Team Marriotts-Frequently Asked
Questions and Answers
Is My Son or
Daughter Talented?
One of the most common questions
coaches hear from parents is “Is my gymnast really talented?” For gymnasts on
our team who have been tested, screened and chosen to join the team our answer
is always positive. This is not, as you might suspect, for financial reasons,
but because it is simply impossible to predict which gymnasts are going to end
up being the best on the team.
Anyone Can See Obvious Talent,
but Not The Mind
This is not to say that some gymnasts are so obviously talented that anyone can
see their ability, whether parents or coaches. What is not as obvious is
whether that gymnast or any gymnast has all the other characteristics to
progress successfully through all the years and levels of the sport.
Need Balance of Physical and
Psychological
Physical abilities are often fairly visible to parents and coaches, but it is
the psychological factors which are invisible and often the most important for
long-term success.
Late Bloomers not Uncommon
Successful gymnasts come in many varieties. Some are late-bloomers who just
seem to be on cruise control or meander through the sport in their early years.
Some gymnasts hit their teens and all of a sudden get serious and make a huge
jump in progress.
Early Rapid Progress Not
Always a Great Sign
Some gymnasts, often talented ones, make rapid easy progress early in their
career and then stall when they hit the higher difficulty levels. While talent
alone let them zoom through the lower levels, talent alone is not enough in
gymnastics. No one is talented enough to just go out and do double backs on
floor.
Gymnasts Have to Learn How to
Work Hard
Sometimes very talented gymnasts who progressed rapidly early have never learned
to work hard and when faced with skills that require hard work are unable to
adapt and eventually leave the sport.
Battle Burn-Out
Sometimes young talented gymnasts are the focus of so much expectation and
pressure so soon that they burn out before they have a chance to reach the age
required to compete internationally (currently 16).
Don't Bet on Who Will Be the
Best, You'll Likely Lose Your Shirt
There are just so many factors, physically and psychologically, that no one can
accurately predict which gymnast or gymnasts will ultimately end up the best.
Russian scientists for years tried to find factors predictive of success and
were never able to get any more effective than a flip of a coin would have been.
If They Made the Team, Their
Chances are As Good As Anyone's
So if your gymnasts has already been picked for the team, you can be relatively
certain that they have as good a chance as any at becoming the best, but no one
is going to be able to tell you who is going to eventually be the best. In
fact, it is often impossible to even accurately predict who is going to be the
best on your own team only two years from now.
Should I Watch My
Son/Daughter in the Gym?
There is the question of whether
parents should watch their children practice or not. At the preschool and lower
levels, the short class time and lack of other nearby adult activities results
in a naturally higher percentage of parental viewers. This percentage decreased
to near zero at the upper team level. But what is the “right” thing to do?
Should Be Allowed but
Discouraged
Coaches are universally convinced that it is usually best if parents not watch
their children every class period. Some gyms go so far as to ban parent viewing
of team and training team programs. There are legitimate reasons to do this,
but we believe that it is best to allow parental viewing at any time, while
discouraging it for the benefit of the child’s advancement.
Want Practice Time, Not Always
a Performance
Some gymnasts feel extra pressure to perform for or in the presence of their
parents and do not progress as well under that pressure. If parents are
constantly in attendance, their gymnast may be constantly performing as opposed
to the more relaxed, progressive state of practicing. Coaches need to be able
to control this balance of pressure and relaxation and the presence of parents
can complicate that.
Don’t Try to Coach Your Child
Children are often distracted and pay attention to their parents instead of the
coach, when parents are in the gym. This happens at all levels of the sport
from preschool to team. Parents sometimes try to do their own brand of coaching
from the sidelines which distracts the gymnast, complicates and slows the
coaching process and even may be dangerous. A parent who coaches their child to
point their toes, when the coach is emphasizing somersault rotation could be
distracting the gymnast from a safety point of view.
