What do coaches look for in team canadates?

[mom2ab]

HI, I was directed to post to this forum from the "parents" forum. I have a seven year old daughter who is in the advanced class at our gym. She is getting a little bored and would like to move up. There really is no communication between us and the coaches as to what she needs to improve on or attain to advance. Is this normal? When kids are picked to move up, it is done very privately, I am sure to not hurt others feelings, but we feel kinda in the dark. I did approach her coach one time about how much longer she thinks DD will be in this particular class, I was told very vagely that most kids stay in around one year (its been around 7 months). The coach said that she is a good listener, focused, and doing what she should be doing for her level and age. She desperatly wants to compete, but we do not want to give her false hope, if she really has a limited chance. I guess what I am really wondering is, just how hard is it to get moved to a pre team level? Is it super competative at a lot of gyms? Is it normal to be in the dark about what is going on around the place?

Thank you for any advice !! Jodi

[Rec Coach]

I was reading the responses in the parents forum and they seem to have the right idea. While our club doesn't have competitive teams we do have an 'invitation only' interclub group. Apart from skills and attitude which are obviously important, we need to know that the kids/parents are interested in moving up! Sometimes you can tell, but some kids are so quiet that you're not sure if they're even enjoying themselve. So definitely make sure the coach knows you're interested.

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Quote:
Originally Posted by mom2ab HI, I was directed to post to this forum from the "parents" forum. I have a seven year old daughter who is in the advanced class at our gym. She is getting a little bored and would like to move up. There really is no communication between us and the coaches as to what she needs to improve on or attain to advance. Is this normal? When kids are picked to move up, it is done very privately, I am sure to not hurt others feelings, but we feel kinda in the dark. I did approach her coach one time about how much longer she thinks DD will be in this particular class, I was told very vagely that most kids stay in around one year (its been around 7 months). The coach said that she is a good listener, focused, and doing what she should be doing for her level and age. She desperatly wants to compete, but we do not want to give her false hope, if she really has a limited chance. I guess what I am really wondering is, just how hard is it to get moved to a pre team level? Is it super competative at a lot of gyms? Is it normal to be in the dark about what is going on around the place? Thank you for any advice !! Jodi

You're posing several questions here, so I'll answer them all as best I can.

1) How hard is it to get to the preteam level?
This varies a lot from gym to gym. Some gyms will take anybody with the slightest trace of talent and an interest in competing. Some gyms restrict it to the sort of mini-prodigies who can do press handstands and backhandsprings by the time they're 4 years old. And everything in between. I can't really give you any sort of more specific answer, since it's not standardized from gym to gym.

2) What do coaches look for in potential team members?
Again, this varies from coach to coach, so I can only say what I look for.
I personally look for kids who listen and have a good work ethic. While they do need to have a minimal amount of talent, I consider work ethic to be MUCH MUCH more important than talent.

3) When will your daughter be moved to preteam?
THat's something that only the coaches at your gym can answer. The best thing to do would be to ask them.

[hammy]

GT made excellent points, which I completely agree with. Try talking with the coaches about your daughter, your goals for her, her goals for herself, and the coach's goals for her. Communication is key within any relationship, especially coaches and gymnasts. Chances are that the coaches will give you a more direct answer if they know specifics--such as goals and what not.

[mom2ab]

I will ask the coaches more directly next week, and tell them specificaly that DD wants to compete. Maybe your right, if they don't know a particular child wants to move on, maybe they look over/gloss over them. I am taking her to a BHS Clinic tommorrow, hopefully that will help her out a little. We will see what happens on Tues. at class.

Thanks again!!! Jodi

[Aussie_coach]

Honestly if you and your daughter are keen for team it is a great idea to let the coaches know. Many kids and parents don't want to go down the team road, as they dont want to commit the hours and that sort of thing. If there is a kid who is keen and their family are happy to go with it it helps to know.

Even if your daughter is not ready the coaches can start working to prepare her for team, perhaps they can get her into an extra class or two each week to really build her development faster and get her used to the longer hours required.

[kristilyn73]

Dont be afraid to ask the coach and tell your DD's coach that DD is getting a little bored. I coach the 'advanced' level. I really apprecaite it when parents talk to me about their girls. Then I can also explain to a parent what I am doing in class. Or what their DD needs to work on

The skills that I see most girls struggle with to move up are.

• Handstand on beam - it does not need to be a full vertical handstand but I do want to see a handstand on a high beam where both feet come together and they have enough confidence to not need a spot.
• Forward stride circle on Bars.
• Back handspring on tramp or down a wedge - the gymnast needs to be strong enough in order to not fall on her head.. safety first

The other part of moving up is, consistency with skills. Gymnastics can be a one step forward two steps back type of sport. So many times a girl gets a skill and then cant do it for a month.

Hang in there and dont be afraid to ask questions.

Good luck! Keep us informed!