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JFJ Elite held a very successful TOPs training camp here are pictures for your viewing pleasure.

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Alabama USAG would like to congratulate Lenette Calvin, Mary Lou Dillard, Deb Kornegay, and James Linderholm for being inducted into the Region 8 Hall of Fame. They were given this prestigious honor on June 16, 2007 at the banquet dinner given at this year's Region 8 congress. These individuals have given countless hours in support of our State and Region enhancing our great sport of gymnastics. What an honor it is to have them as part of our State.

Let's think good thoughts and remember the scene from My Best Friends Wedding at the rehearsal dinner when they all burst out in song, laugh and smile to "I say a little prayer for you!" ... I need for all of you to do that!

We are cooked here. So to move forward I ask that you in your very kind and most professional manner let your chairs, states, clubs know that we are still operational. We are just doing business a bit differently. We will certainly continue to communicate to all, but I know you are the ones who can keep the fire contained. For events that are taking place in August, we ask that people fax the forms in to us. That is athletes, professional, introductory etc. All forms. The clubs have received the packets by now. The forms are also up on the website for downloading. They may also mail or express mail the forms, if they wish to send a check. All faxed forms must have a credit card number. We also need to receive sanction requests for any event in August. I am only taking one month at a time.

We will accept the internet price. That is the $5 discounted price on memberships until further notice. Once we are back up and operation, then an announcement will be made and policies and procedures will be back in place. We will date stamp all received forms and that will service as registering during this emergency time. We are placing all registrations into a spread sheet that we will have for insurance purposes. Please remind people that we do not have any means to look up numbers, information, do data entry, change levels, change addresses ... nothing! We have no access to member information. We are very sorry and we are taking all of the necessary measures and steps to get back up. It will not happen this week, I guarantee you! The server is at the hospital. We Med-evac'd (SP) it to California, but then we found a place for very special care and have Med-evac'd it to Virginia! Say a little prayer!

I can not even begin to thank you for you kind words and understanding. Please feel free to contact me at any time or any one of my staff.

Thank you Region 6 and Massachusetts state for the Bronze level HOF donation! If there are any others out there please let me know by tomorrow morning at 10 am EDT. I have to send the program to the printer and I do not want to miss a name!

Kathy

The AL/MS combined state clinic if approaching fast. Remeber this clinic is free to all, so there is no reason not to come and learn from the best. The schedule of events is now available to view → schedule - 'website view' or download → schedule - for download.

The clinic is being hosted at Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tide in Tuscaloosa Alabama. For directions to the facility you may follow this link → directions. If you have any questions please feel free to contact the State Office at 662.615.5533 or through our contact-us form.

We are SOOO excited! Our state clinic is only a few weeks away, and your state committee wants to make absolutely sure that you have all the information you need! Let's get started-

When:
May 25-27^th (that's Friday and Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, but you get through Saturday evening and will have all Sunday and Monday for a holiday)

Where:
Conveniently located at Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tides in T Town.

Who can come?
This clinic is for all coaches, instructors and judges!

Can I afford this?
You CANNOT afford not to be there! We have kept cost down to a bare minimum, that's right, it is $25.00 for one person, or your gym can pay $50.00 and bring every person on the payroll!

What kind of clinicians do we get for $25.00?
The best!!!!! We have Brad Harris from Tampa Bay who is an awesome coach and lecturer. He is featured at National Congress almost every year now. He has great handouts and great visuals! He is the owner of Tampa Bay Turners and has had compulsory through national champions! His goal-to share resources and help make Region 8 the best there is! Then there is Tom Burgdorf who will help every owner and every coach and instructor learn how to embrace this life we have chosen for ourselves. Got a problem with a staff member or parent, bring it on! His honest approach to what we face everyday is absolute armor for ones soul! How about our own Gold medal Olympian, Vladimir Novikov who has a natural approach to coaching gymnastics-natural because it is inside his heart. He was born an Olympian and World Champion. He is willing to share his vast experience and knowledge, and we are the fortunate recipients of this. It doesn't matter if it is an elite question or a question about level 1-he will have an answer. Than we have Deb Kornegay who is among the most well respected judges, Regional Directors, and people any of you will ever be fortunate to meet. She is OURS! A true Alabamian at heart (although she bleeds blue and orange) she has done it all! A gymnast who competed in college and internationally, a coach who qualified kids to high level competitions, a former gym owner, a state director, and then she followed in the steps of her dear mother, Wilma and was elected as Regional Director. We are represented by the best, and she with these available encyclopedia of information, we will have the answers! We are not done yet. We are pleased to announce that Elena Bodrikova who now coaches at Prattville Gymnastics will join our panel of awesome clinicians. Elena was trained in the Moscow, Russia, and was a member of the National Team from 1975  1979. She competed in all USSR Championships and in addition, competed 16 times internationally. Elena and her family moved to the US in 1996. Elena worked for the next ten years in North Carolina, and then moved to Alabama to work at Prattville. If you have ever had the pleasure of being with her at one of Region 8's training camps, you know how great she truly is!

