Parents How do you feel about 100% medals placements?

[rjb123]

My youngest child does swim and the first couple of years she competed, in every event she finished (made it across) they all got a ribbon that said "i did my best" and a popsicle. The winner got a ribbon that was different that said "winner". It was a nice middle ground I thought. Oh, the winner also got the popsicle, which is a good thing because my child would have been REALLY upset to just get a winner ribbon and NO popsicle! HA! I think around age 8 they stated doing *real* awards.

 

[mommyof1]

My youngest child does swim and the first couple of years she competed, in every event she finished (made it across) they all got a ribbon that said "i did my best" and a popsicle. The winner got a ribbon that was different that said "winner". It was a nice middle ground I thought. Oh, the winner also got the popsicle, which is a good thing because my child would have been REALLY upset to just get a winner ribbon and NO popsicle! HA! I think around age 8 they stated doing *real* awards.

I would have no objection to popsicles all the way out if they were distributed efficiently. I think 100% of the parents should get popsicles too, because we expend significant effort using our telekinetic powers to keep them all up on the beam.

 

[Sk8ermaiden]

Summer swim league here gives fewer awards than gym (ribbons to the top 6, I think, in age groups that can easily top 40), but they also give you a ribbon every time you get a personal best in an event.

That is totally something I could get behind to replace awarding so far out in gym meets. And unlike participation medals, personal bests are actually something to be proud of.

 

[profmom]

The problem there is that your best score may not reflect your best routine. My son did his best optional pommel routine EVER last weekend and was awarded his second lowest score of the season.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Awards like I tried and I did my best are appropriate for very young children .

At some point that message has to come internally and not externally.

In life we don’t get awards for just getting through the day.

 

[LindyHopper]

Awards like I tried and I did my best are appropriate for very young children .

At some point that message has to come internally and not externally.

In life we don’t get awards for just getting through the day.

I would say that if there is an optional gymnast, who is 12+ years old, and in the gym 16+ hours a week, that gymnast is already internally motivated.

I can't see any tween being willing to put the time, effort, and energy into optional gymnastics if he/she wasn't internally motivated.

And yes, it's true that we don't get awards for getting through the day. However, considering gymnasts spend over 700 hours a year practicing for approximately 35 minutes of actual competition time, it would be nice for each of those 7-10 meets each year to commemorate the meet in some way, even if only an AA medal (although I agree that the bottom 50% should just be called up together rather than calling out placments to last place). Although, Most girls I know would rather have a leo instead of a medal. The earbuds received at another meet were a big hit too.

@Deleted member 18037, you probably feel differently, and that's okay. Different perspectives are important.

 

[MILgymFAM]

I would say that if there is an optional gymnast, who is 12+ years old, and in the gym 16+ hours a week, that gymnast is already internally motivated.

I can't see any tween being willing to put the time, effort, and energy into optional gymnastics if he/she wasn't internally motivated.

And yes, it's true that we don't get awards for getting through the day. However, considering gymnasts spend over 700 hours a year practicing for approximately 35 minutes of actual competition time, it would be nice for each of those 7-10 meets each year to commemorate the meet in some way, even if only an AA medal (although I agree that the bottom 50% should just be called up together rather than calling out placments to last place). Although, Most girls I know would rather have a leo instead of a medal. The earbuds received at another meet were a big hit too.

@Deleted member 18037, you probably feel differently, and that's okay. Different perspectives are important.

I think my daughter would be ecstatic if meets switched to medals for top three and a leo or gym shorts for everyone as a momento, as long as the leo was specific to the meet. She LOVES meet leos!

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Although, Most girls I know would rather have a leo instead of a medal. The earbuds received at another meet were a big hit too.

@Deleted member 18037, you probably feel differently, and that's okay. Different perspectives are important.

I know I’m not the only one.

But a meet memento is fine.....medals for just being there no.

And there are always exceptions. For instance things you need to qualify for. In NY. At states, all the girls get a medal. They are given out first thing before awards start. Because they all had to earn the right to be there that’s acknowledged.

Closing ceremonies at the Olympics last night. There were a lot of athletes, who spent a lot of hours, years and money training. And the majority of them did not get a medal.

It is the nature of sports.

 

[LindyHopper]

They are given out first thing before awards start. Because they all had to earn the right to be there that’s acknowledged.

