Brett Wargo

Fellow Coaches,
The following document is a prepared proposal to alter the current national qualification procedures for Level 9 and 10 National Championship Competitions. Please take the time to read the document in its entirety. My goal is to create a nationwide movement to turn this dream into a reality.
If you have any questions or are unsure of the purpose of this proposal, please feel free to ask. This is the condensed version of all of the arguments for adoption. I would be happy to expand on any arguments if you would like more clarification.
Thank you for your time,
Brett Wargo
brettwargo@gmail.com

SIGN THE PETITION HERE

Our current system is one that works; however, I do feel as though there could be a massive benefit to the sport of gymnastics with a few changes. Please join me with an open mind as I attempt to share with you my views on a possible stride forward for our sport in this ever-changing environment.

1. The Proposal:

New qualifying opportunities to 9 and 10 Nationals would be based upon the current Regional Qualifying Meets; also using the current Age Groups.

Top 5 All-Around scores qualify to Nationals as All-Around competitors.

Top 2 Individual event scores (not including the qualified all-around athletes) qualify to Nationals on each individual event.

The result will be that there will be 7 competitive routines per event for each region, which is consistent with the current format of the competition. Session times, schedules, rotation lengths, judging needs will require no change to accommodate this new qualification procedure.

Minimum AA qualification score is already set at 35.00
Minimum event qualification score, which I would propose to be a 9.0 which matches the regional qualification score.

Below is a chart showing an example of how this would work:

2. Philosophy of the proposed change:

There is a precedence that has been set by both the Elite Gymnastics system and the College Gymnastics system for this type of qualification to a National Championship. Within both of the aforementioned programs, there is a degree of athlete specialization with an ability to qualify to a championship meet on an individual event basis. I think we can benefit by examining the successes of programs outside of our own. There has been quite a bit of scrutiny towards USAG as well as so many member clubs around the country. Our industry has been in the limelight for all the wrong reasons of late and I would like to be a part of the positive growth of gymnastics. Our job as coaches and decision makers within this community is to ensure that our system aligns with the values we own as human beings.

This proposal and concept aligns more closely with what I believe our sport should be based upon at the developmental (JO) levels:

Developing great teams that appreciate and value individuals for their own unique contributions regardless of how many events on which they may excel.
It does not require any athletes to specialize to be considered for the individual event slots and therefore does not encourage specialization over training all events. This simply allows for recognition and deserved reward for doing quality gymnastics.

3. Major Arguments for adopting this new system:

1. Injury issues in our sport

Allows coaches to make more intelligent decisions with “load management” in injury recovery.
Avoid rushing back and risking further damage, or major injury.
Post Injury – There will often be an uneven rate of return to full activity on each event.
Not an injury, but a physically handicapped athlete may not be able to train and compete all four events. However can create quality gymnastics on one or two apparatus.

Examples

Shoulder Injury / OCD – Athlete cannot properly train Bars and Vault. Has created a routine with minimal arm usage on beam and floor. Scores mid to upper 9’s consistently on these two events.
Early or mid-season injury. Athlete does not have time to fully recover and train all four events to maximum capacity before championship season arrives.
Disability – Hand or arm deformity allows for an athlete to compete a high level floor and beam routine. No ability to train Bars.

2. Motivation and Culture Change

Far more athletes are great at one, two or three events and are not “rock-star all-arounders.”
Athletics is a microcosm of the real world – Kids learning to rely on their strengths, minimize weakness, identify areas to improve
Supplying opportunity based upon strengths gives legitimate systematic backup for the general philosophies we may try to teach our athletes

3. Long-Term Fear Issues

Athletes with long-term debilitating fear find it difficult to move forward in our sport knowing their opportunities will be limited at the top tier.
Can routines be constructed and skill choice determined that allow this athlete to find success in the long-term working around this fear?
This buys coaches and athletes more time to make adjustments in training and competition without diminishing opportunity.
Mental health benefits from a release of pressure on a particular event or skill.

4. Athlete Retention

Our athlete retention rates at the top levels should ideally improve after making this change.
We are providing more opportunity to a different segment of our athlete population and therefore increasing the motivation to remain in the gym.
Attacking injury issues, cultural and motivation issues and potential fear limitations should enable us to maintain a healthier long-term outlook within the industry.

5. Competitive Quality Increase

Through simulation of last year’s Region 5 Regional Championships, it was determined that the qualifying scores per event were a higher average than using 7 all-arounders.
Event National Champion carries more weight when you give the opportunity for Individual event qualifiers to compete on their best events.

6. College Programs are interested

College Programs have admitted to being interested in this proposal and the effects that it would have on the industry.
Universities are looking for great gymnastics than can contribute to their teams. Athletes that can provide two huge scores for their University are more valuable than a medium level score across the board.
Allowing for some of these individual event athletes to be seen on the national stage helps the colleges and athletes in the recruiting process.

4. Format of the competition:

The format of the competitions will remain identical to the current format in schedule, judging needs, time allotment, space required, etc.
7 competitors on each event for each Region.
In the case of ties at the 5^th all-around spot, both athletes will compete in the all-around at nationals. There would then be only one individual spot available for that age group per event.
In the case of a tie for the second individual event spot on any event, both athletes would compete on that event resulting in 8 overall competitors.
Anytime, there would be an instance of more than 8 per squad, a tiebreaker would take effect to ensure that squad size stayed within the normal parameters. The tiebreak for individual event qualifiers would then be based upon the overall AA score/highest cumulative total if not AA.

