I’ll weigh in generally in the hopes that you or anyone curious about this question will feel less alone.
Our old gym said and did all the right things to make move-ups and level decisions seem 100% objective. But then there were all sorts of behind-the-scenes things happening to make sure that certain hand-picked girls met the objective standards more easily than others. It took me years to put together the pieces and I thought I was crazy or just looking for excuses for my kid’s slower progress. But now that we are another gym, it’s more clear. There is a ton of favoritism and politics in every sport, gymnastics included. Our gym pretty much had its chosen ones from day 1, and it was rare that a girl could break through if she wasn’t one of them.
We saw secret private lessons when we were told they weren’t available, saw move-ups happen for half a group due to “space constraints”, saw upgrades and spotting forgotten about in the remaining half of the group because the coaches “forgot they hadn’t worked those yet”, attendance policies flexed for certain girls but never others, and so on.
But the system works for the girls it benefits and their parents will be the loudest supporting the gym and the coaches. It might be hinted subtly or openly that your opinion isn’t relevant because your daughter is not a daytime athlete, or a 38 AA, or is old for her level, or is “just a compulsory” or “just a 6/7” and so on.
If you feel like you have a very different experience than your teammates, maybe you’re a crazy gym mom. But more likely you’re seeing things as they are and should find a better gym. We did.
