The skill was called a double back. This was on bars and is the dismount of the
routine. The last thing a judge sees,
and the skill used to get off of the bars.
I had just gotten my giants, (if you have ever watched gymnastics, these
are the skills when a gymnast swings completely around the high bar with
straight arms), and these come directly before the dismount. Alex was determined to help me get my double
back and made it her personal mission. Honestly,
I never thought it would happen in a million years because it was such a
difficult skill. In a double back, the
gymnast lets go of the bar and completes 2 flips in a tucked position before
landing on the ground. At the age of 11
this terrified me, but because I was so obedient I was ready to do whatever the
coach wanted me to. To my surprise, it
only took me two days to get the skill! I was amazed that I was capable of
doing something this difficult. I
remember those two days like it was yesterday.
However, when Alex quit, I was extremely nervous to do it with any other
coach. But that is when I met Mike. Mike was the most well known coach in the
gym. Everyone…and I mean everyone knew
who Mike was and how great of a coach he was.
He was not only a great coach in his ability to spot and catch his
gymnasts, but he was an even better coach in the mental aspect of
gymnastics. He always knew what to say
regardless of what your problem was. He
knew when my mind was somewhere else other than practice, he knew when I was
having a bad practice, and more importantly, he knew when I just simply needed
a hug. To this day I am so thankful for
Mike because he taught me so much…and not just about gymnastics, but in life as
well.
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