What kind of special events will we have?
It just so happens that the Friday night after our first day of this State Congress, we will have our yearly awards banquet! Now this is an additional charge of $25.00 per person, but it is worth every penny to actually see the gymnastics community in something other than judges uniforms, warm ups suits and leotards! We actually look pretty good! The banquet is at the Bobby Miller Center (directions at the gym) and we will honor the recipient of this year's Leadership and Achievement Award, the judge of the year, all of our high school seniors, our national, east, regional qualifiers and our level 7 team that attended the national judges cup meet. It all starts at 6:00 and is over by 8:30! It really is a great way to enjoy each other without holding a rotation sheet! Don't miss this opportunity to rejoice with each other. Bring your spouse! This is a celebration of all coaches! This is a celebration of all Judges! This is a celebration of our seniors, our qualifiers and our champions! The dress is Sunday! I would love to have 300 people there from Alabama!

We will also have a state meeting Saturday afternoon at 4:30 0r 5:00. It will be brief, well organized and informative! Don't miss that annual snapshot of next year's USAG program.

How do I register?
You must send a complete list of those attending the clinic (the name of the gym) and a check for either $50.00 for your entire gym or $25.00 for one person to:

Deb Walls, Alabama USAG 308 East 6th Street Tuscumbia, Alabama 35674

Who do I make the check to:  Alabama USAG

How do I register for the banquet?
You must send a check for the entire amount-$25.00 per person to Deb Walls (see above address). Every person attending must list their gym affiliation is there is one. Every athlete attending must either be a member of the Level 7 Team, or a regional qualifier or a senior. Each athlete must include a brief description of what category they fit in ex: I was a member of the 2007 Level 8 Regional Alabama All Stars. If an athlete placed in the top 10 of any event that should also be included. If an athlete qualified to JO East Champions or JO National Championships, that information should also be All Senior should include a bio which includes where they will attend school, parents names, and personal achievements both academically and athletically.

The last question: When is the DEADLINE?
The deadline, and folks I mean deadline is May 4th! Now, you have to tell all the parents this info! If I don't have the info by 5:00 PM ON MAY 4TH, someone is not going to get their recognition award. The good news is that I am having this letter put on the state website today, so you can tell you parents all the information they need will be on the web site. I will also put directions to the gym and to the banquet site on the web. If I have left any information out, please let me know. I will correct it immediately! If you don't have my cell number, it is: 256.412.4152.

This is just too exciting - Our own congress in our own state with something for everyone! Perhaps each year we will continue to add topics that are timely and needed. You just let us know what you want those to be. I think this is a great start for great things to come!

Updated Schedule. Please be advised that the schedule had to be revised as of 3:30 PM CT on April 3, 2007. Only one level 9 group changed days, but some groups changed sessions and all session times were revised. The regional director apologizes for any inconvenience that you have incurred. Make sure the schedule you use has "REVISED" at the top of page 1.

Any state with a fraction of .50 gymnast or higher rounded up. Any with a fraction of .49 or less rounded down.

Foreign athletes are eligible to compete at Level 8 Regionals as All Star or State Team Member.
No duplicate qualifiers or awards are necessary.

The check list in the link below has been written to serve as a guide to help you; your staff and your parent's organization host your event. By now, you have placed your meet on the state calendar and on the web site. You are certain that your equipment meets industry standards and you have enough mats (including landing and sting). Now, review your Rules and Policies to make sure you are in compliance.

WAY TO GO!!

• Caroline Romano
• Carley Sims
• Riley Childress
• Tyler Ivey
• Maci Warren
• Lyndsey Webb
• Dori Thompson
• Meredith Pitts

Information on the new "Hopes" Division of the Pre Elite Level is posted on the TOPs website.

Straight from the horses mouth! That's what approximately 300 coaches and judges from Alabama and Mississippi experienced in Tuscaloosa for four days the last week of July! Tom Koll, our J.O. National Chair taught the routines, clarified the routines and explained how and what to judge. Tom Koll wrote the entire compulsory book and was one of the three choreographers for the new routines. He wove his magic in Alabama while he took us through every level and we wrote feverishly making sure we had every golden word that came from his mouth. Luan Nix, Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tides, graciously let us use her awesome facility for the two state clinic. In addition to Tom's clincic we had a prep optional meeting, an optional clinic taught by Mary Ann Wallace and Deb Kornegay, our annual awards banquet, and a safety certification conducted by James Linderholm! Everything you could ask for was made available to our entire membership and was accomplished in one weekend. One of the best things was that Alabama and Mississippi paid for the clinic and for a very little cost to the membership. All judges were free, and every club received two coaches at no cost, with every additional person paying only $10.00 for the entire clinic! Alabama NAWGJ also contributed to the clinic. Alabama and Mississippi thank each of you for your participation! We are proud to offer the best to our states!!!

