Parents USAIGC vs. USAG

[gymnastics4ever]

I am new to the CB site and to gymnastics as a parent. My daughter is 8-years old and a very committed USAIGC team member in NYC. I know it's early to talk about this, because of her age, but she has expressed a desire to go all the way with her beloved sport - to college team or to major international competition. So I am wondering - Is there a better way to guide her through her development in the sport than through an IGC program? Is USAG / Excel "better"? What are the pros and cons? thank you

 

[MILgymFAM]

I wouldn’t classify usag as better than igc, personally, but it is -by far- the most likely way to get to college gym, and absolutely the only way onto the national team. If that’s a path she wants to be on, usag (and specifically JO) is the way to go. How far along she can make the jump is up for debate, but sooner rather than later seems to the general consensus.

 

[LGnyc]

I am new to the CB site and to gymnastics as a parent. My daughter is 8-years old and a very committed USAIGC team member in NYC. I know it's early to talk about this, because of her age, but she has expressed a desire to go all the way with her beloved sport - to college team or to major international competition. So I am wondering - Is there a better way to guide her through her development in the sport than through an IGC program? Is USAG / Excel "better"? What are the pros and cons? thank you

I'm also an NYC gym mom and have investigated just about all of the USAG/Xcel/IGC programs in the city. If you'd like to PM, I'm happy to share what I've learned.

 

[mls529]

I am in the midwest, so I am not as familiar with ICG, but within USAG, there are two programs: JO and Xcel. While there may certainly be exceptions, the USAG JO program (not Xcel) is the typical path to college or elite ("major international competition"). My daughter has been in both JO and Xcel at 2 gyms, and it was made very clear to us at both gyms that Xcel is a path to high school gymnastics, but not beyond. That is not to say there isn't great competition in Xcel, and my daughter is enjoying it, but it quite different than JO.

 

[John]

My daughter went from IGC gold to JO in June. She is 10. She was very successful in IGC. I have a different take than others I am sure. PM me if you would like to talk details.

 

[NY Dad]

The opinion you'll most frequently get here is that the most likely path to a college scholarship is through JO (and I don't have any info to disagree). I just wanted to point out what it says on the USAIGC website. (I don't know how frequently someone from USAIGC gets a college scholarship).

https://www.usaigc.com/parents.cfm
"College Scholarships: Statistically there are between 2-2.5% of athletic scholarships available per year. There are 4.5% - 5% Academic Scholarships available per year. To be considered for a Gymnastic College Scholarship the gymnast must score consistently 9.25 - 9.50+ on two Premier Level Events. Currently College Coaches are looking for Gymnasts with a dynamic Vault (full twisting yurchenko) and a strong Uneven Bar Routine. Solid grades are essential along with high scores on College entrance exams. The Gymnast must be healthy and injury free. Collegiate Coaches do not care where a gymnast comes from if they fulfill the basic requirements and needs of that College Team. A video of the gymnast performing sent to the Collegiate Coaches along with school grades and a brief history of the gymnast starts the process. Collegiate Coaches look Nationally and Internationally."

 

[reluctant]

The opinion you'll most frequently get here is that the most likely path to a college scholarship is through JO (and I don't have any info to disagree). I just wanted to point out what it says on the USAIGC website. (I don't know how frequently someone from USAIGC gets a college scholarship).

https://www.usaigc.com/parents.cfm
"College Scholarships: Statistically there are between 2-2.5% of athletic scholarships available per year. There are 4.5% - 5% Academic Scholarships available per year. To be considered for a Gymnastic College Scholarship the gymnast must score consistently 9.25 - 9.50+ on two Premier Level Events. Currently College Coaches are looking for Gymnasts with a dynamic Vault (full twisting yurchenko) and a strong Uneven Bar Routine. Solid grades are essential along with high scores on College entrance exams. The Gymnast must be healthy and injury free. Collegiate Coaches do not care where a gymnast comes from if they fulfill the basic requirements and needs of that College Team. A video of the gymnast performing sent to the Collegiate Coaches along with school grades and a brief history of the gymnast starts the process. Collegiate Coaches look Nationally and Internationally."

This quote doesn't make any sense, and has many grammatical errors. The reality is, most strong multi-year Level 10 gymnasts do not go on to get scholarships. It is even more unlikely for gymnasts coming from another less competitive stream.

 

[raenndrops]

This quote doesn't make any sense, and has many grammatical errors. The reality is, most strong multi-year Level 10 gymnasts do not go on to get scholarships. It is even more unlikely for gymnasts coming from another less competitive stream.

Who is to say that IGC is a less competitive stream?
And it states that 2 to 2.5% of athletic scholarships are available each year.
That means that 2 to 2.5% of ALL college students each year receive athletic scholarships.
So, basically - not bloody likely.
However, if you have what the college wants and needs, it is possible.
The article does need updated though to a 10.0 NCAA level vault.
If you compete IGC Premier level with solid L10 routines on all events and do well and are good at contacting college coaches and advocating for themselves, then it would be possible.

 

[reluctant]

Who is to say that IGC is a less competitive stream?
.

I didn't mean to imply that IGC is a worse program, but I thought it was meant to be lower hours so doesn't that make it less competitive? Wouldn't the same gymnast doing more hours become a more competitive gymnast? Maybe other readers can give examples of IGC gymnasts who have become NCAA scholarship recipients.

