It’s longer, it’s wider and most importantly ““
it’s safer.
The new vault used in NCAA competition this year is giving the
Bruin gymnasts (10-1-1) an advantage their opponents already fear:
confidence. Indeed, increasing UCLA’s confidence is like
adding fuel to a blazing fire.
The Bruins currently lead the nation in every event, including
vault, and five UCLA gymnasts are included in the top 15 in the
country.
Head coach Valorie Kondos Field is supportive of the new
apparatus, nicknamed “the table.”
“Going to the new vault table has made a tremendous
difference,” Kondos Field said. “When the gymnast does
a round-off entry vault, as most of our athletes do, they’re
not going to miss their hands.”
The new vault looks completely different than the one that was
previously used. It offers a wider target platform for the gymnasts
and is longer as well. The chances of missing the vault on a
routine have been significantly decreased.
“That brings a comfort level to the athletes,”
Kondos Field said. “The stronger gymnasts are able to be more
aggressive ““ it has made a huge psychological difference to
everyone that vaults.”
Serious injuries resulting from the narrower vault forced NCAA
officials to reconsider the vault’s design. The old
“horse” used in previous years left gymnasts fearful of
attempting difficult rear-entry vaults. Many were concerned about
missing their hands and ending up injured. This year’s vault,
on the other hand, virtually dispels that threat and encourages
gymnasts to be more creative and aggressive in competition.
Unable to finish in the top 25 at season’s end last year,
junior Jeanette Antolin is now the nation’s top gymnast on
vault with a 9.965 average. Antolin acknowledges the impact of the
new vault, stressing the reassurance it provides.
“I was a lot more tentative on the old vault,” she
said. “Now, I don’t have to aim for the horse, I can
just go all out. I get a lot more explosiveness and distance
knowing that it’s impossible to miss.”
Other top vaulters on the team readily admit the fear that used
to go through their minds before competition. Junior Jamie
Dantzscher, the past year’s all-around, floor and vault
champion, remembers the nervous feeling she had before each
routine.
“With the old horse, every time I vaulted I was
scared,” she said. “I had to think so much about the
technique to hit my hands before each vault because sometimes they
didn’t hit.”
The Bruins will take the boost in confidence and skill into the
Pac-10 tournament later this month, where they will finish the meet
by competing on vault. Dantzscher and the rest of the team say that
they have always liked to end on the vault. The team’s
top-ranked vault score of 39.525 is up from last year’s
season-ending 39.350, which was good enough for third-place.
“Our team is pretty confident on this event and
everyone’s vault has improved,” Antolin said.
“This new vault is taking us one notch up. We’re ranked
No. 1 on vault this year and it can only get better from
here.”