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This episode originally aired in November 2016.

Club Gym Nerd member, Gym Coach Diana, has commissioned an episode all about the glorious leotard! Spencer, Lauren, and Jessica chat about leos leos leos; biggest leotard fails, the most patriotic, custom theme leos, Australia, cut outs, crushed velvet, rules for leotard design, technology, sewn in underpants, leotard deductions, controversies and the most notorious leotards of all time:

In the beginning, Skorts:

• • Who wore it better – the Danish in 1908 (R) or the 1948 British Team (L)?

1952 Helsinki – The saggy crotch era:

1960 Rome Era:

1964 Tokyo the Boatneck era:

1968 Mexico City – Sewn in Underpants and Elastic Band Revolution:

1972 Munich – Age of the Zipper:

Biggest Leotard Fails of all time (R to L Skinner, Adela; Dagmar, Fraguas; Zmeskal):

1976 Montreal – Adidas Stripes and Flowers for Industrial Supremacy:

1980 Moscow – The Golden Age of Leotards Begins:

• • Maria Evgenievna Filatova (USSR)

• Yelena Davydov and Elena Mukhina (USSR), in flowers: 

• Tatiana Groshkova and Olga Mostepanova (USSR) the rose leo:

• Tracee Talavera, Julianne McNamara, Diane Durham in US flowers:

• Dagmar Kersten, Maxi Gauck  in GDR (East Germany for you post-cold war kids) flowers: 

Patriotic Leos, British, Romania, Japan:

• Brandy Johnson flag candy cane leo. Watch her compete in this leo here:

Personalized Theme Leos:

• Parkettes Cats leotard Hope Spivey, Marta Pihan Kuleza, McKayla Maroney, Texas Dreams theme leos, LarisaIordache’s Pikachu, Ariella Käslin butterfly.

• Hope Spivey’s CATS leotard. Inspired by the 80’s broadway musical, CATS. Watch her compete in her CATS leotard here. 

Australia, a leotard retrospective:

Onodi Fever Dreams:

1996 Atlanta:

2000 Sydney:

2004 Athens : Crushed Velvet and the Age of Ponor in Black:

An Ode to the Cut Out, Keyhole and Crushed Velvet:

2008 Beijing – The Pink Starfish Mafia and 2006-2008 – Transition from Sporty to SPARKLE PRINCESS:

• Era of the Throwback Homage:

2015 US team final – Georgia O’Keefe sparkly:

The Most Notorious of All Time:

Spain and Ludivine’s neck scarves. 

GAGE

•  Dominatrix, black criss-cross, leos inspired by Svetlana Grosdova (USSR) laced bodice long sleeve in the late 1970’s? Because Nastia’s Nastia Cup leos certainly were:

What We’ve Learned – The Rules of Leotarding:

• • See through white leotards or sheer on mammary glands is not ok.

White people don’t look good in neon or gold.

Our favorite leos of all time:

• • Spencer’s favorites

Jessica’s favorites:

SUPPORT THE SHOW

• Join Club Gym Nerd here or commission your own episode. 
• Buy one of our awesome goodies here.

RELATED EPISODES

• 225: 1992 Olympics Recap with Wendy Bruce (Commissioned)
• 185: 2008 Olympic All-Around Finals (Commissioned)

RELATED ARTICLES

• The Gymternet Leo Panel 
• The Couch Gymnast leotard police, worlds worst leos
• NY Time Simone Biles Leotard Crystal
• NY Times Evolution of the Lowly Leotard
• GymCoach Diana’s IndieGoGo Campaign For her One stop shop for all you gymnastics needs, and wants. She’d love ideas for perks.

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN 

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This episode was commissioned by Club Gym Nerd member Jasmine, who asked for an episode all about the 2003 worlds team final. Hollie’s number. “Oh, that’s too bad.” Warming up on the podium. “So little talent.” A truly iconic choice!

WATCH HERE

Club Gym Nerd members can watch the podcast being recorded (pre-edits with all the flubs and hiccups) and watch the videos of the routines we’re discussing right along with us.

BUT FIRST

A little breaking news nugget: We discuss Shawn Johnson‘s latest YouTube video about being given Adderall for weight loss, not an approved therapeutic exemptions for this banned substance, and what the potential fallout could be, if any.

2003 TEAM FINAL

• US injury drama – and more questions about the US team medical care
• Jessica’s behind-the-scenes story about Khorkina interacting with children!
• The birth of the legend of Chellsie Freaking Memmel
• A frame-by-frame dissection of Tasha trying to block Martha’s head smack
• “So little talent” and what Shevchenko herself thinks of that comment
• Interpreting Khorkina’s choreography
• Jessica’s tale of spying on a US practice and Carly’s crazy bars training
• Hollie’s number: Was the US team given preferential treatment?
• China’s neutral deduction for warming up on the podium
• “Ooooh, that’s too bad”
• AND MORE!