This is a FANTASTIC way to do things. Love it!

Closing ceremonies at the Olympics last night. There were a lot of athletes, who spent a lot of hours, years and money training. And the majority of them did not get a medal

Yep and they also brought home a whole lot of Olympic SWAG from their home country, and all of the pins they traded with others.

 

[tpMom]

I would have no objection to popsicles all the way out if they were distributed efficiently. I think 100% of the parents should get popsicles too, because we expend significant effort using our telekinetic powers to keep them all up on the beam.

This made me laugh out loud!

 

[Natasha]

I remember being told that the minimum requirement was 1/3 plus one. It's definitely not 50%, because our state meet does not place out to 50%.

Each state/region sets their own requirements. Our state requires 50% + 1 for events and 100% AA. If you are hosting an invitational and want to be sanctioned, you are supposed to follow all the requirements. So, when we hosted an invitational, even if we wanted to only go 50% for AA, we were required to follow the state guidelines.

 

[raenndrops]

The problem there is that your best score may not reflect your best routine. My son did his best optional pommel routine EVER last weekend and was awarded his second lowest score of the season.

Another problem... How would the host team necessarily know the gymnasts' personal best scores? Heck, with the 42 gymnasts we have, HC (and sometimes even the child's own parents) dont know if they got a personal best.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

This is a FANTASTIC way to do things. Love it!


Yep and they also brought home a whole lot of Olympic SWAG from their home country, and all of the pins they traded with others.

Yep tons of swag. No medals though.

 

[sce]

I don't mind if they do medals all the way out for AA but not with calling their places. Call for the top 50% and then say "and also in this group is..." and give them their medal. But then people argue against participation medals. At cool meets, like the Nadia one we went to, dd would have loved to have a medal. They did just ribbons for event places outside of top 3.

But they are still read in order, so the girls know who placed last.

 

[MILgymFAM]

But they are still read in order, so the girls know who placed last.

I’m not sure if it’s true very often, but we’ve been to a couple of meets where they said the rest of the AA girls after placement level in alphabetical order. I thought that was a nice way to handle it.

 

[John]

DD votes for Leos.

 

[sce]

I’m not sure if it’s true very often, but we’ve been to a couple of meets where they said the rest of the AA girls after placement level in alphabetical order. I thought that was a nice way to handle it.

It was true for every meet my dd competed in.

 

[LindyHopper]

This is a FANTASTIC way to do things. Love it!


Yep and a whole lot of Olympic SWAG from their home country, and all of the pins they traded with others.

Yep tons of swag. No medals though.

That's my point. Let gymnasts bring SOMETHING home--their own swag--whether a leo, earbuds, FEAT by Alt socks, or if the meet organizers choose to do so, a medal.

And I don't know a single gymnast over the age of 11 who wouldn't prefer some other sort of gift to a last place medal.

My point is simply that I don't think gymnasts see a participation medal as any sort of reward, accomplishment, or as something to externally motivate them. I think that older, more experienced gymnasts see them simply as swag or a momento.

 

[GymMom4]

That's my point. Let gymnasts bring SOMETHING home--their own swag--whether a leo, earbuds, FEAT by Alt socks, or if the meet organizers choose to do so, a medal.

And I don't know a single gymnast over the age of 11 who wouldn't prefer some other sort of gift to a last place medal.

My point is simply that I don't think gymnasts see a participation medal as any sort of reward, accomplishment, or as something to externally motivate them. I think that older, more experienced gymnasts see them simply as swag or a momento.

Exactly. Mine likes to have something to remember the meet by and we don't always want to spend more to get her whatever they are selling because we've already paid for her to compete at the meet, travel and hotel, getting into the meet, etc. At her last meet they got a long-sleeved tshirt and that was a nice surprise. At another they got a little bag with a small box of mints and some other things. Nothing major but something to remember the meet by.

And we've been to meets where the lower placements weren't read in order, others where they were.

 

[TumbleTimes4]

I’m fine with everyone getting a t-shirt to commemorate a meet, even though it could be argued that there is still an expectation of receiving something simply for showing up thus still creating entitlement. IMO though everyone getting a T-shirt is much different than everyone getting medals. And I really wish the 4th, 5th, etc. medals weren’t the same as the 3rd place medal. Occasionally the colored ribbons they hang on are different colors, but only 1 meet that we have been too where the third place medal was different.