WAG Current Qualified Elites

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Hahahaha! No! I meant she was a level 3 when my daughter was and they competed against each other. She did 3-7-8-9/HOPES, I believe. Mine would have been a 7 this year had she not switched to dance. It just puts in preselected the vast difference between elite caliber kids and regular kids, ya know?
Same here! There are two kids on there who competed against Puma Jr in compulsories. Puma Jr is now USAIGC Silver, so L6/7ish. I‘m ridiculously proud of her, but definitely a big difference from HOPES lol. They do all have their own journey!
 
It was a national qualifier so both compulsory and optional. Only 2 left. Winter cup is not a qualifier but I think they may be doing some virtual camps to try and get people qualified. And yes, only 13 current junior qualifiers but only 12 are still doing elite.
I wonder if the camps would be open to girls other than the ones already on the developmental team. In a typical year, how many junior elite are there?
 
I wonder if the camps would be open to girls other than the ones already on the developmental team. In a typical year, how many junior elite are there?
I'm pretty sure the camps are only being offered to girls who have been invited to previous devo camps and only hopes girls, not juniors or seniors. There are usually 25-30 juniors at championships.
 
They are adding 4 juniors to national team based on performance at Winter Cup so some will technically qualify at that meet, but only indirectly. Junior verification is this coming Monday and Tuesday, but I don't think they can qualify there unless they change the rules (And I hope they do change the rules).
 
Yes, the developmental camp next week was open to video submission. I don't know how many new athletes were added. There's a mix of junior elites and hopes athletes verifying at that dev camp.

National team camp verification was last week and had very few non-team members.
 

I think the reason they planned to add juniors to national team is that there currently are only two junior-age athletes on national team? They need to allocate funds even if there aren't any international meets available to them. Winter Cup presents a good way to accurately compare performance, although I understand Tom and Dan have been on the road as well.
 
Yes, the developmental camp next week was open to video submission. I don't know how many new athletes were added. There's a mix of junior elites and hopes athletes verifying at that dev camp.

National team camp verification was last week and had very few non-team members.
what is the purpose of verifaction at the hopes level? Aren't most of those girls below level 10? like level 8s and 9s in the youngest age and level 9 10 in older age? what are they verifying to do?
 
what is the purpose of verifaction at the hopes level? Aren't most of those girls below level 10? like level 8s and 9s in the youngest age and level 9 10 in older age? what are they verifying to do?
They are now requiring hopes aged girls to get their hopes score before they can attempt to qualify as a junior elite. So I know some of the girls were trying to get their hopes score before the final qualifier in april.
 
Hopes is an interesting mix... definitely some L10 skills flying though...

 
so before now girls would by pass the the hopes program and just train through jo to then become an elite? hopes has been a program for a long time. what about tops? is the new direction inclusive of tops too?
 
so before now girls would by pass the the hopes program and just train through jo to then become an elite? hopes has been a program for a long time. what about tops? is the new direction inclusive of tops too?
There are definitely very well known elite programs that do not do TOPS or HOPES.
 
so before now girls would by pass the the hopes program and just train through jo to then become an elite? hopes has been a program for a long time. what about tops? is the new direction inclusive of tops too?
TOPs and HOPEs have never been required to go the elite route. Many girls have qualified junior and senior elite without ever testing TOPs or doing HOPEs. In the past you could enter a qualifier as a junior elite and if you got the junior elite score you were good to go. If you didn't get the junior elite score but got your HOPEs score you could use that score to qualify to the HOPEs classic. However the opposite wasn't possible (you couldn't enter a qualifier as a HOPEs gymnast and get the junior elite qualifying score and use that to qualify to classics as a junior elite). But now they are requiring girls that are still HOPEs age eligible (10-14 years old) to score out of HOPEs at a qualifier before they can attempt to qualify as a junior elite. So they would basically have to compete in a qualifier as a HOPEs gymnast, get that score (48.5) and then compete in another qualifier and be registered in the junior elite session and attempt to get their junior elite score (50.5). Not sure if this rule will be the same moving forward or if it's just for this year.
 
