WAG Coach "Shunning" Xcel Girls

[GymFan96]

My niece is an Xcel Platinum. Her coach limits their floor routines to 50 seconds, won't let them take their "touch" warmup before events, and only lets them take one vault, even if the first one is bad. The coach seems to have this attitude that the Xcel girls are a waste of time and barely deserve to even be out there competing. Almost like they are embarrassing her or something. Niece's mom was going to talk to the coach about it but I told her if that's how things are done it's not her place to argue. It does seem unfair though. The Xcels are paying just as much as the USAs.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Well I'm a rather blunt person so I would be talking to the coach and whoever the coaches boss was.

But I would also be looking at gyms that valued their Xcel program more in anticipation of my concerns falling on deaf ears.

So we would be out of there.

 

[Sk8ermaiden]

Yeah, that's awful. No way would we still be staying and paying money. Xcel girls work hard too, and their parents' money is just as green. It's part of why I like that at the moment we are at an Xcel-only gym, even though I know there are some where JO and Xcel co-exist well.

 

[coachmolly]

It's really unfortunate and unfair to the kids and parents, but it happens. I'm surprised the coach is actually coaching both Xcel and optionals, usually gyms with that philosophy towards the Xcel program have a totally different staff working with the Xcel team- not uncommonly staff who are less qualified or lacking in experience- so the "real" coaches don't have to deal with it. Someone could attempt talking to the owner, but it would probably fall on deaf ears. My suggestion would be to seek out a gym that values their Xcel kids and place them in an environment where they can actually thrive.
We have a couple big name gyms we compete against who dominate in JO and their Xcel teams are not competitive at all, it's a big red flag that the Xcel program is the ugly step child of the gym and I'm not entirely sure why the kids stay there. In some cases the kids are even little and talented kids who would probably be JO track at another club.
Growing up, I trained at a gym that had 2 clearly defined training groups. The HC's hand picked girls and the riff raff. We competed against each other from time to time, but there was no crossover between the 2 groups. HC wanted you or he didn't. His group got to go to better meets, better opportunities, better coaching, we got what was leftover. I was placed in the "other" group before he saw me do a single skill. I wanted nothing more than to be seen and appreciated by this man and it just didn't happen, no matter how many meetings with parents or how much I did. Though I didn't realize it at the time, it had a seriously detrimental effect on me as a person, spending 3 years in a place where, no matter how hard I tried, I was not nor would I ever be enough. So don't take the mistreatment lightly.

 

[Sk8ermaiden]

Though I didn't realize it at the time, it had a seriously detrimental effect on me as a person, spending 3 years in a place where, no matter how hard I tried, I was not nor would I ever be enough. So don't take the mistreatment lightly.

I am sorry that happened to you. That is the main reason we moved DD. We were at a huge gym with a selective JO team that does very well. DD WAS one of the chosen ones, but she was forever "too slow," "not enough body awareness," "low twitch." Those little girls worked SO HARD, but all the feedback they ever got was that it wasn't good enough. She dealt with it OK, but I worried what it would do to her mental health, long term. It seems like being in a relationship, giving the other person everything, and just hoping that one day they'll love you back. Not healthy or good for self esteem.

I have my own gripes with her current program, especially coming from the stellar program we left (and it was stellar in most respects), but I know that the message she is getting from her coaches, through their words and actions, is that she is strong and capable, and they believe in her. Which I think, in 20 years, will be thing that actually mattered.

 

[Gymmommy71]

Sounds like a coach who shouldn't be coaching XCel. You have a mix in my area of which gyms value their XCel versus don't...

Our gym values them cause they pay a lot more per hour - and our coach that heads the program is a big believer in XCel. We used to have a coach (not there anymore) who had a similar attitude to the coach OP describes :/ - however, that same coach didn't seem to value any JO over the age of 13 either, so the problem wasn't just XCel but more like they only thought kids who had the potential to be elite were worth their time...

If your neice were my kid, I'd be looking for another gym. Or at the very least inquiring about a coaching change at the current gym.

 

[mls529]

I just want to echo what others are saying. I don't think it will ever change at the current gym, unless the HC also changes. We just made a move this summer from a gym with JO + Xcel (a great program, but Xcel was very much the stepchild). My daughter refused to even consider Xcel at that gym -- the only mobility is "moving down" into Xcel and you can never move back up (their words, not mine). The coaches would even say things like "if you don't go for that BHS on beam, you may need to move into Xcel." Like a punishment!

