The best age to start competing

[DND]

I read many threads about the different levels and competitions for gymnasts. It seems to me that in most regions they are competing as early as 5yo in levels 3/4.

My question is we live in Canada and I have been told my daughter cannot compete until she is at least 8yo (I think but I am not positive). If she was in the Provincial Stream she may be allowed as early as 7yo.

I was just wondering if anyone knows why Canada has adopted such a policy as I would think the sooner and the more exposure a child has in front of judges and learning routines; as well as preforming them in front of others would be beneficial.

Any thoughts??

Am I wrong and is there really a benefit to waiting before putting a child into the competitive field?

 

[ZJsMom]

I think 7 is a good age to start competing. I think the competitive stream in the US for younger and younger kids is a money maker for USAG and the clubs. I don't really see any advantage to kids competing that young. In fact, they'd probably progress faster if they spent time on drills and conditioning rather than routines.

 

[Coacharella]

Hi Margg

In Canada, (Ontario), the year a child is 7 on January 1st is when she can start competing at Invitational Competitions.
The year she is 9 on January 1st is when she begins the Provincial Stream (if she is Level 5 or higher). Provincial Athletes compete at 3 qualifiers in an attempt tp qualify for provincials, then Ontario Cup.

Maybe you were told she cannot start until she is 8 because that is particular club policy. Or maybe, she will have been 7 on January 1st, but not compete until after her birthday in say March, and then at competitions after that she will actually be 8 but still be competing as a 7 year old because of her age on January 1.

5 and 6 year olds do actually have the opportunity to compete in front of judges, just not on the apparatus. Rather, they compete in the Ontario Developmental Program, which is a series of tests on strength, flexibility and power similar to the American program called TOPS (search it on youtube). I believe the reason they do not have younger children showing routines is because they consider the maturity of a young child, and consider the possibile reactions they might have if they do not "win a medal", etc. This, of course, is just a guess. But this is also probably why certificates are handed out to the 5 and 6 year olds, so that each individual child gets an award, but also gains the experience of being "judged". In fact, even 7 and 8 year olds at Invitational Competitions do not stand on the podium and get "ranked" in public. Rather, they get certificates with a gold/silver/bronze sticker for each event. The colour of the sticker is determined by which range their score falls in. Each child leaves with experience and an award.

Hope this helps a bit

 

[Coacharella]

Also, many clubs offer their young gymnasts the chance to participate in Mock Competitions.

 

[bogwoppit]

Marggs dd is training towards pre novice national, I believe they cannot compete until 8.

 

[Coacharella]

That is correct Bog, I believe I just read that yesterday

 

[hawaii_gymnast]

In my province, also in Canada kids are not allowed to compete until they are 9, sometimes they can compete at the age of 8 in invitationals if they get special permission. But they still aren't allowed to compete in sanctioned meets until they are 9. I think we start older here because we don't have as many levels so the skills are a little harder than L3 and some harder than the L4 skills, before they compete they can participate in a precompetitive program that focuses on strength and most basics

 

[Deleted member D3987]

I think 7 is a good age to start competing. I think the competitive stream in the US for younger and younger kids is a money maker for USAG and the clubs. I don't really see any advantage to kids competing that young. In fact, they'd probably progress faster if they spent time on drills and conditioning rather than routines.

i concur. although 9 is a better age.

 

[gymnut1]

The UK grades system starts the year children turn 8. The first national elite grade is the year they turn 9. I think if you start too early there is more chance or burning out before gymnasts turn senior at 16.

 

[Aussie_coach]

There is no real need to compete too early, there are not too many benefits. Very young kids should be learning skills and falling in love with gymnastics. Going to competitions, learning routines, watching other kids win medals and not you, spending hours on end doing things over and over so as too meet the judges approval is not all 5 year olds idea of fun.

The key to having successful gymnasts in the future is to keep them in the sport.

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

Are there any articles or research which support waiting till children are older to introduce competition?

 

[Sparky]

We are also in Canada, and my dd (now 12) did her first comp at age 8 (we have 5 prov. levels, then to national). Prior to that she did a developmental program that included "testing" for physical ability and skills (two separate sections) 2 or 3 times a year (kinda like competing, but longer and more boring, LOL). My personal opinion is that in her case this has worked wonderfully. I can see no detriment to having starting competing at age 8 - she was very prepared for her first comp, she has moved up a level each year, and likely will do national novice next year, or perhaps at the end of this year. (I'm just using her as an example, generally speaking I like the idea of doing a developmental program til age 8, or even longer). Doesn't hurt them and does wonders for their core strength, flexibility, form, etc.

Whether it is a national stream (Pre-Novice) or provincial, I think the more important issues are hard work, dedication and focus - and of course great coaches who value the "marathon not sprint" philosophy when it comes to gymnastics. And a previous poster was right - it has to be FUN when they are little . They do it because they love it, not cause they have to.