There are definitely very well known elite programs that do not do TOPS or HOPES.
I know GAGE is one, I think Texas Dreams is another?? But yes you are correct, there are a lot of well known elite creating powerhouse gyms that do not use the TOPs or HOPEs programs. There are definitely pros and cons to the programs.
 
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Flippin, Good information... I didn't know that was the case this year, but it does make sense. My daughter falls in that category...
 
Not a downside for the younger gymnasts, it’s a good thing. Qualifying hopes at such a young age will actually decrease their chances of becoming successful senior elites later on. Hitting elite too early increases the risk of injuries, burn out, mental health issues and general health problems which will make it much harder for them to qualify when it really counts.
Examples / Support? I have a slightly younger qualifier. Not elite, but Hopes. I'm sure she'll qualify for elite when she's ready, and I don't have any qualms about it being early on. As far as I can tell, it will be right on time, but curious to know any information you may have about age of qualification to Hopes / Junior Elite and projected future success as a senior elite.
 
Examples / Support? I have a slightly younger qualifier. Not elite, but Hopes. I'm sure she'll qualify for elite when she's ready, and I don't have any qualms about it being early on. As far as I can tell, it will be right on time, but curious to know any information you may have about age of qualification to Hopes / Junior Elite and projected future success as a senior elite.
looking at the lists of qualifiers in years past will give you a good indicator of the percentages who go from Hopes to Jrs to Srs. Being on CB for several years, we have seen our share of those who went through Hopes and jrs before choosing to retire due to injuries and burnout. It is a matter of the amount of wear and tear on the body/mind. A select few are lucky enough to be able to sustain that much pounding and continue gymnastics at such a high level for so long. I can't imagine the mental challenge these parents must go through - trying to pace the career for longevity while still being keeping gymnastics challenging for their child.
 
I know GAGE is one, I think Texas Dreams is another?? But yes you are correct, there are a lot of well known elite creating powerhouse gyms that do not use the TOPs or HOPEs programs. There are definitely pros and cons to the programs.
Tops is intended to train both talented athletes and talented coaches and is inclusive of all levels and coaching expertise. Hopes optional qualification is skill-based and evidences a different level of preparedness. I have often thought it is more difficult to qualify Hopes optionals for 12-and-unders than just about anything else in elite and JO!

Tops and Hopes are very malleable programs and have historically made significant changes every couple years. For that reason, it's hard to draw any patterns from the past into the present. When Valeri took over the developmental program, for instance, he expanded it to DIC and Developmental levels and added many more athletes to the program. His approach was different than Martha's, but they ran their areas separately. Dan Baker has not had much chance to make an imprint because of the Pandemic, but USAG surely needs (and intends) to add more developmental athletes this fall.

As an example of change, TX Dreams dominated Tops from inception to year 6. In some years, they had over 12 Tops "A" team members. That club also won many Hopes Championships with dozens of medals every year. Once TX Dreams had 13 qualified Junior elites per year, however, the club changed its focus. Today, however, they have one graduating senior elite, no junior elites, and one Hopes-qualified athlete. In its history, WOGA never did Tops or Hopes and sporadically attended developmental camp. After having Olympic champions for three quads, they largely disappeared from elite except for a small number of athletes. This year, however, they have attended developmental camps, have a Hopes AA champion, supply the vast majority of junior elites in the United States, and one third (4/13) juniors at Championships are WOGA athletes. Gage also has no junior elites this year, but showed a wildly talented group at the Parkettes qualifier. WCC has the most senior elites in 2021, but no junior elites. After participating in Hopes in 2019, no one from WCC tested this year.

In spite of these cycles, there IS a strong correlation over the past 10 years between successfully QUALIFYING Junior Elite and staying in the sport. I randomly looked at 2012, 2015 and 2018 US Classics. 25/25 from 2012, 33/37 from 2015 and 42/43 junior elites either are are still actively competing or competed in the NCAA/through senior year of high school. Although I didn't check because there are so many JO National Team members, I would expect a similar correlation of longevity from those successful athletes.

