CoachMeg
Coach
We just had our first compulsory meet of the season last weekend. The girls did really well, I was actually pretty impressed! A couple falls, esp beam...but otherwise pretty good. Anyway, my main question is concerning one of our level 3s.
She's 8 years old. She got a 36.0 AA at her first meet with a lot of silly mistakes. Second highest all-around of the level 3 team (the other girl is 11 and got a 36.3 AA) and placed 3rd in her age-group. (1st on floor...with a huge .3 rebound after her back-handspring). She is the only level 3 that competed a kip in her bar routine, which she scored a 9.0. She also has a solid cartwheel on high-beam and all her tumbling. The only thing she doesn't have a lot of experience with is the table vault- but she's VERY powerful and has a lot of strength. As well as flexibility.
Right now we have our biggest gap between meets: 2 months. My question to you is, should we try moving her up to level 4? She obviously already made state at level 3 and she has all her level 4 skills. OR should we keep her as a really competitive level 3? She'd probably place high at all the rest of the meets given that she started out with a 36 and could have a decent shot at AA at state. Would this benefit the rest of her career if she got the taste of winning and scoring high? Or do you think we should give her more of a challenge at a higher level? Also...our level 4s did really well also at their first meet so while she may be one of the best in her level now, she'd probably be in the middle with the 4s.
Parents: Would you rather see your child compete at a higher level for a challenge while maybe not placing or scoring as high? Or would you rather see them compete at their normal level but score and place really high?
Coaches: Your opinion? What would you do in this situation?
Also...to the 11 year old that got .3 higher, she does not have all her level 4 skills or the bravery that this child has.
Right now I'm really leaning towards moving her up, my only concern is how she'll deal with not scoring as high or being with a group who's had more experience and practice with this level.
She's 8 years old. She got a 36.0 AA at her first meet with a lot of silly mistakes. Second highest all-around of the level 3 team (the other girl is 11 and got a 36.3 AA) and placed 3rd in her age-group. (1st on floor...with a huge .3 rebound after her back-handspring). She is the only level 3 that competed a kip in her bar routine, which she scored a 9.0. She also has a solid cartwheel on high-beam and all her tumbling. The only thing she doesn't have a lot of experience with is the table vault- but she's VERY powerful and has a lot of strength. As well as flexibility.
Right now we have our biggest gap between meets: 2 months. My question to you is, should we try moving her up to level 4? She obviously already made state at level 3 and she has all her level 4 skills. OR should we keep her as a really competitive level 3? She'd probably place high at all the rest of the meets given that she started out with a 36 and could have a decent shot at AA at state. Would this benefit the rest of her career if she got the taste of winning and scoring high? Or do you think we should give her more of a challenge at a higher level? Also...our level 4s did really well also at their first meet so while she may be one of the best in her level now, she'd probably be in the middle with the 4s.
Parents: Would you rather see your child compete at a higher level for a challenge while maybe not placing or scoring as high? Or would you rather see them compete at their normal level but score and place really high?
Coaches: Your opinion? What would you do in this situation?
Also...to the 11 year old that got .3 higher, she does not have all her level 4 skills or the bravery that this child has.
Right now I'm really leaning towards moving her up, my only concern is how she'll deal with not scoring as high or being with a group who's had more experience and practice with this level.