JOIN CLUB GYM NERD

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here.
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RELATED EPISODES

• 430: Athlete A with Jennifer Sey
• 429: John Orozco Does Not Hold Back
• 428: Black Lives Matter This Week Too
• 427: The Gymnast Who Kneeled During The National Anthem
• 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission)
• 422: Stick It (Commissioned)
• 368: No-No-Nunnoisms (Commissioned)
• 365: 1988 Olympics Team Competition (Commissioned)
• 364: 80s Fight! (Commissioned)
• 344: Shushunova vs. Silivas 1988 (Commissioned)
• 308: 2004 Olympic All-Around Final (Commissioned)

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

LISTEN HERE

WATCH HERE

Club Gym Nerd members can watch the podcast being recorded (pre-edits with all the flubs and hiccups) and see video of the routines we discuss.

THIS WEEK’S INTERVIEW

Jennifer Sey became the US national champion in 1986, just seven months after breaking her femur at the 1985 world championships, an injury that led to a change in rules about bars spotting. In 2008, she published her groundbreaking memoir Chalked Up and has since been an advocate for survivors and those fighting against abuse in gymnastics. She produced the documentary Athlete A about the failures of USA Gymnastics to deal with the criminal ex-doctor, which premieres on Netflix this week.

We talked with her about what she hopes the general public learns about gymnastics culture from the film, whether the Maggie Haney suspension represents progress or not, why watching Kerri Strug vault in 1996 didn’t feel like a glorious moment to her, and balancing the horror of Athlete A with hope by focusing on the triumphs of Maggie Nichols, Rachael Denhollander, Jamie Dantzscher, and the Indy Star journalists.

Related Reading:

• Jen Sey’s Op-Ed in the New York Times: How Gymnastics Culture Breeds Sexual Abuse  
• Why Not Being Racist is Not Enough 
• Chalked Up by Jennifer Sey

GYMTERNET NEWS

• A vital episode dedication to Natalia Frolova
• URGENT: An email from someone who coached at the Karolyi summer camps
• Feedback on the John Orozco interview and Kensley’s response
• Seattle Pacific eliminates its gymnastics program
• Major dumpster fire developments in bankruptcy court
• Germany (kind of?) did a gymnastics over the weekend
• Simone did a triple double off beam and we need to talk about it

JOIN CLUB GYM NERD

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here.
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RELATED EPISODES

• Behind The Scenes: Laurie Hernandez Interview
• 187: McKayla Maroney
• Episode 28: Kristen Maloney
• 420: Jamie Dantzscher
• Aimee Boorman and Maggie Haney: The Olympic Experience
• Aimee & Maggie Extended Interview
• Episode 41: Laurie Hernandez & Coach Maggie Haney
• 423: Little Dumpster Fires Everywhere
• 422: Stick It (Commissioned)
• 420: Jamie Dantzscher
• 277.5: McKayla Maroney Alleges Abuse from Nassar
• 429: John Orozco Does Not Hold Back
• 428: Black Lives Matter This Week Too
• 427: The Gymnast Who Kneeled During The National Anthem
• 426: Body Roll Abomination
• 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission)
• 424 Emotional Abuse: The Maggie Haney Eight Year Ban

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

LISTEN HERE

THIS WEEK’S INTERVIEW

John Orozco is here and ready to blow it up. In this interview, he discusses the Black Lives Matter movement and the racism he experienced from leadership in the US men’s program, different standards applied to white and black athletes in national team selection and drug/alcohol enforcement, favoritism and score changing, the reality of a family situation that was far from what was painted by NBC, what really happened in the 2012 Olympic team final, the lawlessness of the post-Olympic tour, his nationality switch to Puerto Rico, and so much more. You don’t want to miss this one.

JOIN CLUB GYM NERD

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here.
• We have masks too!

RELATED EPISODES

• • 72: John Orozco (January 2014)
  • 241: The Pittsburgh Incident (Legendre’s accuse OTC coach of assault)
  • 428: Black Lives Matter This Week Too
  • 427: The Gymnast Who Kneeled During The National Anthem
  • 420: Jamie Dantzscher
  • 319: Aly and Lynn Raisman
  • 187: McKayla Maroney
    

RELATED ARTICLE

• • Shut Up and Tumble

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

Photo: Indiana State University

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WATCH HERE

Club Gym Nerd members can watch the podcast being recorded (pre-edits with all the flubs and hiccups) and see video of the routines we discuss.  *Note that the preview of the Orozco interview is not in the video this week but you can listen to it at the 00: 36:44 time stamp in the audio version.

HEADLINES

• Kurt Thomas, 1978 and 1979 world champion, died of a stroke at age 64. We discuss his legacy.
• More athletes detail stories of racism in college gymnastics—what Alabama’s Tia Kiaku, Auburn gymnasts Kennedy Finister and Telah Black, Florida’s Kytra Hunter, and Nebraska’s Ashley Lambert said this week
  • Why the aggressively empty platitudes from coaches like Dana Duckworth and Courtney Kupets-Carter bother us so much—and why we love the statement from Sac State
  • Plus, do we need to change our outro? And what should it be?

