WAG Can level 5 be skipped?

[cassafrass]

Can level 5 be skipped without testing out? It is my understanding DDs gym is having a judge come in to test girls out of 4 so they can go directly to 6. Did something recently change? I'm thinking maybe there is some confusion because last year the rules changed at the last minute and girls that competed old 5 didn't have to test out after all to compete new 6. Can someone please clarify this? Thanks!

 

[Seeker]

I've not heard that....seems that either something got lost in translation or someone is confused.

 

[raenndrops]

Somebody was confused... unless the girls are in high school, they would have to score out of L5. A judge can be brought in for this.

There were also a lot of Mobility meets offered last year where girls could score out of Old L6 before the level changes went into effect. Sometimes, a coach just brought in a judge to do it "in house" and sometimes, a gym would open it up to other gyms to and do a whole meet.

 

[lhmom]

Yes, they have to test out of 5. The girls at DD's gym did that a month ago. I think it's the new 6 that is still allowed to be skipped without a qualifying score (unless that was only for the 1st year).

 

[cassafrass]

[QUOTE="raenndrops, post: 327658, member:
There were also a lot of Mobility meets offered last year where girls could score out of Old L6 before the level changes went into effect. Sometimes, a coach just brought in a judge to do it "in house" and sometimes, a gym would open it up to other gyms to and do a whole meet.[/QUOTE]
I thought I remember reading on here that old 6 didn't have to be scored out of to do new 6. I remember reading that the rule was changed after the published level up rules- after the
mobility meets had taken place.

 

[lhmom]

[/QUOTE]
I thought I remember reading on here that old 6 didn't have to be scored out of to do new 6. I remember reading that the rule was changed after the published level up rules- after the
mobility meets had taken place.[/QUOTE]

No, it was said that if the girls tested out of the old 6 before the rule changes took effect (August of last year), they could either compete the new 6 or go straight to 7. I just looked at the USAG rules and policies for this season and it says that "athletes may not skip any level (exception being level 6). They must advance one level at a time by scoring the minimum mobility score at a USAG sanctioned meet."

 

[thepenguin]

unless the girls are in high school, they would have to score out of level 5.

What do you mean by this? I know girls over fourteen with prior experience can petition to six or seven, is that what your talking about?

 

[raenndrops]

What do you mean by this? I know girls over fourteen with prior experience can petition to six or seven, is that what your talking about?

Yes... That's what I am talking about. If they are ready to "skip" 5 and go to 6, then they must have the skills for 6... so as long as they are 14 and in high school, they can petition instead of scoring out... but scoring out seems easier- especially if the gym is bringing in a judge.

 

[cassafrass]

Ok I looked at the chart posted under rules at the USAG website. I think it is confusing because it says mobility back and forth between 5 and 6 is allowed. It also lists a mobility score for level 7 as 31.00 in 5 OR 6. Some may interpret this as 5 may be skipped as long as 6 is completed, as in you can't skip both.
On another note, if a coach makes a mistake and enters an athlete in meet in a level she has not qualified for, what happens?

 

[raenndrops]

They mean that it is allowed to compete L5 and L6 in the same season, going back and forth... Some gyms will let you compete them in the same meet even (but you are SUPPOSED to have scored a 31.0 at L5 before competing L6).
L4 mobility ONLY gets you to L5... to pass on from L5 requires a 31.0 mobility score - which allows you to go to L6 or L7.
Some coaches could misinterpret the rules (because of the mention of back and forth) and have a gymnast compete L5 and L6 (without the 31 in L5) and use the L6 score to move the gymnast up... but that makes no sense. If you can't score a 31 at L5, you probably aren't ready for L7... although you could do well at L6 (which is the reason for the back and forth).

 

[Seeker]

Some coaches could misinterpret the rules (because of the mention of back and forth) and have a gymnast compete L5 and L6 (without the 31 in L5) and use the L6 score to move the gymnast up... but that makes no sense. If you can't score a 31 at L5, you probably aren't ready for L7... although you could do well at L6 (which is the reason for the back and forth).

Gosh, I really hope there are not too many coaches/gyms that do that....that would really be a disservice to the gymnasts. Scoring a 31AA is really quite low....I would not want my daughter to move up if she could not score well above that and I certainly wouldn't want her skipping into optionals!

 

[chalkbowl]

Gosh, I really hope there are not too many coaches/gyms that do that....that would really be a disservice to the gymnasts. Scoring a 31AA is really quite low....I would not want my daughter to move up if she could not score well above that and I certainly wouldn't want her skipping into optionals!

Plenty of gyms do it...some of the girls from those gyms score better in optionals since they can play to their strengths, but tend to really struggle come level 8+.

 

[Seeker]

Plenty of gyms do it...some of the girls from those gyms score better in optionals since they can play to their strengths, but tend to really struggle come level 8+.

Yeah, that was my thought as well. It may seem like a good choice for one season, but it will catch up to you eventually. Kinda hard to slide your way into L9...it would be pretty dangerous too. I've seen some scary looking things at meets and I always wonder what they must be thinking to send a kid out there that clearly doesn't have the skill. I would pull the Mommy card at that point!

 

[DefiniteMaybe]

Under the new system, I thought I read that you can skip 6 if you had a high enough score in 5, but I didn't see anything about skipping any other level. And if you think about it, going from current 5 to 7 is like going from old 6 to 7, so that kind of makes sense.
My oldest dd was tested out of old 6 in an in house meet and moved straight to 7. Another seasoned coach told us later that if her lvl 6 in house meet wasn't sanctioned, she could run into problems down the line. The coach said that a future win could be taken from her if it was contested and the powers that be found out that she had "skipped" a level.