For Parents Understanding the decision criteria for movement between JO and Xcel programs

[ldw4mlo]

Gyms are business’s abs they will put the needs of the gym over the needs of the individual gymnast. The way it comes across will vary. But as a gym owner I would love to have a squad for every age and level, give everyone the hours they want etc. But it’s not possible, I need to make decisions that make the gym work financially.

I am not defending the gyms actions, it sounds like it all could have been handled a lot better. More saying, for those who say, go to a gym that cares more about your kid. Recognise that this can and dyes happen everywhere.

This.

Gyms have a business model/plan that works for them.

Patents/gymnasts have the choice to decide if the gym works for them and their family.

If it works, stay.
If it doesn’t, move on. To another gym, sport, activity.

 

[Gaby]

If I were u, I wud discuss with the coach. If not get through, I might consider to switch the gym.

 

[Tammie]

Because all the way up through compulsory levels you have different coaches who get the girls all the fundamentals and then at the higher levels, when those girls don't move as fast as the HC/Owner wants he tries to push them out. We loved our experience there from levels 3-5. Even 6 (year 1 of optionals) wasn't bad. Once you get to 7 it was fast track..a meet or 2 at 8 and 9 then push to 10. If you didn't show that potential, he no longer wanted you in his optional group. You didn't even work with HC/Owner until Optionals. Level 6 he watched you and he chose who he wanted from there on out. Anyone else, forget it. You coach yourself, move to XCEL, or quit. The girls who stay are all fighting to be in his favor and it so unhealthy. It why we left.

Just out of curiosity, was the HC/owner the only upper optional coach?

I have seen situations where optionals seem to be put in 2 groups, one with the HC/owner, and one with other coaches. The HC group generally moves a bit faster/performs a bit better, the other coach group seems a bit slower paced.

Our previous gym seemed like that, however the HC would pop in occasionally with the "lower" group and girls would also occasionally move from one group to the other(although the move from HC to non-HC only seemed to happen after injury).

So was it like that or was it just "be picked or get out of my way" type thing.

 

[raenndrops]

Hi,
My daughter has been in the JO program at level 6. This year the head coach decided to send some of the level 6 girls to the Excel program to the Diamond level, and others to level 7. Her argument is that it's based on skills and that those sent to Diamond do not have the skills, but it clearly isn't, as some girls, including my daughter, have skills that are very competitive if not flat out higher than some who were sent to level 7. In your experience, do gyms take organizational criteria into consideration when moving girls around, such as having a competitive Excel group, avoiding overloads of a level where too many gymnasts would impede progress, and other criteria like that? The worst part is that they never communicated any indication that this would happen. They always seemed to agree that she would make it to level 7 where her friend is going...
As you can imagine my daughter has felt betrayed and abused. We feel treated like cattle that serves the interests of the gym and not the gymnasts.

Technically, if they did not compete any meets at Level 7, they would have to either go to Xcel Platinum OR be petitioned into Diamond if they are old enough.

So definitely get a meeting with the coach to find out what's up.

 

[TheXcelMom]

her kid's emotional maturity was sited

Xcel isn't where you put "emotionally immature" athletes either, as most of the girls in any given level will be older than equivalent DP athletes.

(crap. i didn't realizee this was an old thread)

 

[Aussie_coach]

As a gym owner I can also tell you that if you ask, why they made this decision they will usually tell you what they think you want to hear. Not the real answer.

This is human nature. If you owned a restaurant and you took an item off the menu because a lot of people got good poisoning. When a customer came and asked you why you don’t serve it anymore, you wouldn’t tell them the truth. You would say something like it was hard to get the ingredients.

The same will go for a gym. If the decision was basset on a coach locking favourites, or balancing out class numbers etc. they won’t tell you.

 

[LPmom]

I have experience with a gym doing this at certain levels not because there was anything wrong with an athlete’s competitiveness at that level, but because there is a bubble group of athletes a level below and they realized that there wouldn’t be sufficient room in a training group to accommodate everyone in the next year or two. If the level below is younger or learns faster, it might not matter where your athlete stands within her group, especially if other athletes in that group have younger sisters who are talented. It’s the rare parent who will split girls between gyms so when in doubt, many gyms will consciously or unconsciously choose a pair of 1 competent + 1 very talented sister over an only child who is moderately talented in order to make room at a certain level.