We went to Xcel only gym. And like a previous poster, my daughter misses the conditioning and better equipment at the old gym, but the Xcel only gym is much better for her mental well-being. At an Xcel only gym, you are the "team" and the rec kids totally look up to you. At a combo gym, Xcel is sometimes not even called "team" -- different leos, different meets. it makes me sad that it can't co-exist better. I would personally be looking for another gym if I was your niece's mom.

 

[Gymmommy71]

I just want to echo what others are saying. I don't think it will ever change at the current gym, unless the HC also changes. We just made a move this summer from a gym with JO + Xcel (a great program, but Xcel was very much the stepchild). My daughter refused to even consider Xcel at that gym -- the only mobility is "moving down" into Xcel and you can never move back up (their words, not mine). The coaches would even say things like "if you don't go for that BHS on beam, you may need to move into Xcel." Like a punishment!

We went to Xcel only gym. And like a previous poster, my daughter misses the conditioning and better equipment at the old gym, but the Xcel only gym is much better for her mental well-being. At an Xcel only gym, you are the "team" and the rec kids totally look up to you. At a combo gym, Xcel is sometimes not even called "team" -- different leos, different meets. it makes me sad that it can't co-exist better. I would personally be looking for another gym if I was your niece's mom.

My daughter was once at a gym that did this to their JOs. Any lack of focus or slowness in getting skills that would be the threat...

 

[raenndrops]

So glad that at our gym, Xcel and JO are all TEAM. They practice together (same time, same coaches, same leotards, same meets). This year, we had to go to "training groups" because our team is growing so much.
L7-8 and Xcel Platinum are one group (6 - 10).
L6 is a group (5). L6 often gets added into the L7+ group, especially when the "extra" high school girls are at HS team practice (now through March).
Xcel Gold is a group (10).
L4-5 is a group (12).
And L3 is a group (11).
All the groups are about the same size.

 

[FlippinLilysMom]

Our JO team and Excel teams are considered two completely seperate entities in our gym. The JO team girls have their coaches and practice times and the Excel girls have their very own coaches and practice times. The practices never overlap, they girls don't compete together (though they may go to the same meets but will compete at different times) and the Excel girls are not part of our booster club. Just like the rec kids are a completely seperate entity, with their own coaches, etc...The most that the Excel girls train is 9 hours per week, while the JO girls train 20-25 hours per week. I couldn't imagine our JO girls having the same coaches as the Excel girls.

 

[mommyof1]

My daughter was once at a gym that did this to their JOs. Any lack of focus or slowness in getting skills that would be the threat...

That happened to my daughter a lot in L3 too. It drove me crazy because the pressure only made things worse. They weren’t kidding, either. One of the L3s in her group did get tracked to XCel instead of L4, and there seems to be a trend of weeding kids out of JO at L7 as well. It causes a huge amount of stress for my kid and me every time she goes through a rough patch.

 

[raenndrops]

Our JO team and Excel teams are considered two completely seperate entities in our gym. The JO team girls have their coaches and practice times and the Excel girls have their very own coaches and practice times. The practices never overlap, they girls don't compete together (though they may go to the same meets but will compete at different times) and the Excel girls are not part of our booster club. Just like the rec kids are a completely seperate entity, with their own coaches, etc...The most that the Excel girls train is 9 hours per week, while the JO girls train 20-25 hours per week. I couldn't imagine our JO girls having the same coaches as the Excel girls.

Sorry... pet peeve of mine...
Excel is a MicroSoft Office spreadsheet program.
Xcel is a USAG gymnastics program.

Our team coaches also coach rec as needed... or rec coaches will help with team, if they are available.

 

[FlippinLilysMom]

Sorry... pet peeve of mine...
Excel is a MicroSoft Office spreadsheet program.
Xcel is a USAG gymnastics program.

Our team coaches also coach rec as needed... or rec coaches will help with team, if they are available.

Sorry, spellcheck!

 

[Bess]

At our gym JO and Xcel gymnasts are equally valued. The xcel group is dramatically smaller and are often mixed in with JO levels during practice. Little Bit is what some would consider a kid on fast track (at least as far as our gym is concerned...perhaps not as much as some at other gyms). Even with her great training opportunities I would have a seriously hard time letting her stay at a gym that I saw treating other kids as poorly as the OP stated.

 

[mls529]

At our gym JO and Xcel gymnasts are equally valued. The xcel group is dramatically smaller and are often mixed in with JO levels during practice. Little Bit is what some would consider a kid on fast track (at least as far as our gym is concerned...perhaps not as much as some at other gyms). Even with her great training opportunities I would have a seriously hard time letting her stay at a gym that I saw treating other kids as poorly as the OP stated.

