Parents Where do the best gymnast come from

[nycgymmom]

Kk...we have this girl in our gym who has extreme potential, maybe not olympian to today's standatd (maybe so I don't know much). The thing is other parents tell the mom all the time she shouldn't be in our gym that she needs to go where she can be seen. Is that correct?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

I believe that is what he TOPs and Hopes programs are for. Also Nationals.

I'm admittedly not in the know, but was Laurie Hernandez's gym a gym "to be seen".......

And I'm sure that there are places where it helps to be there because the folks are "connected".
And still going to a certain gym really isn't a guarantee of much.

 

[Mish]

I think I know who you are talking about, @nycgymmom. I believe she has been invited to the Ranch, so she has been "seen." But the gym doesn't produce elite level athletes, as far as I know. We really only have one of those around here.

 

[nycgymmom]

I believe that is what he TOPs and Hopes programs are for. Also Nationals.

I'm admittedly not in the know, but was Laurie Hernandez's gym a gym "to be seen".......

And I'm sure that there are places where it helps to be there because the folks are "connected".
And still going to a certain gym really isn't a guarantee of much.

The TOPs is great but not all Olympians went to the ranch...and the Laurie Hernandez is the perfect example.

 

[nycgymmom]

I think I know who you are talking about, @nycgymmom. I believe she has been invited to the Ranch, so she has been "seen." But the gym doesn't produce elite level athletes, as far as I know. We really only have one of those around here.

She qualified and has been invited this year..your right about the gym. Lol

 

[Ali'sMom]

We have a small gym, definitely not a gym that is "seen".
We don't participate in Tops, so not much chance to be seen.
Our little Hopes gymmie had a video sent in, and was invited to the Ranch for Development Camp. At first it was here & there. Then she qualified for Hopes, made it to the Hopes Classic (at the ranch), and top 18 of each age group (I believe that's it) made it to the Hopes Championship held in conjunction with the Secret Classic.
She's now been going to development camp every month. And is definitely being seen. (This year she was a first year L10 and did make it to Nationals, but I'm not sure how much she would have been noticed there yet, without everything else she'd done).
She'll be at the Classic again in a few weeks, and hoping to make it to the Hopes Championship.

It all started with submitting a video...

(Truth be told, we all used to wonder when she'd have to get shipped out somewhere to train, but the head coach had experience of her own, and is now an Elite coach. If our gym hadn't gotten her, I believe our gymmie would have had to go somewhere else to get this far)

 

[e'smum]

i think good gymnasts can come from any gym. it's what they do after they decide they want a bigger career in gymnastics that is key. from what i've heard, most of the upper brestyan's gymnasts didn't start there. they moved there after they got into the upper levels - i don't know this personally but just word on the street.

 

[Flyaway]

I guess it depends on whether or not the philosophy of your gym aligns with "being seen". At our gym, we have amazing coaches who were once nationally decorated gymnasts themselves. They know what it takes to "be seen". But that's not their end goal. At the end of the day, they want to produce strong athletes who love gymnastics and are well rounded human beings. So they structure the gym around that philosophy. And honestly, our girls are not going to "be seen". So if we had a gymnast that was dead set on that? I suppose they would have to go elsewhere. Or maybe our coaches could be persuaded to send in a video. But no one is going to come knocking on our gym's door.