Cheers

 

[NGL780309]

I agree that young kids would probably progress faster without competing and learning routines, but what's the point of progressing faster? My DD started competing L4 right after her 6th birthday and it's been a wonderful experience for her. She just absolutely loves it. I think she loves gymnastics more now that she competed. I don't know how far or how long my DD will stay in the sport so I want her to do what's fun for her right now.

To someone who commented about it not being fun to do routines over and over and then go to meets and see other kids win medals, that hasn't been our experience. They actually don't seem to work routines very much at all.

I know every kid is different and some go to meets and get upset if they don't win or if they fall. My DD isn't like that. She had a big mistake at every meet and it didn't bother her at all. She didn't really know the difference between getting 2nd place on an event and getting 10th. She got a medal and that's all she cared about. She was excited to get a gold medal at her last meet, but she's pretty unaware otherwise. She never realized she was getting scores and had such a great time. Now other girls on her team would see their score and cry or cry when they didn't win any medals. These girls were the older girls, 8-9 year olds. Will my DD start crying over results at that age? Maybe.

In all, competing very young has been a positive experience for my child. Is it better for her development as a gymnast? No, probably not. She loves it though and that matters most to me.

 

[GymGirl's Mom]

This was my DD's first year of competing she is 7- her team consisted of 5, 6, 7 and 8 year old girls. I would say without a doubt all the girls enjoyed competing and would do it again in a heartbeat. I don't think there's a perfect age- I feel more like there's a perfect time to start competing- and in my opinion the perfect time is when the girl's skills are all there and polished so that she will experience some level of success and satisfaction from competing. In other words- don't compete a 5 year old at Level 3 just because you can- compete a 5 year old at Level 3 when she can complete all the routines and shows some level of maturity that she can handle the pressure... likewise with 6, 7, 8 and up.

 

[bogwoppit]

In many countries gymnastics simply doesn't start until later. I don't think the systems are wrong at all, just different. If in your Country no kids started to compete until they were 10 you wouldn't bat an eyelid, unless you came to places like the CB and saw how other countries do it.

 

[WatchThisMom]

Maybe it's just my competitive streak because I was raised an athlete and my older children have been doing other sports for so long, but this is one of the things about gym that has taken me (as a parent) the most time to understand and accept (and it has been quite an adjustment)! I'm amazed at how my dd goes to practice every time with a smile on her face despite the fact that she isn't yet competing and likely won't until at least this fall, if not longer. To me, it's akin to going to baseball or soccer practice 3 times a week for months on end and never playing a game against another team! With other sports, so much of the excitement is the uniform and the game and the post game get-togethers. I'm so proud of her hard work, I can't wait to see her show it off! I know she would be excited to compete now, but she seems totally fine with the "practice now, compete later" approach. I'm really glad it's me that is anxious and impatient because I can hidet. But I can't wait to see her out there for the first time in her team leo, I can't lie! I'm so excited for her, she works so hard.

 

[Kiwi]

My DD did novice competitions for recreational gym at age 6, then last year competed in level 1 of the competitive stream at age 7. I think over here the girls generally start competitive training a little later, we don't really have 5 year old level 4 kids here. The girls compete from level 1, generally aged between 5 and 7. I think if they were training without any routines or competitions a lot of them would get bored. NZ is a small country and the gymnastics scene is very small, and a lot of girls don't stay in it right through to the higher levels, so it needs to be worthwhile for them in the lower levels. My DD loved doing the competitions, she does put a lot of pressure on herself but she enjoys it too. She loves the whole occasion of it, dressing up in the team leotard and tracksuit, marching on with her team and giving her best performance in each event.

 

[gymdog]

I prefer the kids to be at least 7 or 8 for USAG level 4 or 5. Are there some kids that are exceptions? I'm sure, but I'm also not sure there are thousands of them, which is what we're seeing.

I have no problem with informal competitions for the kids, but I think the focus on the routines and choreography is a lot, and it can be discouraging. If USAG is bent on pushing more and more kids into competitions at the lower levels and younger ages, then if you ask me they'd do well to come up with something else than what we have now. So far I have never worked at a gym that has kids competing under L4. Honestly it is hard for me to imagine trying to coordinate that without discouragement for a lot of kids.

 

[AGM78910]

Would coaches and parents of older gymnasts please comment on the relationship between the age that gymnasts start and whether they make it to Elite or college gymnastics? I would really like to know if the gymmies who start seriously competing at a young age are in it for the long haul or do they burn out early?

 

[bogwoppit]

AGM the difference in Canada is that the girls can begin to compete at just about any level at age 8. The OP's daughter in PNN will compete kips, squat on, giants on bars. yurchenko timers, layouts on floor and a BHS on beam. It is considered a pre national level and she is clearly on an elite track and was chosen quite young.

In the US girls have to go through at least L5 & L6 to reach optionals. Optionals are the only way in Canada, even at the lowest levels. My little one had her own routines when she was in devo at age 6.

As for burn out, that might correlate more to training hours and style. There are L4's doing 20 hours a week, chances are they will burn out faster than a child doing 12 hours at L7, no matter what the age.