Yes, that is the real issue. Not that there are different coaches, or that is a different program. Everyone has unique goals and paths, and I am personally grateful it is not one size fits all. But, it is about treating all the kids in the gym with respect, regardless if they are training elite, a Level 6, Xcel Bronze or a regular rec kid. It doesn't build anyone up to "threaten Xcel" on a little kid. Or, as the OP said, letting a kid only take 1 vault, or not warm up properly.

 

[FlippinLilysMom]

I've also learned that it's quite common for gyms to start girls on the Xcel path and then move them to JO, our gym doesn't do that. We also don't compete levels 1-3. We have level 4, they will compete 3-4 meets and try and qualify to state. Then they will do a score out meet for level 5 and move to level 6. We've never had a girl move from Xcel to JO, but have had girls move from JO to Xcel. Our Xcel team is almost twice as large as our JO team and the girls on the Xcel team love it, they are able to continue doing gymnastics and competing while not having to put in as much practice time and can still have a "normal" life (we lost over half of our level 8s this year to either Xcel or high school). I hope my earlier post didn't come across as rude or snarky, that's not how I meant it at all. If it came across that way I apologize. But there is no way that our JO coaches would be able to also coach Xcel, they would be at the gym for 60 hours a week! So for our gym and coaches it works out great, I haven't heard any complaints. But as a parent I would be VERY upset if I felt that my daughter or her teammates were being shunned or treated differently just because of the level they are at or the skills that they are working on. I totally agree that all gymnasts should get equal coaching and all should be treated with the same respect that the coaches expect to be treated with.

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

We do have both programs and yes, Xcel is considered a "step down" from JO. Not necessarily in a bad way, there are great coaches, but the program itself was designed as a less intense track and that is true in our gym. It is for the girls who want less hours, less cost, less intensity. I love the program and love that it offers a spot in this sport for kids who (for whatever reason) cannot be all in like the JO track. They practice completely separately (time and space, gym can only accommodate so many groups/kids at a time!) and do have different leotards etc (again, going for less cost...). We have movement between the groups, often older JO girls who want less hours go Xcel and some younger Xcel girls who show promise move to L4/5.

 

[Sasha]

It seems like being in a relationship, giving the other person everything, and just hoping that one day they'll love you back. Not healthy or good for self esteem.

Just wanted to "Like" this quote as a very good metaphor to all those athletes (and their parents) sticking in a gym program where they are not feeling recognized and supported, and stressing because they are hoping to 'be noticed.'

You are spot on that doing that for very long is only going to be harmful. It rarely ever ends well in relationships or gymnastics.

 

[3rd_time_around]

We do have both programs and yes, Xcel is considered a "step down" from JO. Not necessarily in a bad way, there are great coaches, but the program itself was designed as a less intense track and that is true in our gym. It is for the girls who want less hours, less cost, less intensity. I love the program and love that it offers a spot in this sport for kids who (for whatever reason) cannot be all in like the JO track. They practice completely separately (time and space, gym can only accommodate so many groups/kids at a time!) and do have different leotards etc (again, going for less cost...). We have movement between the groups, often older JO girls who want less hours go Xcel and some younger Xcel girls who show promise move to L4/5.

Yes, this. I was going to say that Xcel was designed to fill in between competitive seasons, or for gymnasts who weren't quite there with the JO skills needed for team, or for girls who couldn't or wouldn't commit to the hours for JO, or for girls who just love the sport and want to compete, but lets face it, will never be JO team ready. It was created to keep more girls in the sport instead of the usual drop-off around middle school/levels 4/5 or 6/7/8. It is supposed to be less intense, less hours, etc. BUT if a gym has Xcel then they should treat the gymnasts with respect and not treat them like 2nd class people. For the OP's niece, there are gyms out there who treat their Xcel gymnasts very well, and maybe they should consider a move if another place is available for them.

(I know some people will not like this post, but at Regional Congress, the Xcel program director reiterated that Xcel is NOT a platform to get to optionals and should not be treated as such. It's NOT a platform to skip compulsories either.)

 

[RTT2]

Our gym is very big on treating both teams equally. Same leos and warm ups. Xcel is actually featured more often on Instagram and FB than JO. The only area of difference is that there are much bigger Xcel groups with fewer coaches, and Xcel (at least in the lower levels) get much less floor time. Otherwise, both are treated as serious athletes whose hard work and accomplishments are celebrated by the gym.

A kid who is working hard at their sport should never be made to feel lesser just because they aren't on the "top" track. I think your niece should find a new gym.