Parents Repeating a level after getting a score of 38?????

[GYM0M]

I think that holding one girl scoring high 37's or 38's is one thing but holding 6-7 girls back is going to draw a lot of negative attention. Or on the other hand, it could end up being positive attention/advertisement for the gym when they are able to sweep at states this year, lol.

Our coach held back 3-4 girls this year in L3. These are our TOPS girls. Our compulsory season is Aug-Dec.-ish. He kept them back because all summer they worked on TOPS instead of L4. Could they have been decent in L4? Sure. Could they have been decent in L4 & at national testing? Maybe. He didn't want to risk it. Only one state champ though! No sweeping over here, but the point is, just another reason coaches sometimes do what they do.

 

[B.Gold]

What I've always wondered (for the little bit of time in my life I've been thinking about gymnastixs) is why not just train without competing if you're stuck between levels. You did a level and dominated but you're missing something to move up- why isn't simply taking a season- if needed- to work on skills without competing ever put on the table as an option? Honestly, competing is expensive and wouldn't want to spend the money again on a level already competed successfully.

I guess an answer to this is the vast amount of time between when we sign our children up for a meet and the actual competition day. It can be over two months. There are a whole host of skills to be gained and lost in that time. And since money has already been paid, there is no financial gain from not competing if a gymnast is lacking a skill. It's difficult to forecast.

 

[cbifoja]

I guess an answer to this is the vast amount of time between when we sign our children up for a meet and the actual competition day. It can be over two months. There are a whole host of skills to be gained and lost in that time. And since money has already been paid, there is no financial gain from not competing if a gymnast is lacking a skill. It's difficult to forecast.

I think she means why not sit out a competition season. I can answer for our gym to say that our coaches don't allow it. The reason they give is that kids who aren't in a competing mindset can often be distracting to others, maybe not work as hard, and are using team resources without contributing anything to the team.

 

[profmom]

The point is that you don't know just by looking why a high scoring kid or kids is/are repeating a level why that is happening. You can't tell by looking, and I think that it's unhealthy for our children for us to be running around accusing other teams of unethical behavior. I've seen it in baseball. I've seen it in soccer. I've seen it in gym. It never goes anywhere good.

I do know of one sandbagging gym in my area, but I know because the head coach has talked to our head coach about it and has said frankly that the gym owner cares a lot about having the state champion team banners to hang about his gym. Beyond that, I don't know, and really my only view even on that situation is that it ultimately comes back to bite those kids in the butt.

 

[B.Gold]

I think she means why not sit out a competition season. I can answer for our gym to say that our coaches don't allow it. The reason they give is that kids who aren't in a competing mindset can often be distracting to others, maybe not work as hard, and are using team resources without contributing anything to the team.

No, I understand that. I loved her idea of sitting out a season so when I put thought into it it occurred to me levels are forecasted way in advance of the season and that's because we are required to sign up so early for meets....way too early really to know if there will be a missing skill or not, and if it's worth sitting the whole season out.

But I agree with your response. My dd would lose a lot of motivation, I think, if she weren't competing.

 

[raenndrops]

No, I understand that. I loved her idea of sitting out a season so when I put thought into it it occurred to me levels are forecasted way in advance of the season and that's because we are required to sign up so early for meets....way too early really to know if there will be a missing skill or not, and if it's worth sitting the whole season out.

But if the choice is to repeat a level the gymnast has successfully competed or not compete at all...
Many gyms do decide levels way in advance. But it is also possible to change levels during the season (sometimes even after the meet is scheduled).
If one event keeps a girl from being ready for the next level, but she has already killed it at the previous level (assuming she is already fully upgraded in her other events as an optional), then not competing might give her time to focus on what she needs to on the final event.
For some girls, this would be a motivating factor. For others, this may push them to retire and/or move on to another sport or activity.

 

[MILgymFAM]

No, I understand that. I loved her idea of sitting out a season so when I put thought into it it occurred to me levels are forecasted way in advance of the season and that's because we are required to sign up so early for meets....way too early really to know if there will be a missing skill or not, and if it's worth sitting the whole season out.

But I agree with your response. My dd would lose a lot of motivation, I think, if she weren't competing.

I guess it's complicated. Our gym doesn't choose levels very far in advance (some people at our gym still don't know their level for this season), and while gyms register for meets early the change/drop deadline isn't usually that early. My child would practice forever without a single competition and it wouldn't change her drive or enjoyment at all- every kid is different. To me it's no different than an injured kid not competing. They just aren't ready, and that's not a bad thing on its on.

 

[gymjunkie]

It's not good for kids to sit out a season for so many reasons. One practical one is they don't get priority coaching, while the kids who have meets do.

 

[Natasha]

The point is that you don't know just by looking why a high scoring kid or kids is/are repeating a level why that is happening. You can't tell by looking, and I think that it's unhealthy for our children for us to be running around accusing other teams of unethical behavior. I've seen it in baseball. I've seen it in soccer. I've seen it in gym. It never goes anywhere good.

I do know of one sandbagging gym in my area, but I know because the head coach has talked to our head coach about it and has said frankly that the gym owner cares a lot about having the state champion team banners to hang about his gym. Beyond that, I don't know, and really my only view even on that situation is that it ultimately comes back to bite those kids in the butt.

THIS. I just don't understand worrying about what other teams are doing with their kids at other gyms. So yes, it may mean that your kid places lower than they might have at a meet if that team hadn't been there. BUT its not like the other team has any affect on your kid beating her own personal AA or improving on an event or sticking a certain skill or getting the skills needed to move to the next level. I just think by focusing on what other teams are doing and accusing them of sandbagging is setting the example that the placements and medals are what is important. I know it is hard sometimes, because of course we want our kids to win and be rewarded for all that hard work. But if we are in it for the marathon, for those who are going to make it to L10, it just really isn't going to matter what other teams did or how the kids got to that level, because once you are at L10 there isn't sandbagging, there are just really talented girls, some who have been at that level for years.