Leave It to the Pros
Gymnastics is a very complicated sport and constantly evolving. It is a
full-time job just to keep up with the rule changes. Even parents who were
gymnasts will find their knowledge limited. Coaching is best left to the
professionals, especially at the team level. While gymnasts are paying
attention to signals from their parents, they are unable to absorb important
feedback and information from the coach.
Watching Class vs. Watching
Team Practice
It is much more understandable if parents of preschool and recreational class
gymnasts watch their gymnast's whole practice. Since they are likely there for
only about an hour, it can be a waste of time to drive back home and come back
right away. Watching an entire team practice or the majority of it (most
parents don't have the time) however, is also much more likely to be a bad idea
Watch If They Ask
While there may be instances where it is not true, in general, it is a good idea
to watch your child do their gymnastics if they ask that you do. Try to
understand the reason (the underlying need) they wish you to watch. They may
have a desire to share something that is important to them with you. You don't
want to miss this opportunity,
Observe Regularly but at
Intervals
Parents will find it easier to see progress of they observe at regular
intervals, rather than every day. Step by step progress, even on a daily basis,
is not as dramatic as viewing progress on a monthly basis, either at practice,
exhibitions or competitions.
Insist on Viewing Privileges
In this day and age, it seems more appropriate that any gym be open to parents
if they should desire it for whatever reason. Some parents schedules may
preclude viewing their gymnasts during normally scheduled viewing times.
Parents should also be able to observe the safety and well-being of their
children at any time.
Watch Every Meet
Meets are a great way to regularly view your gymnast's progress. You want to go
and watch every meet that you can. The spacing between meets provides a view of
the natural progression your gymnast will be making and you will most likely and
should see individual progress from meet to meet. Look first for your child's
personal progress, not medals. Progress is more important.
Do What’s Best for Your
Child’s Progress
Parents should remember that their gymnast’s progress is likely to be faster if
they do not view too often. Viewing once a month is an acceptable amount,
either during formal situations or in their regular practice time
Is There a Problem with Your
Son/Daughter?
For a number of reasons, many parents
have difficulty approaching their child’s gymnastics coach. One of the main
reasons is that it is an extremely rare parent who understands enough about the
sport to have any opinion at all. Gymnastics is a complicated sport with
obscure and ever changing rules that even coaches have trouble keeping current
on. Parents have little chance to do keep up.
Coaching is Already a
Full-Time Job
Coaches rarely have the time to sit down and explain everything they are doing
and why. With practice time and planning time and other coaching management
responsibilities, coaching is a more than full-time job with barely time to
explain the sport to gymnasts, much less parents.
Beware the “Phone” Game
Gymnastics team practices are usually too long for all but most compulsive
parents to sit through and observe. Thus parents only hear second hand what is
going on in the gym either from gymnasts or parents. We all know how accurate
second-hand information is.
Everyone on the Same Page
The coach should hopefully have discussed their coaching philosophy, goals,
methods and training system. This information should help you understand why
your gymnast's coaches are doing what they are doing. Sometimes, however, issues
or questions may arise during the year that you might feel have to be addressed
by the coach.
Don’t Try to Argue About the
Sport
It is rarely useful, possible or wise for parents to challenge coaches on
anything to do with the sport itself. Parents are not experts in the sport.
The coaches are. Realistically, parents may not know if coaches really know
what they are talking about because coaches will certainly know more than the
parents will.
Parents Are Experts With Their
Own Child
This leaves the areas where parents are expert – that is the behaviour and
feelings of their own child. Parents should definitely approach coaches
whenever they detect something in the behaviour or attitude of their gymnast
occurs that interferes with their gymnast’s progress or continuance in the sport
that coaches are not aware of or the coaches may appear to be mishandling.
Make an Appointment
If you believe that there is a problem with the coach and if the situation
warrants, make a private appointment to meet with the coach, but outside of
practice time. You may wish to let a few days pass first if the situation would
benefit from perspective or a cooling down period on either side.