5. Injury Replacements / Regional Fill-ins

Athletes that become injured in between Regionals and Nationals will be replaced by the next highest scoring athlete from Regionals. All-Around competitors will be replaced with the AA alternates and individual event athletes will be replaced on their event by the next highest scoring athlete on that event.

In the event that the first AA alternate is qualified on individual events, they will move into the All-Around position vacating their individual event slots. The event slots that open because of this shift will be filled by the next highest scoring athlete on the event(s).
If the First AA alternate did not qualify for any individual events, they will move directly into the vacated AA slot and there will be no movement within the individual event slots.

2. Regional Replacements for any region that does not have enough qualifying athletes to fill their Regional Teams, will use the same system that is currently in place to fill out the team.

Example – If Region 2 cannot fill out their Senior A age group and Region 5 is granted one extra slot for that age group, Region 5 will send their first AA alternate to compete with Region 2 in the AA. If this Region 5 athlete had also qualified for Floor and Vault, the next highest individual event score on those two events would then move into the Region 5 Regional Team. In this instance, Region 5 would technically suffer a small degree of competitive disadvantage by losing one of their athletes to another region. I have discussed this scenario with other coaches and we have come to the consensus that the benefits to the whole outweigh any small sacrifice to the individual region when loaning an athlete to the All-Star squad.

6. Frequently Asked Questions-

Is this in essence a participation ribbon?

No – Running numbers and simulations from past Regional-National qualifications, this would have actually helped raise the level of competition at Nationals. Imagine replacing the layout yurchenko from your sixth and seventh qualifying all-arounders with yurchenko fulls or higher. Imagine replacing your 7^th qualifying all-around athlete that scored 9.2 across the board with individuals scoring a 9.7, 9.6, 9.5 and 9.6 respectively on each apparatus.
This does not guarantee a higher level of competition, but it absolutely increases the likelihood.

Are there financial benefits or costs?

Financial benefits come from increased qualifiers to nationals, therefore more registration fees.
This change also obviously offers the opportunity to increase the income for the host on Gate as well.
If we make this meet more financially viable / profitable for the host club, more bids would be submitted yearly to host.
Perhaps this would allow for a larger budget to enhance the national experience for our athletes. There is nothing like competing nationals in a bare concrete box because of a lack of financial flexibility.
Additional costs would include leotards and warmup suits for the increased number of gymnasts qualifying each year. Look at this as a challenge and not an insurmountable obstacle.
Additional retention of athletes will provide more membership fees on a yearly basis.

Does this encourage more specialization at the expense of creating all-around gymnasts?

For most clubs, coaches and athletes I believe the answer is NO.
As an investor rather than a gambler, I have a much greater chance of qualifying my athlete competing in the all-around. There are seven competitive routines that compete on each event and an all-around athlete has a statistical chance to qualify for any of those spots. A specialist would be limited to two of those opportunities per event.
Realistically all coaches and athletes that want to take advantage of the better odds of qualification would still make it their goal to train and compete all-around unless other circumstances prevent or inhibit this path.
There is still a higher prestige that comes with an All-Around victory.
There is also a recruiting advantage to the AA athlete with regards to finding a home on the collegiate side of our industry.

Are you rewarding/prioritizing Specialists over All-Arounders?

NO. I believe we are simply putting in place a system to recognize quality gymnastics. If you watch a 9.8 uneven bar routine, you can enjoy and appreciate the beautiful swing, technique, form, etc. You don’t have to reserve judgment on that athlete until you have watched her other events. You are capable of admiring and enjoying that piece of gymnastics based solely on its own merit.
As discussed earlier on this document, this should also be a necessary safety valve for coaches and athletes that are dealing with injuries and are simply not rushing the process of recovery and taking any unnecessary risk.

Are you taking away spots from all-arounders to go to Nationals?

We are simply changing the qualifying opportunity for the final two spots per event. We are not reducing the number of qualified athletes and are therefore not reducing opportunity.
An all-around athlete can still qualify for all four events if the age group is simply that good.

7. Summary

If you believe as I do, that there is an opportunity in front of us to impact and create positive change within our gymnastics community, lets engage in a real conversation. It is easy to sit back and close off new ideas and thinking of them as “crazy” or “unrealistic.” It is more difficult to work through the details of new ideas and concepts to create a working system. This proposal is perhaps not perfect, but it is well thought out and has attempted to answer any questions that may have come up through your reading and discussing. I understand that you may not wish to implement this system as it is currently written, but I encourage you to think outside the box and be willing to engage in serious discussion on how we can create sustainable and positive change in our industry. This gymnastics community has not been broken by the events of the last few years, but there has been a light shed on some of its flaws and weaknesses. It is in our best interest to create a system that empowers, respects and values the gymnasts within. Our goal should be one of retention, enjoyment in sport and ultimately education through athletics that prepare our athletes for life post competition. I believe this proposed change could be a wonderful step towards these goals. Thank you for your time, energy and patience. Please consider this with an open mind and also check the following list of support from your constituents when discussing this proposed change.

Sincerely,

Brett Wargo

SIGN THE PETITION HERE