GYMTERNET NEWS

• European Championships have been rescheduled for December in Baku. Jessica is concerned for COVID reasons. Spencer is concerned for rule-consistency reasons. Kensley is optimistic. No one is surprised by any of this.
• The FIG published the new, official Olympic qualification rules for 2021
• The retirements of Courtney McGregor, Senna Deriks, and most of Romania
• Which US elites have decided to keep training for Tokyo
• NCAA transfer news for Addy De Jesus, Bailey Ferrer, and Mercedes Sanchez
• Problems with the FBI, NCAA, and Kathy Klages, as per usual, and a coach suspension at Chelsea Piers
• Nile Wilson released a documentary on his battle with addiction and mental health—we watched and have thoughts
• Plus, feedback on Alexis Brown, why the gymternet didn’t come for Sam Mikulak like it did for Ashton, and sports’ exploitation of black athletes

JOIN CLUB GYM NERD

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here.
• We have masks too!

RELATED EPISODES

• • 427: The Gymnast Who Kneeled During The National Anthem
  • 426: Body Roll Abomination
  • 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission)
  • 424 Emotional Abuse: The Maggie Haney Eight Year Ban

• Behind the Scenes: Scott Bregman
• Behind the Scenes: May 15, 2020
• Behind The Scenes: Denis Vachon

RELATED ARTICLE

• • Shut Up and Tumble

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

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Usually video podcasts are a special feature for Club Gym Nerd members but we felt this one was too important not to make available to as wide an audience as possible. Thank You to our Club members for being so supportive.

THIS WEEK’S INTERVIEW

Alexis Brown was a UC Davis gymnast, is the co-program record holder on beam, and knelt during the national anthem in the 2017 and 2018 NCAA seasons. We caught up with Alexis to hear her thoughts on kneeling now—two years on—and how she feels about the current protests against police brutality of black Americans.

She tells us whether she feels more hopeful or disheartened about the experience in retrospect, what she makes of the NCAA programs who haven’t made statements, and what she would like to see from white members of the gymnastics community.

Resources For Action:

What White People Can Do For Racial Justice 

NAACP

Black Lives Matter Action Guide

Ben & Jerry’s Dismantle White Supremacy

The Action PAC

Anguish And Action 

Understanding White Privilege

Bystander Intervention Training

Movie : Do The Right Thing

Documentary: 13th on Netflix

GYMTERNET NEWS

• We round up the reactions (and occasionally lack thereof) to the protests from those in the gymnastics community, including Kennedy Baker, Tia Kiaku, and Steve Butcher.
• Plus, what we can do in the gymnastics community, obliviousness and defensiveness, reasons there might be silence, compassion fatigue, and how there’s no better time to get rid of IOC’s Rule 50 against demonstrations.

JOIN CLUB GYM NERD

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here.
• We have masks too!

RELATED EPISODES

• • 426: Body Roll Abomination
  • 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission)
  • 424 Emotional Abuse: The Maggie Haney Eight Year Ban
  • Behind the Scenes: Gymnast Nicknames with Scott Bregman
  • Behind The Scenes with coach Denis Vachon
  • Behind the Scenes: May 15, 2020
  • Behind The Scenes: Exactly What is Going on With Gymnast’s Special Underwear?
  • Video Podcasts

RELATED ARTICLE

• • Shut Up and Tumble

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

LISTEN HERE

WATCH HERE

Club Gym Nerd members can watch the podcast being recorded (pre-edits with all the flubbubbs and hiccups) and see video of the routines we discuss.

GYMTERNET NEWS

• USAG cancels elite events for the remainder of 2020. Inevitable sigh.
• Some THOUGHTS about these new garbage Title IX regulations
• The latest steps toward NCAA athlete compensation and what it means for gymnasts
• NCAA gymnastics news, in which we discuss the sprouting of Long Island University and whether or not Nebraska is…OK?
• How various nations are handling a return to elite training
• Jessica has some feelings about priorities and the re-opening of gyms in the US
• Dumpster fire developments on the suspension of Amy Nyman, the dismissal of charges against Lou Anna Simon, and USOC getting sued for fraud
• Finally, how bad was the FIG’s decision to use the qualification results from Baku as final? Score For Score has the numbers

MINI-COMMISSION

• A mini commission from Nico T.L. asks us to go deep on three…shall we say remarkable?…floor routines from 2000—Elena Produnova‘s “Super Bitch Power Routine,” Paloma Moro‘s “Cracked Out Spanish Hoedown Routine,” and Alena Polozkova’s “So Bad You Can’t Look Away Routine.” This is heavenly.

FEEDBACK

• We conclude with some feedback about Li Li’s culpability in the Maggie Haney situation, autism, Nazis (?), and our judging episode.

BECOME A CLUB GYM NERD MEMBER

• Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes.
• Buy our awesome clothing and gifts here
• And we have masks too!

RELATED EPISODES

• 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission)
• 424 Emotional Abuse: The Maggie Haney Eight Year Ban
• 423: Little Dumpster Fires Everywhere
• 420: Jamie Dantzscher
• Behind The Scenes: May 15, 2020
• Behind The Scenes with coach Denis Vachon

MORE WAYS TO LISTEN