USA YOGA, Championship yoga, Olympic Yoga really?

Thanks to dtw for blogging on this a little on his Eightlimbsyoga blog, he did a post on the US championship youth division here, more importantly he linked to the US Yoga website, now there's an eyeopener. I took a look at the Adult division and have pretty much recreated the page below including the videos on how the judges are instructed to deduct points etc.

What to make of this, the first reaction is to shout no, no. NO! To stomp around shouting, "That's not Yoga!" and so on. 

But on the other hand I've always been uncomfortable with the yoga snobbery(?) concerning gymnastics. " If you don't practice ujayii then it's just gymnastics", since changed to "If you don't breath with sound  its just gymnastics". Yoga is supposed to be about focus, concentration, as if Gymnastics isn't. OK...it's supposed to be about dedication, commitment.....

You see my problem.

How about the 'gymnastics is just about the postures' argument, yoga is about more than the pretty shapes, there's pranayama, pratyahara, meditation..... but of course few seem to include those aspects in their yoga practice.

"It's not about competition, it's about changing yourself, seeking enlightenment, liberation"...again problematic I'd argue that's not most yoga practitioner's concern, at least in the beginning. Perhaps the yoga we practice isn't as far from gymnastics as we like to think, perhaps we shouldn't protest too much. Kino said something funny once, the difference between Ashtanga and Gymnastics is that the gymnasts are a hell of a lot better at the postures than we are ( very very loosely quoted).

OK, but we all agree it's not about competition... or about getting the fit yoga body but perhaps the other limbs will come. If yoga is your sport your going to read about it right, your going to study everything there is to know about it's history, it's philosophy...ask a basketball player any question about basketball and they'll probably know the answer (the crowd too), some of it might stick.

But then what about Judo, wasn't the soul of Judo lost when it became an Olympic sport? Perhaps it would be the death knell of yoga.

On the other hand (must be running out of hands) what about the question of diversity, yoga as a sport might bring more people to Yoga who wouldn't normally consider it, see this article on yoga and diversity. But then again diversity seems to depend on the sport so perhaps it wouldn't make much difference.

My mind was going back and forth all day until I watched one of the videos below again, I can't help it, no, no  NO!

But I'm prepared to be convinced otherwise.

HERE for example, addressed to 'Respected Western Minds',  is an argument that yoga competitions are nothing new, a tradition even, in India. If you make it to the bottom of the article you'll even find this

'Mallakhamb is also a very nice Yoga Sport. You can see it at www.yogainair.com. Mallakhamb Yoga is Korunta Yoga, Yogacharya Iyengar works in Korunta. And Korunta Yoga and Mallakabhm came from Pune and Mombai. If you practice Korunta Yoga you work in Yoga Sport. Yogacharya Jois has worked in Athletic Yoga for many years. Yogacharya Krishnamacharya worked in Athletic Yoga for years'. Swami Shankarananda, sent to the International Yoga Federation

There's an IYF, who knew?

Be nice though...... with these links there are going to be kids visiting this post who practice the postures for hours in their bedrooms working on their sthira (steadiness) and sukha (comfort) with just as much commitment as we bring to our morning Ashtanga or Vinyasa Krama practice, perhaps more. We forget that sometimes when we give Bikram yoga a hard time or Anusura for that matter. Take a look at the Bikram and Anusara blogs, everyone is doing their practice with as much sincerity and enthusiasm as anyone else. Must be some USA yoga championship blogs out there, if anyone knows of a good one let me know.

Discussing this on FB yesterday J. asked the question 'To what purpose?' Something we should perhaps have written above the door of every Shala and yoga studio, framed in the home practice rooms and perhaps somewhere on that USAYOGA banner.

USA YOGA

Adult Postures

STANDING HEAD TO KNEE POSE – 4 parts
How to perform the posture:

1. Stand with feet together, shift body weight to standing leg (leg closest to the judges) and lock the knee (leg straight and thigh muscle contracted).  Pick up the other foot, interlocked fingers, thumbs with the index finger, holding underneath the ball of the foot. Look forward.
2. Kick the heel of the raised foot forward until leg is straight and parallel to floor.  Arms straight, eyes focused forward, body weight distributed evenly throughout standing foot.  Lock both knees.
3. Wrists straight, bend the elbows down towards the floor. Keep the elbows touching against the calf muscle, and extend the elbows below the calf muscle. Both legs straight, both knees locked.  Eyes still focused forward.
4. Tuck the chin to the chest and bring the head down, rounding spine, touch the forehead to the knee, both knees locked. Maintain balance for at least 5 counts.
5. To reverse – bring head up, look forward. Re-straighten arms, both legs locked, focus forward.  Bend kicking leg and release foot to floor. Pause long enough to demonstrate control in each step as you exit the posture.