The Club list has been updated with the most current information the State Office has at this time. Please submit any corrections to the State Office or the Webmaster through the "Contact Us" form.

One hundred and fifty athletes, coaches, judges, and parents celebrated this years award recipients in Tuscaloosa. Brian Raschella assistant coach UAB was the featured speaker. Winning 2004-2005 Leadership & Achievement award was Noma Meeker of NSG Saltos. Mary Lou Dillard received the Judge of the Year Recognition. Over 40 regional and national athletes were honored. Please click the link below to view pictures of the award recipients.

The meet results for the Complusory Judges Cup 2005 are now complete. All scores including the Level 2 and the Level 3 scores are posted and available for printing. The AL-NAWGJ would like to thank everyone that attended for supporting the meet.
To view the results CLICK HERE.

The Level 7 team came back from Houston, TX with a 10th place VICTORY!!!

Congrats to:
• Jamie Fisher JFJ
• Sydney Fritz MTB
• Lauren Gross TTT
• Casey Laing TTT
• Maci Warren MTB
• Lyndsey Webb MTB

• Level 4 JFJ Elite
• Level 5 Shoals School of Gymnastics
• Level 6 JFJ Elite

The meet was awesome and the judging was terrific! Special thanks to Jeff Pangallo and Enterprise Gymnastics for making this championship just that, a true championship! Your efforts gave those who participated a wonderful memory, and continued the tradition of extraordinary State Championships in our State! Thank you!

The Level 7 National Judges Cup team was named in the recent Optional Judges Cup Meet in Montgomery. The top six scorers comprise this team that will compete in January in Dallas, Texas. They are:

• Maci Warren Mountainbrook
• Lyndsey Web Mountainbrook
• Casey Laing Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tides
• Lauren Gross Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tides
• Jamie Fisher JFJ Elite Gymnastics
• Sydney Fritz Mountainbrook Gymnastics

We congratulate each of the gymnast and their families, and their coaches on a job well done! Mary Ann Wallace, State Judging Director and Alabama NAWGJ sponsor this team. Their entry fees, leotards, lodging and a portion of their travel is paid by Alabama NAWGJ! Good luck in the meet. Alabama is PROUD of you.

The new Alabama USAG Prep-Optional rules are now available to view, print, or download. You will find the Prep-OP rules by following the "MEMBER INFO" link to your right or the "QUICK LINKS" link also to your right.

If you would like to compare the new rules to the old rules you will find the old rules on the "Archives Page", link is also to your right.

A file containing the 2005-2006 USA-Gymnastics Rules & Policies has been posted off the "MEMBER INFO" link to your right or the "QUICK LINKS" link also to your right. This version has been modified to reflect the more current "Print Version" that is available from USAG. This file is in Adobe PDF and is the entire publication in ONE document. The document has been bookmarked and indexed for quick and easy referencing.

This file has also been compressed for faster download and viewing, meaning you must have Adobe Reader 6.0 or later to view this file. Click the "Get Adobe Reader" icon below to download the most current Adobe Reader.

2004-2005 Prep-Optional Rules & Regulations -This is the 2004-2005 Prep-Op guidelines displayed for the website and has a link for a "Print Friendly" version.

I had forgotten what a lovely city Indianapolis was. I had also forgotten that once I got on I-65, my next turn was the exit for the hotel! The hotel had a covered walkway to the Convention Center, and was walking distance from National Headquarters. Tuesday, we spent the morning in our SAC meetings, and then walked to the office to tour the facility and speak with the employees. These employees included our president, Mr. Bob Penny. We had the opportunity to see first hand how the process of membership, publication, and every program from level 1 to international elite was managed. All of our questions were answered, and we returned to the hotel to continue our meetings. Wednesday we met to continue our state chair workshop which ended with the women's summit meeting that night.

Congress began Thursday, and I believe this year's program was the most comprehensive to date. I don't know if I saw all our Alabama members who were present, but I did have a chance to speak with Tom Reynolds from Nasser's, Noma Meeker from NSG Saltos, Ann Williams from Alabama Starz, James Linderholm from Huntsville Gymnastics, and Missy West, and Meg Henry from United. Several staff members from these clubs were also in attendance.

Every state chair from Region 8 was present! We are the only region that had 100% participation, and were recognized often for innovations in our region that had been spearheaded by our Regional Director, Deb Kornegay. Marian Dykes and Paul Padron were also recognized for their extraordinary contributions to the national program.

It was well worth the time and expense to be there. Next year congress will be in St. Paul Minnesota, followed by San Jose, California and then back to Boston for Olympic Trials. Your next opportunity for continued education is our Regional Congress right here in Auburn, Alabama in October. Register now for this opportunity for this extraordinary opportunity! You will find the form on this web site and on the regional site as well. Hope to see you all at Judges Cup in Birmingham soon. Deb

The Prep OP State Meet is quickly approaching. Please register your athlete's to attend before March 24, 2005. Click on the "read more" icon below to download the meet information and flier.