Gymnasts

Preteen Gymnast

Any young gymnast might grow to become an Olympic star with the right amount of training and dedication. Parents often wonder what they can do to help their child grow to be an accomplished athlete. Professionals say that gymnastics is a sport anyone can excel at with enough practice, and that all children should try gymnastics at least once. Boys as well as girls can excel as gymnasts. Children as young as 3 or 4 can begin to learn basic gymnastics techniques if they desire to. Experts suggest that desire is the most important factor in nurturing a young gymnast. If a child is not enjoying gymnastic training, pushing them to succeed will not help them grow and develop, and may result in them resenting the sport and their training. Desire will keep them interested and encourage them to grow and compete as gymnasts, raising their physical prowess as well as their self-esteem.

Young Gymnast

Gymnastics is a great sport for boosting self esteem in young gymnasts because it allows them to develop as team players as well as individual competitors. It is a great feeling for a young gymnastics athlete to know that he or she is not only adding to the success to the team, but being a strong competitor alone. Parents are advised to try to use some of their child’s excess energy at home and try to channel it into gymnastics training. Parents should encourage their over-active children in the home to try cartwheels and somersaults on a soft, carpeted area. If the child enjoys this activity, it may be worthwhile to bring the child to a school or gym with young gymnast programs and see if they enjoy the activity.

Famous Gymnasts

All famous gymnasts start out as young beginners. Carly Patterson, became the first American female gymnast to win the Olympic all-around since Mary Lou Retton at the 2004 Olympic Fames. Carly Patterson earned two silver medals in Athens in the team competition, and also on the balance beam. In 2003, Carly was a world champion gold medalist in team, and a silver medalist in the all-around. She started out as a beginner in 1994, and practices for about thirty five hours a week. Her coach describes her as an athlete who works best under pressure and can think fast at the last moment. She attributes her training to her ability to think fast during competition. Another famous gymnast, Nadia Comaneci competed in the Women’s Olympics Gymnastics at age 14 and scored the first perfect 10 at the Olympics. She weighed only 86 pounds at the time.
Mary Lou Retton won the first U.S. Gold medal in gymnastics at a very young age, effectively giving up her childhood but gaining renown as a gymnast and even getting her face featured on Wheaties boxes. Shannon Miller is another decorated gymnast. As a young competitor, she has taken home more Olympic championships than any other gymnast in the U.S.