I don't think anyone actually is concerned about whether their child should compete Tops or Hopes. Tops and Hopes are labels that mean something at THAT point in time, but do not mean as much OVER time. They are indicative of significant success (especially for scores over 49.5), but these athletes still need to build on those achievements. Parents' real and underlying question is far deeper which is whether their child is receiving the coaching they need based on their abilities and age? That's a much bigger question and highly individual.
 
Tops is intended to train both talented athletes and talented coaches and is inclusive of all levels and coaching expertise. Hopes optional qualification is skill-based and evidences a different level of preparedness. I have often thought it is more difficult to qualify Hopes optionals for 12-and-unders than just about anything else in elite and JO!

Tops and Hopes are very malleable programs and have historically made significant changes every couple years. For that reason, it's hard to draw any patterns from the past into the present. When Valeri took over the developmental program, for instance, he expanded it to DIC and Developmental levels and added many more athletes to the program. His approach was different than Martha's, but they ran their areas separately. Dan Baker has not had much chance to make an imprint because of the Pandemic, but USAG surely needs (and intends) to add more developmental athletes this fall.

As an example of change, TX Dreams dominated Tops from inception to year 6. In some years, they had over 12 Tops "A" team members. That club also won many Hopes Championships with dozens of medals every year. Once TX Dreams had 13 qualified Junior elites per year, however, the club changed its focus. Today, however, they have one graduating senior elite, no junior elites, and one Hopes-qualified athlete. In its history, WOGA never did Tops or Hopes and sporadically attended developmental camp. After having Olympic champions for three quads, they largely disappeared from elite except for a small number of athletes. This year, however, they have attended developmental camps, have a Hopes AA champion, supply the vast majority of junior elites in the United States, and one third (4/13) juniors at Championships are WOGA athletes. Gage also has no junior elites this year, but showed a wildly talented group at the Parkettes qualifier. WCC has the most senior elites in 2021, but no junior elites. After participating in Hopes in 2019, no one from WCC tested this year.

In spite of these cycles, there IS a strong correlation over the past 10 years between successfully QUALIFYING Junior Elite and staying in the sport. I randomly looked at 2012, 2015 and 2018 US Classics. 25/25 from 2012, 33/37 from 2015 and 42/43 junior elites either are are still actively competing or competed in the NCAA/through senior year of high school. Although I didn't check because there are so many JO National Team members, I would expect a similar correlation of longevity from those successful athletes.

I don't think anyone actually is concerned about whether their child should compete Tops or Hopes. Tops and Hopes are labels that mean something at THAT point in time, but do not mean as much OVER time. They are indicative of significant success (especially for scores over 49.5), but these athletes still need to build on those achievements. Parents' real and underlying question is far deeper which is whether their child is receiving the coaching they need based on their abilities and age? That's a much bigger question and highly individual.
So much truth in this. I had a gymnast that did the TOPS and HOPES route, qualified as a junior elite at 13 and a month after quit elite. She is MUCH, MUCH happier now just doing level 10, though her coaches keep hoping she will someday change her mind and give the elite thing another try. I know anything can happen in the next 3 years but I foresee her having a very successful 4 years in college, and that is her ultimate goal.
 
Tops is intended to train both talented athletes and talented coaches and is inclusive of all levels and coaching expertise. Hopes optional qualification is skill-based and evidences a different level of preparedness. I have often thought it is more difficult to qualify Hopes optionals for 12-and-unders than just about anything else in elite and JO!

Tops and Hopes are very malleable programs and have historically made significant changes every couple years. For that reason, it's hard to draw any patterns from the past into the present. When Valeri took over the developmental program, for instance, he expanded it to DIC and Developmental levels and added many more athletes to the program. His approach was different than Martha's, but they ran their areas separately. Dan Baker has not had much chance to make an imprint because of the Pandemic, but USAG surely needs (and intends) to add more developmental athletes this fall.

