Gymnastics demands strength

By Leah Starleper Towson University journalism student April 22, 2009

Gymnastics is a sport that offers more than physical activity and a child in intense training can learn how to do back flips and also positive lessons they can apply throughout life, a gymnastics coach said.

“I was 7 when I began competitive gymnastics,” said Paula Eichel, 42, owner and coach at Baltimore County Gymnastics. “It is a sport that I cannot seem to get away from and has allowed me to pass down knowledge, I gained over the years, through coaching.”

Boys and girls of all ages endure strength, flexibility, and mental training in order to compete. Starting at a young age can allow a gymnast to progress well and develop skills for college or the elite level, which is seen on television, gymnastics coaches said.

“This sport is much more than just physical training and many elite gymnasts are home schooled,” Eichel said.

Vault, bars, beam and floor are the women’s events and dance also has a huge role as it relates to two of the four events . According to a gymnastics coach, the last event is mental strength.

“Flying through the air and trying to stick a blind landing takes a lot of guts and a lot of strength”, Eichel said. “Body awareness is key in this sport and is something you cannot teach.”

Coaches have said that discipline is learned in this sport and youngsters learn how to keep their body fit. Military style pushups, pull-ups and chin-ups are used as strength training.

Gymnastics requires training all year round.

Slug: Wall

Wall

A 36- year old injured Baltimore woman and an infant were sent to the hospital Jan. 3 after a one alarm fire broke out at 12:13 a.m. in two apartments on the 200 block of North Aisquith Street, police said.

The injured woman, Arnetta Sands from apartment 10B, was treated and released for first- degree burns from Church Home and Hospital. The infant, Andre Henderson from apartment 10C, was treated and released for smoke inhalation from Hopkins Hospital and is doing okay.

The stove had been on in Sands apartment when she sprayed insecticide from an aerosol can which caused an explosion. The wall between the two apartments collapsed after the explosion and landed on the baby’s crib, where he was sleeping.

Firefighters removed a portion of the wall off of the crib before investigators declared the incident accidental. The mother of the infant, Renee Henderson,23, was uninjured. There was fire damage to the kitchen and furnishings in apartment 10B.

Slug:Holdup

Holdup


The Provident Savings Bank on the 3100 block of Greenmount Avenue was robbed early afternoon, Tuesday, Sept. 15, by three male suspects who ransacked several teller cages, police said.

The three suspects, one wearing a red hat and jersey and one wearing red tennis shoes and another in a white fishnet shirt, were armed with a .22 caliber sawed-off rifle that was later dropped east along the alley on the north side of the bank during their escape. The rifle was pointed at the male bank manager while the other suspects leaped over the counter.

Four employees and two customers were in the bank at the time and were told to lie down on the floor. After covering the witnesses, the robbers stuffed the money into two white pillowcases before fleeing with an undisclosed amount of cash and disappearing from sight.

Police are still investigating the incident and there are no reported injuries or arrests.

Sports as a lifestyle (Post 3)

For some people, being involved in sports is much more then a hobby; it is a lifestyle.

"I have been involved in all types of sports for my entire life," said David E. Starleper, 14, a halfback on the Fallston High School soccer team. "I just made junior varsity lacrosse and I cannot wait to get started!"

David loves to try new sports and plays everything from basketball to soccer. Being active and keeping a healthy body doing something he loves is important to him. He is also very competitive and playing sports is a way to channel that energy and excitement.

"Before a game, I get pumped up and try to get my team pumped up too," Starleper said.

Encouraging teammates to get excited about playing a game is a great way to spread encouragement about sports and the importance of being active at a young age.

Facebook and its "new policies" (post 2)

Many people tend to overlook and accept online agreements without prior, thorough reading. Should the policies be allowed to be changed after several thousand users already agreed to the old terms?

This is the controversy Facebook and its users are currently facing. Facebook updated its terms and deleted the portion in the terms of service regarding termination of an account and how users can delete an account at any time. New language, claiming it would still hold content and licenses after a user deleted an account, is being added to the new terms of service. Facebook should have notified its users prior to this change.

This has many users outraged, including users such as a staff writer for The New Yorker and a popular pop critic. Some users feel as if they are now "owned by Facebook," states The New York Times.

Facebook is probably not the only website that has done this. Users of all websites should use caution and read all terms of service before validating an agreement.

Facebook and its "new policies"

Terms of service outline conduct and acts as a license for companies to store data from users. Reacting from Facebook users regarding the changes of the terms of service, the executive of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, reassures users that they control their information and the website does not.

Facebook allegedly updated its terms and deleted the portion in the terms of service regarding termination of an account and how users can delete an account at any time. Facebook added new language claiming it would still hold content and licenses after a user deleted an account.

After many users created Facebook groups opposing the changes, Facebook executive's were quick to clarify that after deletion of an account, comments the user had posted on other user's pages will remain on the page. According to Facebook, these new terms of service reflect user behavior.

Some Facebook members, including popular critics, have deleted their pages in opposition to the terms of service.