Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

  I have been lucky enough to be able to collaborate in the writing of a chapter in this book, due for publication on the 31st July and available for order on Amazon  http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0956627064/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE . My chapter is entitled 'Understanding parental influence on child athletes : from fanatical to disinterested parents'.  The chapter considers the relative power relationship of the coach, athlete and parent, and how it can affect the athlete's development.  It draws on some examples from gymnastics, both in Russia and America, as well as from other sports, and considers some of the guidelines developed by sports governing bodies to try to encourage best practice. My co-authors (Butler, Hedge and Cunliffe) are all students on the sports management programme at the University of Central Lancashire, and the book is edited by Dr Clive Palmer.  Regular readers of this blog will recognise him a...

Browsing through the British Library databases I came across a 2003 PhD thesis entitled 'A qualitative investigation of aesthetic evaluation in men's artistic gymnastics', written by Dr Clive Palmer.  The thesis is based on documentary analysis, an analysis of interviews and judging observations involving men's coaches (eg Great Britain's Paul Hall), gymnasts (eg British international Kanukai Jackson), international judges and MTC President Hardy Fink, and the author's own observations of gymnastics practice.  The thesis provides insights into the evolving aesthetic denudation of gymnastics, cultural differences in understanding the aesthetic, the work of the judges, and makes proposals for improvements in the system. It seems to me that much of what Dr Palmer has written is even more relevant today and has resonance across both men's and women's gymnastics.  The author has published articles based on the thesis in peer reviewed journals such as the In...