How does your gym treat prep op (XCel)?

[monkeysmom]

Does your gym and/or team website exclude them or list them as one of the teams? If they compete in the same meet--but at different times/divisions (they did sometimes here), does the website only list level 4-10 results and not the prep op? If prep op teams win meets, is there any mention given similiar to that given for the other teams? Our gym website seems to redact out the prep op entirely, other than listing their practice times on the website. Is this usual?

 

[gymmomntc2e6]

our gym does compulsory in the fall & prep op in the spring. There is no seperate team. Our L3's are doing Bronze & our L5 are doing Gold.

 

[Danica76]

Our Prep Op girls make up a big part of the team and are treated exactly the same as the JO girls. A lot of them are doing Prep Op after L5 instead of going to L6. Then they will do a meet at L6 next year and go to L7 if they are ready. Some may decide to stay in Prep Op if that's their choice/path. Everyone's scores are listed on the gym website, the entire team, which the Prep Op girls are just a much a part of as everyone else. There is no separation between anyone

 

[thefellowsmom]

The Rec Op team is listed on our website as one of the team options for girls. We actually have three "team" options. There is a rec program that does fun comps in our area, there is rec op that is sold as a less strenuous, time intensive, and expensive competitive program and our JO team, which expectations are high and because of the strength of our rec op team, not everyone makes it past level 4/5 JO.

Results are almost never listed on our site, rec op or JO, so that isn't really an issue. In fact, there is very little mention of the team programs at all on the website. Sometimes, if an individual coach makes a concerted effort, something will get mentioned, but not usually. I've never really understood this, but whatever.

The Rec Op girls work out in the competitive gym with the JO and development girls, but in separate groups. We even have a development program for rec op. It is very common for girls to move from JO to rec op either because they don't like the commitment or intensity of JO or it is determined after several years at the same level that they might be more successful there. Our rec op team is very successful in our state.

 

[gymnastgets10]

In my state there are 3 levels of prep op - beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Each are treated a little differently by my gym.

BPO, which is like levels 3-5, is the rec team at our gym. They usually have rec coaches and use our rec gym but they sometimes come into the team gym and get some time with the HC. They compete in about 3 local meets a year and sometimes states.

IPO, which is like 5-7, is for 2 groups of gymnasts at my gym - girls who have done a year of 5 and are probably ready to move up but are shaky on a few skills or don't have the best form and would get low scores in 6, or girls who aren't quite ready for level 7. Both of these groups will usually repeat IPO until they're ready for level 7 and then score out of a level 6 meet if they haven't yet. They work out with the level 7 team and have about 8 meets a year.

APO, which is like 7-9, is for highschool girls that have chosen not to compete JO for various reasons - fear, not as much commitment, injury. I'm competing it this year because of some nagging injuries and the strain traveling for meets puts on my family. We can pick our hours (anywhere from 10-20), we work out with a girls our age that are in levels 9 and 10, and have 4-6 mostly local meets a year.

We don't typically post meet results on our website but in team newsletters and events the IPO and APO teams are included with the JO teams, and BPO is included in the rec gym stuff. There isn't really a stigma attached to prep op as I've heard of in other gyms; we're all at the gym because we love gymnastics and are competing the the level or program that will benefit us the most.

 

[gymmomtoo]

Our gym is just starting an XCel program in January, but I can tell you how the HC/Owner presented it to the booster board--XCel will be part of the Team--coming to the banquet at the end of the year, etc., but won't be part of the booster club. I'm guessing that's because they will attend fewer meets and the HC wants there to be less of a commitment for the parents. I am in charge of the Booster club website and I DO plan to put their meet times and results on the website.

 

[cher062]

Old gym - it was the place to go when you wanted to do team but they didn't think you were good enough or the place you went when the gym though you had "developed" to much for the level you are at (that is you grew some breast and were at L5 or L6) or where the early teens go so they don't have to deal with the hormonal roller coaster that comes with that age. it was where you were threatened to end up if you were on team and they thought you weren't trying your best.

New Gym - they run it as a seperate program from JO program each program has its own set of coaches and its never used as a threat to the JO team or promoted as the place to go if you can't hack or arent good enough for JO team. It is just listed as a different program that is also a competing team.

 

[gymcoach26]

Are prep op and compulsories are 2 separate teams made of different children, but both teams are taught by the same team coaches. Prep op novice is equivalent to compulsory 4/5, prep intermediate is equivalent to 5/6, and prep advanced is about level 6-7. I believe there may be one other level above advanced (maybe superior?) but we don't have any at that level yet. Both the compulsories and the prep op trophies are displayed as well as both their accomplishments announced.
We occasionally run into a few snobby parents or children who think that because they are a compulsory they are some how better then the prep op, but we quickly shut that down.

 

[bookworm]

Does your gym and/or team website exclude them or list them as one of the teams? If they compete in the same meet--but at different times/divisions (they did sometimes here), does the website only list level 4-10 results and not the prep op? If prep op teams win meets, is there any mention given similiar to that given for the other teams? Our gym website seems to redact out the prep op entirely, other than listing their practice times on the website. Is this usual?

Well in our old gym , there were a couple of elites and only they were featured on the website!! Didn't matter that 10 girls qualified (and did fairly well) at JO Nationals or that 6 made it to Level 9 Easterns...NADA...only things on the website, per the Head Coach's directive were results and pictures of his elites ....the person who did the website asked about putting up other results or even a page for college recruitables and was told that "no one is interested in anyone but the elites ,so no" ....the attitude was too much for me so I took my money to a gym that WAS interested in coaching JO ...so to answer your question, there was prep op at that gym, but only as a money maker...nothing featured on the website for them or any other levels though...