MAG New Coach

[munchkin3]

Our boys just got a new head coach.
They were VERY attached to the old coach. He trained them all since they were 5/6 years old. The boys now 10 to 16 are having a very hard time.
The new coach has a very good reputation. Seems very qualified BUT there are a few things I don't get.
He has changed everything about their workout, and has not incorporated anything from their old workout. He will not listen to them. They feel very disrespected. They are spoken too like 5 year olds and he will not take any advice from the boys. They are discouraged.
THey are currently working 2 levels below their skills (except pre-team) and the boys are distraught.
I undertand that it takes time to adjust. But my boy is very upset. He wants to try somewhere else. I keep telling him to give him a chance and wait...I am sure the New Coach is overwhelmed and is trying his best. He is probably trying to assert himself.
I just think he is doing it the wrong way. These boys are smart, they are used to being treated like young men.
Now their minds are blown away at some of his strategies....Instead of asking for their last competitive routines, or asking for a little background on how things were run, he has all of them doing pre-team stuff. He has lumped them all together or in the wrong groups....These boys range from pre-team to level 9....He has a couple of level 6 working with pre-team boys. I think the level 9s came once to practice...(granted, they need to give him a chance)

From a management perspective, when new bosses step into a position and given a bunch of employees, It is much more constructive when the new boss observes how the employees do things first, while building rapport, and then guide the ship his new way....as opposed to the new boss who comes in and is condescending, and changes everything to his NEW way...'my way or the highway' attitude takes such a long time to warm up to...it is SO upsetting to see these boys go through this....people don't like to change so quickly..plus you may loose some important team members in the process....I have faith that if this coach had a successful team in the past, that he must be good right? If the kids are not happy, then they won't be there and work?? RIGHT??

As a parent all I can do is wait....observe...keep my son optimistic....at some point, if things don't get better quickly, then I will ask the director if she is aware and in agreement with what is happening.

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Something very much like this happened at my old gym when I was around 15 or 16 (and just starting level 10). I'd trained at that gym since I was 7.

After a little over a year of trying to get it to work out with the new coach, I finally left that gym and moved to my current gym, and never looked back.

I only regret not making the switch sooner.

As for being a successful coach in the past: coaches like this tend to do fine with kids who have grown up with them from the start. They may never, however, work well with kids who didn't.

 

[bogwoppit]

I think I would be asking the director NOW if she is aware what is going on. SHe should also be made aware that moving gyms is an option being discussed. If the kids don't want to go to gym, when they always did before. She has a HUGE problem on her hands.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

"breaking up is hard to do".

 

[ZJsMom]

That sounds hard. It also seems like a lack of communication to me. He's not listening to the boys and he's also not explaining what his plan is and where he's going. I agree that you should meet with the director. Either that or have a meeting with the new coach-- not to complain and criticize-- but to find out what his plan is and where things are going. I think it would be fair to let him know that the boys miss their old coach and that it would help him gain their trust if they felt like they had some input.

 

[munchkin3]

Update....
Well, I thought a lot over the weekend and I decided to observe until Friday (2 wks) and then sit with the director and have a conversation.....
I want to ask her opinion on how it was going, how the feedback was etc. This way I can really say that I gave it time and my opinion is more objective rather than reactive.

LUCKILY....when I got there today, I saw the proper groups, I saw them working on harder stuff...and there is someone helping out....I even saw some smiling and a little joking around from the coach.....The feeling was definitley lighter....

LETS HOPE THIS IS PROGRESS!!!!
I really love my kids' gym!!

 

[BlairBob]

With boys, especially as an incoming boy's coach, you need to set the tone and pecking order ASAP. They will constantly test you, all kids do this but boys do this to male coaches as girls do this to female coaches. This happens as well with girls as they will love/hate new coaches. It's a delicate balance.

If they are harder than their old coach, many gymnasts will dislike the new coaches.

Basically, it's culture shock and resistance to change. Give it time.

As well, a new coach has to figure out where each gymnast stands as to strength, flexibility, form and mastery of basics. Let's face it, more often than not, boys are sloppier than they should be or could be.

As a coach, why would I take advice from an gymnast as to how we would warmup or do events? I may consult the athlete's opinion but do I need permission from the gymnast? I may also ask for feedback from a gymnast about how that last drill worked or felt, etc.

Keep in mind, in many other countries, groups of gymnasts are not by age or level but as one big group. Sometimes it is by age or level. One of the biggest limitations of this is having enough equipment to seperate each group (low PB for pre-team guys, high PB for older guys, etc).

Off-season is supposed to be a time to getting back to basics as well. Yes, boys hate this. It's a fight between what keeps them interested and what is beneficial for them as a gymnast.

I still get compared to my guy's old coach a year and a half ago. We used to do this with so and so or he was nicer, easier, we did this better, etc. It goes on and on.

Do we all not remember when we were in sports as a kid and never would back talk the coaches? Hopefully, none of us ever did nor would back talk parents or teachers without repercussions.

Very rarely did I ever, from 5-18. I know when I was 5 or 6 I had the attention span of a gnat and would get distracted or troublesome but that was trained out of me early by the time I was 8 or 9. I was a pain in the butt during square dancing in HS but I politely sat out instead of making a fuss of it.

 

[munchkin3]

Thanks Blairbob...
I agree....things are better...Old coach was harder and more serious...(PS he did not leave, he just went exclusively to girls team) New coach is younger and is establishing pecking order...

We are definitley getting back to basics which is good...They need it.

The team is bigger now as well because New coach has let in several little pre-team kids....They are not really prepared for anything to do with pre team but I guess he wants to grow the team. This is obviously good for our program, however we are spoiled parents!!!...We are used to higher skill level therefore less time spent with kids who can't do a cartwheel...more time for gymnastics...Some older new boys joined too but even though they can't do any basics, they are much more mature and seem to learn quickly.

Again...week 3....I am sure things will get more organized. All I want is for my boy to be happy in his sport and excel to his full potential...

 

[BlairBob]

Lucky old coach. Honestly, I wouldn't want to deal with most of our girls unless I got to pick which ones. I will be helping the girl's pre-team a bit this summer when we have a bunch of the girl's staff going on vacations and the main one going on maternity leave. So she needs a spotter.

Can we say lots of L and Straddle-L sit and holds?

This sounds very similar to what happened to me when I got on at a gym as Boy's Head Coach. The former Head Coach wanted to focus on the girl's program and had been doing both before I got on. I did very much the same thing bringing on as many boys as I could to build the team, however they had to have basic skills and be able to listen (well, relatively for boys).

Older boys can sometimes pick up things faster because they learn faster and are stronger but typically less flexible which slows down the learning process.

 

[munchkin3]

1 month later.....
DS has adjusted...actually he now sees his way and finds it appealing.
A couple of his friends like him a lot....a couple had a TOUGH time...DS was kind of in the middle. I think one parent might leave...

The totem pole was totally re-arranged and that was hard for a lot of the boys. They are all training at their level and perhaps a bit higher....Everything must be precise. DS is working L6 +...

Thank goodness I kinda stayed out of it...I just observed.....I had 1 meeting with the coach directly and voiced my concerns very specifically (and nicely!)...He heard me totally...I conveyed DS problems....He listened...
I also mentioned to him how badly the change went and he agreed. I don't think it was is choice to be thrown in with 50 kids and told, 'go for it!'. He went for it, and IT was very different!!! Not bad just different.

I think we are OKAY..

Now we have to see how the season goes!!!