talk about the National Gymnastics Congress in Anaheim this year: whether it’s scary (it isn’t!), how to act, what to do, and the best way to get the most out of the experience.
• Plus, a bonus discussion featuring our definitely expert and unimpeachable advice on how to handle conflict in the workplace!

• SENIORS
  • Jessica is NOT HAPPY about gymnasts being allowed to pass compulsories and compete elite when they don’t have the foundation to compete safely.
  • The big winners of the meet
    • Ragan Smith is ready to dominate and is great at bars now
    • Jade Carey needs to go to worlds right this minute
    • Alyona Shchennikova isn’t just making up the national team numbers
  • Gymnasts that made us burst into a standing ovation
    • Morgan Hurd, duh
    • Deanne Soza doing happy gymnastics again
    • Marz Frazier winning the “NOT a quitter’s try” award for one-handed Pak saves
    • Kalyany Steele’s BIG ASS standing arabian
    • Trinity. Effing. Thomas. And her perfect beam routine
    • Luisa Blanco’s super solid 2nd-place beam routine
    • Emily Gaskins’ Cincinnati renaissance and valiant victory over the standing-in-the-corner rule
  • We give out the Simone Biles 2013, Classic Doesn’t Really Matter awards
    • Riley McCusker and her hilarious tucked tkatchev, but should she have competed?
    • Ashton Locklear almost did her best beam routine ever
    • Jordan Chiles has a LEGIT Amanar, but what about the other events?
  • Major trends we noticed in routine composition and judges doing their job

GYMTERNET NEWS

• Russia repeats as champions at EYOF (European Youth Olympic Festival)
  • Ksenia Klimenko channeled her inner Liu Tingting on beam
  • Varvara Zubova even hit beam once!
  • Elisa Iorio redeemed Italy’s competition with a brilliant title-winning endo full
• The Olympics are coming to LA in 2028. Yea or Nay? We discuss.
• The FIG Executive Committee announced the JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
  • How many people should be on each team? And is it 50?
• That video of Simone getting her wisdom teeth out. We translate.
• There’s going to be a SIMONE BIOPIC. Memo to producers: we’ve already cast all the parts.

GIVEAWAY

The winner of the Norbert’s sectional beam  is Laura Dahlin! Thanks so much to Laura and to Norbert’s for supporting the show!

CONTEST

WHAT: #BeerWithBetty: The Greatest Scavenger Hunt in the Galaxy!

PRIZE: The winner will share a beer (or root beer if you are under 21) with the great Betty Okino, Olympic and World medalist, creator of the triple turn on beam, and a member of the Precision Choreography team.

HOW IT WORKS: In August, we will release a list of 10 items on this photo scavenger hunt. Your mission will be to complete each one and post a photo to Twitter or Instagram tagging @GymCastic and @PrecisionChoreo and using #BeerWithBetty. The winner will be selected at random among everyone who completes all ten items. The hunt will start at 8am on Thursday August 17 and will end at 12pm on Saturday, August 19. The winner will meet with the Betty Okino at 3pm in Anaheim on August 19th! If you enter, be READY FOR BETTY because winner will meet this gymnastics legend at 3pm that day!

PLUS: We will give six additional prizes for Most Outrageous photos! The top three most outrageous photos on Friday will win a personal voice message from one of Precision Choreography’s gymnastics stars (people like Chellsie Memmel, Alicia Sacramone, Houry Gerbesian, and Holly Vise)! The top three on Saturday will get a special shout-out on the GymCastic podcast.

SUPPORT THE SHOW

• Join Club Gym Nerd here with brand new membership tiers, commission your own episode, or commission your own segment.
• Buy some of our awesome merchandise here.

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• 254: Vanessa Atler
• 252: Myths, Legends, and Unexpected Moments in Gymnastics History (Commissioned)
• 199: Euros, Classics and the U.S. ManChampionships
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