As an example of change, TX Dreams dominated Tops from inception to year 6. In some years, they had over 12 Tops "A" team members. That club also won many Hopes Championships with dozens of medals every year. Once TX Dreams had 13 qualified Junior elites per year, however, the club changed its focus. Today, however, they have one graduating senior elite, no junior elites, and one Hopes-qualified athlete. In its history, WOGA never did Tops or Hopes and sporadically attended developmental camp. After having Olympic champions for three quads, they largely disappeared from elite except for a small number of athletes. This year, however, they have attended developmental camps, have a Hopes AA champion, supply the vast majority of junior elites in the United States, and one third (4/13) juniors at Championships are WOGA athletes. Gage also has no junior elites this year, but showed a wildly talented group at the Parkettes qualifier. WCC has the most senior elites in 2021, but no junior elites. After participating in Hopes in 2019, no one from WCC tested this year.

In spite of these cycles, there IS a strong correlation over the past 10 years between successfully QUALIFYING Junior Elite and staying in the sport. I randomly looked at 2012, 2015 and 2018 US Classics. 25/25 from 2012, 33/37 from 2015 and 42/43 junior elites either are are still actively competing or competed in the NCAA/through senior year of high school. Although I didn't check because there are so many JO National Team members, I would expect a similar correlation of longevity from those successful athletes.

I don't think anyone actually is concerned about whether their child should compete Tops or Hopes. Tops and Hopes are labels that mean something at THAT point in time, but do not mean as much OVER time. They are indicative of significant success (especially for scores over 49.5), but these athletes still need to build on those achievements. Parents' real and underlying question is far deeper which is whether their child is receiving the coaching they need based on their abilities and age? That's a much bigger question and highly individ
Tops is intended to train both talented athletes and talented coaches and is inclusive of all levels and coaching expertise. Hopes optional qualification is skill-based and evidences a different level of preparedness. I have often thought it is more difficult to qualify Hopes optionals for 12-and-unders than just about anything else in elite and JO!

Tops and Hopes are very malleable programs and have historically made significant changes every couple years. For that reason, it's hard to draw any patterns from the past into the present. When Valeri took over the developmental program, for instance, he expanded it to DIC and Developmental levels and added many more athletes to the program. His approach was different than Martha's, but they ran their areas separately. Dan Baker has not had much chance to make an imprint because of the Pandemic, but USAG surely needs (and intends) to add more developmental athletes this fall.

As an example of change, TX Dreams dominated Tops from inception to year 6. In some years, they had over 12 Tops "A" team members. That club also won many Hopes Championships with dozens of medals every year. Once TX Dreams had 13 qualified Junior elites per year, however, the club changed its focus. Today, however, they have one graduating senior elite, no junior elites, and one Hopes-qualified athlete. In its history, WOGA never did Tops or Hopes and sporadically attended developmental camp. After having Olympic champions for three quads, they largely disappeared from elite except for a small number of athletes. This year, however, they have attended developmental camps, have a Hopes AA champion, supply the vast majority of junior elites in the United States, and one third (4/13) juniors at Championships are WOGA athletes. Gage also has no junior elites this year, but showed a wildly talented group at the Parkettes qualifier. WCC has the most senior elites in 2021, but no junior elites. After participating in Hopes in 2019, no one from WCC tested this year.

In spite of these cycles, there IS a strong correlation over the past 10 years between successfully QUALIFYING Junior Elite and staying in the sport. I randomly looked at 2012, 2015 and 2018 US Classics. 25/25 from 2012, 33/37 from 2015 and 42/43 junior elites either are are still actively competing or competed in the NCAA/through senior year of high school. Although I didn't check because there are so many JO National Team members, I would expect a similar correlation of longevity from those successful athletes.

I don't think anyone actually is concerned about whether their child should compete Tops or Hopes. Tops and Hopes are labels that mean something at THAT point in time, but do not mean as much OVER time. They are indicative of significant success (especially for scores over 49.5), but these athletes still need to build on those achievements. Parents' real and underlying question is far deeper which is whether their child is receiving the coaching they need based on their abilities and age? That's a much bigger question and highly individual.
What can you tell me about Development camp? who is on the development team? I saw a lot of pictures on instragram of these girls. Do clubs pay to send these girls? How can an athlete get included in these camps?
 

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