John Orozco Parallel Bars Training June 22, 2011

 

 

John Orozco High Bar Training June 22, 2011

 

 

I love this new trend of gymnasts posting training videos as they prepare for upcoming major competitions, and I think it serves both the athletes and the fans extremely well.  It helps the athletes increase their fan base and generate media attention and excitement around their gymnastics as their videos circulate the internet, and the fans get a sneak peak at some of the best gymnasts in the country in top form.  I really wish more gymnasts would follow suit, as I think it would be great for increasing ticket sales and the overall popularity of our sport.

 

These routines look awesome!  As stated in his interview with Universal Sports, the 18-year-old Orozco is tentatively in the lineup for every event except for floor and vault at the upcoming Japan Cup, which will be his first competitive test since partially tearing his Achilles tendon at the Visa Championships last August.  Orozco was in the midst of capping off a stellar year, which included an 8th place all-around finish at the Winter Cup, a 1st place all-around finish at the Junior Pacific Rim Championships, and a solid four-for-four start to the 2010 Visa Championships before landing short on his Yurchenko double full on vault and suffering the injury that has kept him out of competition ever since.  And that was on the heels of a stunning three consecutive junior all-around titles at the 2007, 2008, and 2009 Visa Championships.  In short, John Orozco was becoming the next big thing in American men’s gymnastics.

 

Orozco was first introduced to many fans when his spectacular full-twisting double back off parallel bars was televised at the 2009 Visa Championships, where he had qualified to compete in the senior division at just 16 years old.

 

John Orozco P-Bars 2009 Visa Championships

 

 

The young phenom’s gutsy gymnastics wasn’t limited to parallel bars, though, as in 2010 he also debuted a full-twisting laid out Tcatchev on high bar as well as a very unique double side-somi with a ¾ turn out on floor.

 

John Orozco High Bar 2010 Visa Championships

 

 

John Orozco Floor 2010 Visa Championships

 

 

As shown in the training videos, he’s now added three skills to his p-bars routine: a back uprise to front salto, a Dimitrienko (front uprise double back) and Suarez (back with a half turn to upper arms), and high bar still looks very strong.  He’s not yet ready to compete on floor and vault, but now states that pommel horse is actually the event where he’s most improved and could potentially contribute to the USA team.  If this holds to be true, Orozco could be one to watch over the next year.  He’ll get his first international test with the “big boys” in Tokyo in just a couple of weeks.