 

[Seeker]

Has a USAIGC gymnast ever made the National Team? Have they ever competed for the USA internationally?

I think the answer to both of those questions is no. The path to Elite is certainly USAG JO. To my knowledge, there’s no other way to make the National team.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

Who is to say that IGC is a less competitive stream?
And it states that 2 to 2.5% of athletic scholarships are available each year.
That means that 2 to 2.5% of ALL college students each year receive athletic scholarships.
So, basically - not bloody likely.
However, if you have what the college wants and needs, it is possible.
The article does need updated though to a 10.0 NCAA level vault.
If you compete IGC Premier level with solid L10 routines on all events and do well and are good at contacting college coaches and advocating for themselves, then it would be possible.

Going a little OT here so I apologize in advance. But I do wonder if with everything that’s been going on with USAG thst we might see an increase in other streams like AAU and IGC. Something to think about.

OP as others have said USAG junior Olympic program is the usual way gymnasts proceed when they have college gymnastics ambitions. But there are all kinds of ways to participate in college gym without necessarily being the level of a D1 scholarship recipient. Walk ons, D2/3 programs and NAIGC are all ways to participate in college gymnastics.

At your dd’s age, it would depend on what she wants. If she’s happy at your gym in the IGC program and satisfied with the number of hours, etc then I would keep her where she is. But if she wants more, than you could look into JO programs in your area. Keep in mind it’s a bigger time and financial comittment and there no guarantees about college scholarships even for girls who do make it all the way to L10. The whole family really has to be on board and in it for your dd’s genuine love of the sport and keeping an open mind about the future.

 

[MILgymFAM]

I didn't mean to imply that IGC is a worse program, but I thought it was meant to be lower hours so doesn't that make it less competitive? Wouldn't the same gymnast doing more hours become a more competitive gymnast? Maybe other readers can give examples of IGC gymnasts who have become NCAA scholarship recipients.

I’ve looked previously and couldn’t find recent girls who went from IGC to NCAA. I was looking more because I would love if JO didn’t have a monopoly on the scholarships. I would love to hear of girls who’ve done it!

 

[wandrewsjr]

Looking at meet results, at this past years USAIGC Regional championships in the northeast, there weren't even any premier level athletes competing, and only about 10 platinum level(which is one level below). That would be like if a USAG JO region had no level 10's at their regional championships and 10 level 9's.

 

[John]

While DD was in the USAIGC the organization seemed to be losing its higher level athletes. During the early years, we saw many platinum and premiere girls at meets. 2016 we saw very few Gold level athletes.

 

[Pea'sMom]

Can't really speak to the college thing, that ship sailed along time ago for Pea But she did switch to IGC last year after doing USAG. In our area there are a few other options other than USAG JO (Excel, IGC, and JOGA). Most gyms here offer JO plus another less 'intense' option, possibly two. For Pea she was having some mental blocks and the JO coach wasn't helping. She absolutely loves her IGC coach and the program. The switch dropped her from 16 to 12 hours per week. But her IGC coach is very committed to the program and growing it. He has hosted clinics to help train other IGC coaches with higher level skills, drills and spotting. He had the silver training gold+ (JO 5/6 training 7/8+) girls bump to 20 hours over the summer. He has told us that he intends to continue training these girls up and if they aren't finding kids to compete against in IGC he would move them over to JO to compete an appropriate level. At the same time he has a group of older girls who will likely never compete gold but wants to keep them involved, so it covers the gamut. Its a huge program at Peas gym with over 100 girls in it. The JO program has about 25.

The absolutely best thing about IGC is getting to compete up. You can event specialist up a level in two events. This eases the pressure to get "everything" ready. Pea competed silver (because of bars flyaway issues) but also competed gold vault (tsuk) and beam (connected bhs-bhs and BT). There is a large push for "team" success which has meets sounding more like college meets with lots of cheering etc. Hope all my rambling helped!

 

[LGnyc]

Keep in mind it’s a bigger time and financial comittment and there no guarantees about college scholarships even for girls who do make it all the way to L10.

Actually, the thing that's crazy about IGC in NYC - it actually costs about the same - or even more. For example, dd is in a JO program at one gym doing 21 hours a week. It's 565 a month. A comparable USAIGC in the city would be 16 hours a week for the same amount or even more, like 600 a month. And the same numbers of meets and roughly the same meet fees apply. So the cost per hour is higher, and the overall cost is comparable.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

We have done both. Although only up until silver. Our IGC meet fees were more than JO

 

[aspiringymnastmom]

I am also in NYC and happy to chat via PM.

 

[seoulmama]

The absolutely best thing about IGC is getting to compete up. You can event specialist up a level in two events. This eases the pressure to get "everything" ready. Pea competed silver (because of bars flyaway issues) but also competed gold vault (tsuk) and beam (connected bhs-bhs and BT). There is a large push for "team" success which has meets sounding more like college meets with lots of cheering etc. Hope all my rambling helped!

Being able to be an event specialist is exactly what my daughter would love-unfortunately, no clubs in our state. Wish Xcel would consider this.

 

[raenndrops]

Being able to be an event specialist is exactly what my daughter would love-unfortunately, no clubs in our state. Wish Xcel would consider this.

With Xcel being run by USAG and them wanting girls to compete All Around (hence the wide range of skills allowed at each level), it would be highly doubtful they would ever do it