Know What You Want to Say
When you meet, carefully and concisely explain the problem to the coach and ask
for the coach's perspective on the situation. Listen carefully to the coach's
response. At his point you may discuss any differences between your perspective
and the coach's viewpoint and try to come to an agreement about how the problem
will be resolved or take some time to evaluate the coaches response.
Keep and Eye Out for the
Silent Response
Often, even if coaches are negative about a solution during a meeting especially
if it is in the least way confrontational, they will absorb and digest the
situation and take some action quietly on their own.
What Gymnastics
Parents Can Do to Help Their Gymnast?
Of course the first responsibility
parents have is to choose an appropriate gymnastics program for their child and
provide them all the necessary equipment and clothing. And it is extremely
important to make sure they get to all their practices and competitions.
Parents are Not Gymnastics
Coaches
There are also many things a parent cannot do for their gymnast. Gymnastics is
unlike other team sports, like baseball or soccer, where the rules and skills
have not changed significantly for many years
Coaching is Specialized
Gymnastics is a unique sport that requires highly specialized knowledge to
coach. It is different than any other sport that we can think of in this
regard. Even parents who may have been gymnasts in their youth will not likely
have kept up with the increases in difficulty, rule changes and new training
techniques and equipment.
Rules Change Frequently
Even coaches have to work and study to keep up with the rule changes and
qualification procedures.
Hundreds of Skills and
Infinite Combinations
There are hundreds of skills in each gymnastics event and an infinite number of
skill combinations. The knowledge required to understand the proper safe
progression and correct execution techniques is so extensive as to be beyond
anyone not involved full-time in the sport. This, of course, eliminates all
parents except those who are themselves coaches, from the expert category.
A Little Knowledge Can Be a
Dangerous thing
As such parents should not be coaching or giving coaching advice. There are
concrete reasons and safety considerations as to why parents should not be
giving coaching advice, especially on difficult skills.
Pointing Toes is Not Always
Good Practice Advice
For example, a parent might think they are doing their gymnast a service by
encouraging them to point their toes during some skill, perhaps having heard
this advice from coaches at some point and noting that their gymnast is not
doing this on some skill.
First You Need To Land Skills
However, if that skill happens to be something like a Tsukahara vault, double
pike or some other skill with an element of danger, misapplied advice could
cause the gymnast to concentrate on something other than what the coach has told
them (like block and lift) and cause them to fail to complete the skill and risk
injury.
Parental Support Not Pressure
Also, parents should realize that all necessary competition performance pressure
is supplied by the coaches. Extra performance requirements or requests by
parents may upset that balance. Basically parents should refrain from any
gymnastics coaching.
Hey! You Get to Be the Good
Cop
What should parents do? Primarily, the best thing parents can do is to provide
love, emotional and financial support. A parent’s job at meets and after
practices is to share their gymnast’s successes and provide moral support for
any difficulties.
Raise Funds to Better Your Gym
and Program
Supporting the fundraising efforts of the team is another important function for
parents. Parents should realize that the more funds that are raised the better
the program for their gymnast and all the other gymnasts.
Strength and Flexibility Help
May Be Okay at Lower Levels
The only a few things parents might even possibly be able to help their gymnasts
with that are related to the sport. Strength and flexibility training are not
so difficult or different from strength training for other sports that it would
be beyond the understanding or abilities of parents to help. While hopefully
all the necessary strength training is being provided by your gymnastics
program, especially at the lower levels or if your gymnast does not have
practice or strength training everyday, you can help give them an edge by
helping them in those areas.
Enjoy Their Gymnastics
There are always going to be some bad days in the sport and your gymnasts will
need some support. There are also going to be some wonderful celebrations of
the real successes your gymnast is sure to have in the sport. Supporting your
gymnast emotionally usually means just listening to them, celebrating their
successes or commiserating with them over their problems