NOTE: The competitor chooses which leg to stand on, standing leg must be closest to the judges.

What the judges will look for:

1. Connection between mind and body – ability to keep mind under control as well as body.
2. Forehead touching the knee, as high up the leg as possible.
3. Roundness of spine. The higher the arch of the spine the better.
4. Relationship of elbows and calf muscle. For full points elbows must drop below the calf muscle.
5. Wobbling, shaking, standing foot moving, readjusting, moving in the posture.
6. Standing on the proper leg, so the judges can see the inside of the body.
7. Knees locked, thigh muscles contracted.
8. Wrists straight, not bending, when elbows are below the calf muscle.
9. If the forehead doesn’t touch the knee, the posture is incomplete and receives a zero.
10. Final position should be held for 5 counts and the competitor should demonstrate control in each position entering and exiting the posture.

STANDING BOW PULLING POSE

How to perform the posture:

1. Distribute body weight evenly on the standing foot, farthest from the judges. Straighten and lock the standing leg knee.  Grab the inside of the other foot at the ankle with all five fingers together and inside of elbow facing out.  Simultaneously, bring the other arm straight up by the side of the head.
2. Kick the foot back and up with toes pointed and extend the leg as high as possible.
3. Stretch the free arm forward as far as possible so that the chin is touching with the shoulder, extend the other arm back so that the two shoulders are in one line from the side.  Bring the abdomen and chest parallel to floor so that the two feet are in a straight line from the side.
4. Focus out over fingertips.
5. The posture is complete when thetop foot is over the bottom foot, two feet in one line, and the chin touches the shoulder.
6. For full points both legs straighten and both legs lock to achieve a standing split. Maintain this position for at least five counts.
   
   

What the judges will look for:

1. Chin touching the shoulder. Two feet in one line from the side.
2. Grip at the ankle without letting the hand slide.
3. Two shoulders in one line from the judges’ view.
4. Chest and abdomen parallel to the floor.
5. Fumbling with picking up foot or picking up wrong foot and correcting. Leg closest to the judges is the kicking/top leg.
6. Kicking/top foot lines up in the center of the head from the front view.
7. Stillness in the final posture for at least 5 counts, rather then continuously deepening the posture until finished.

BOW POSE

How to perform the posture:

1. Lie on abdomen, chin forward, side of the body facing the judges.
2. Reach back and grab the outside of both feet 2 inches below the top of the toes.  Five fingers together, wrists straight, toes pointed.  Six inches between the knees and the toes.
3. Kick both legs up and back.
4. Balance body weight between pelvic bones and lowest rib so that the toes are in the center from the side.

What the judges will look for:

1. Grip – 2 inches below the toes not gripping above the toes.
2. Straight wrist.
3. Toes in the center of the body from the side – like a teardrop.
4. Knees and feet even from the side and the front.
5. Balance on the center of abdomen.
6. Wrists and knees 6 inches apart – knees/feet should not open wider then shoulders as they get higher.
7. Stillness in the final posture for five counts, no rocking back and forth.

RABBIT POSE

How to perform the posture:

1. Sit on heels with knees and feet together. Tops of feet on the floor. Side of the body towards the judges.
2. Grab the heels with the thumbs on the outside, fingers on the inside.
3. Tuck chin to chest, round forward and touch the forehead on the knees, the top of the head touches floor.
4. Pull on the heels, lift hips up, and roll forward.  Arms straight, elbows locked. Entire spine stretching from the coccyx to the neck.  Lift the shoulders to the ceiling. Thighs perpendicular to floor.

What the judges will look for:

1. Spine completely and symmetrically rounded.
2. 90 degree angle at knees – thighs perpendicular to the floor.
3. Maintain contact between the top of the head and the floor.  Stay on the top of head not rolling on the back of head.
4. Forehead touching the knees.
5. Wrists straight – okay to have thumbs touching with index fingers.
6. Shoulders lifted away from ears.

STRETCHING POSE

How to perform the posture:

1. Sit with spine upright and both legs fully extended forward, feet together.
2. Grab the big toes from the top, with the middle and index fingers, palms facing each other.
3. Pull on the toes.  Feet together and flexed.  Legs straight, knees locked and heels in the air.
4. With a flat back, stretch upper body forward from the lower spine.  Touch the elbows on the floor along side the calf muscles. Bring the body down, stomach on the thighs, chest on the knees, forehead reaching towards the toes.

What the judges will look for:

1. Continuous stretching from the coccyx to the forehead. For full points, the forehead touches the big toe (not the thumb or hand/wrist).
2. Legs straight and thigh muscles contracted – minimum gap between back of the knees and the floor.
3. Feet together.
4. Feet flexed.
5. Spine straight.
6. Stomach on the thighs, chest down.
7. Elbows on the floor.
8. Forehead in line with the toes, face down, eyes looking forward.