Women questions about UK regional grades

[twinklytoes9468]

(1) How many hours do your gymnasts working to grade 14 and grade 13 train? (2) can they skip a grade/ start on grade 13 rather than 14 (3) what grade would be in-age for a child born Dec 2004?Many thanks

 

[Flossyduck]

Girls training grade 14 and 13 at our gym do 8 hours a week. Then they up to 10 or 12 hours for grade 12+. Yes you can skip a grade and start at 13. The in-age grade for a child born in 2004 would be grade 13 this year.

 

[Iwannabemargo]

Mine currently does 6 1/2 hours a week. She is 10 at the end of November and will Do grade 12 in september( in age). We are hoping to swap to national grades next year. We would like more hours but atm there are no more sessions.

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[meeeshymoo]

My dd did about 8 hrs per week at grade 13, gradually increasing to where she is now at 21 hrs per week. She is 12 and just competed national grade 7.
She also skipped 14 and started at grade13 x

 

[Faith]

Mine currently does 6 1/2 hours a week. She is 10 at the end of November and will Do grade 12 in september( in age). We are hoping to swap to national grades next year. We would like more hours but atm there are no more sessions.

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So what's the age for national grades? And the difference between regional? I take it it's not like compulsory levels where they do one per year?

Having youtubed some videos there seems to be a huge difference between grades and levels- I can see why there is an argument for bypassing compulsories and going straight to espoir/junior challenge....

 

[Iwannabemargo]

yep, its competing 10 - we would have done 8 this year to be "in age" but our region had them in March and she hadn't been back in gym long enough to train up for them.

there is a good guide I found on tinternet quoted below

"A gymnast is not able to enter a regional competition until the year she turns 8 and is not able to qualify for a national final until the year she turns 9. It is the calendar year which is important for these purposes and so our groups are often referred to by their year of birth ie.02s, 03s etc. For young gymnasts entering the competition system there are two main competitive paths which can be taken depending on the gymnasts’ aspirations and abilities. The first is the elite route, the second the club route. Following a recent change to the club grades competition structure, the club route can now be sub-divided further into regional and national club grades.

Elite grades are organized into 3 nationally structured levels and one regionally structured level as follows:

Age 8 – Compulsory level 5 (regional only)
Age 9 – Compulsory level 4 (regional and national events)
Age 10 (or 11) – Compulsory level 3 (regional and national events)
Age 11 (or 12) – Compulsory level 2 (national event only).


A gymnast does not need to pass compulsory 5 to enter compulsory 4, or compulsory 4 to enter compulsory 3. However, a gymnast does need to pass compulsory 3 at age either 10 (in age) or 11 (out of age) in order to enter compulsory 2. There are two compulsory 2 events per year, in spring and the autumn and a gymnast can have a total of 3 attempts at compulsory 2 across the years they turn 11 and 12. Any gymnast that passes compulsory 2 becomes an elite gymnast and can enter the British Championships the following year.

The compulsory grades are marked out of 13.5 on each apparatus. The girls compete on the 4 regular pieces of apparatus plus they must also perform a Range and Conditioning exercise. This is a routine performed on the floor, sometimes with the aid of a bench, which is designed to test the gymnasts’ strength and flexibility. The routines are very difficult and include lots of held handstands, splits and lever moves.

In order to pass compulsory 4, 3 or 2 the gymnast must achieve a set overall score (currently 47.5 for compulsory 4, 50 for compulsory 3 and 52.5 for compulsory 2). They must also achieve a prescribed pass mark on range and conditioning (9.5 at compulsory 4, 10 at compulsory 3 and 10.5 at compulsory 2). At 3 and 2 a gymnast who achieves the overall pass mark but fails the range mark gets the chance to re-take the range at the end of the competition (only once!).

At the regional heats of compulsory 4 and 3 the top 4 finishers make up the region’s team to compete at the national finals. Any gymnast who achieves the overall and Range and Conditioning pass marks, can also travel to the national finals and compete for their own club.

So that’s the elite grades. Those grades are extremely difficult, particularly at level 2 and are only achievable for the most talented and committed of athletes. Far more gymnasts compete in the Club Grades competitions which work as follows:-

Regional Grades:

Age 8+ - Grade 14 (County qualifier in age groups, to regional final)
Age 9+ - Grade 13 ( “ “ “ “ “)
Age 10+ - Grade 12 ( “ “ “ “ )
Age 10+ - Grade 11( “ “ “ “ “ “ )
Age 10+ - Grade 10 ( “ “ “ “ )
Age 10+ - Grade 9 ( “ “ “ “ )

National Grades (all age 10 plus): Grades 8-5 – regional qualifier leading to national final for the top 4 placed gymnasts.

Gymnasts do not have to take all the grades but can enter at whatever level they wish, but can only take 1 grade per year. Grades 14 and 13 plus all of the national grades have a range and conditioning exercise as well as the four basic events and moves to be performed are set (there are some options). For the National Club Grades the range and conditioning set is performed only at the regional final and the gymnast must achieve a pass mark there if they are to pass the grade overall and to qualify for the national final. The range and conditioning set is not performed at the national final.

Gymnasts can switch between national and regional club and elite grades. Often girls that pass compulsory 3 but cannot achieve the difficult moves required for compulsory 2, drop to Club Grades and young gymnasts may start out with grade 14 before moving to compulsory 4 the following year.

In the autumn of the year most gymnasts compete in voluntary level competitions. Here the gymnasts compete moves of their choice rather than the set moves which they perform in the grades events although some categories of moves are still set and must be performed – the gymnasts have more choice about how to fulfill a particular requirement.

The National Development Plan recognizes 3 levels – 4, 3 and 2. For in age gymnasts this works in line with the compulsory grade ages so for example a 9 year old elite stream gymnast would take compulsory grade 4 in the spring and compete in level 4 in age in the autumn. However the levels are open to all age groups on similar rules. The levels work as follows:

Age 9 – Level 4 in age – direct to regional final, qualifier to national finals

Age 10 – Level 3 in age – direct to regional final, qualifier to national finals OR
Level 4 out of age – county qualifier to regional final in age groups

Age 11 – Level 2 in age – direct to regional final, and direct to national finals OR
Level 4 or 3 out of age – county qualifier to regional final in age groups

Gymnasts 12 plus out of age can also compete at any of the regional levels events. It is direct entry to the regional event at level 2."

Hope that helps

'Margo

 

[meeeshymoo]

What do you guys think of the seemingly simpler American levels system ?
I always thought it looked better, but more pressure re moving up through the levels....

 

[Iwannabemargo]

I don't think that it would work so Well over here. As you say its a very high pressure system that requires large hours of participation. I just don't think we have, in most gyms, the times availble for that much practice.

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[gymnastflip]

Well I think the American system Is better-
•everyone does the same levels and starts in the same place
•elites come from the same levels as non elites(unlike the british system where it is very difficult to get to national championships after doing national grades rather than compulsory levels) this is the biggest problem as it rules out children from elite at the ages of 7/8(and quite a few gymnasts in the us have been unsuccessful at that age and progressed later eg shawn Johnson.

The us system gives everyone a chance to a certain extent however this is just my personal opinion as a gymnast

 

[gymnastflip]

Also although it does make meat and tidy gymnasts from compulsories- especially due to the range and conditioning, they struggle with difficulty after they finish compulsory 2 age 11 when they have to progress to espoir championships the next year.