Uncertain future for high school gymnastics

High school gymnasts competed in the COSSA Gymnastic Championships on Wednesday, but their coaches said it may be the last year a local team participates.

“High school gymnastics has been losing ground,” said Kathy Garvey, a coach from St. Peter Secondary School.

This has happened because of a lack of certified coaches and the rising popularity of other school activities such as cheerleading and dance, she said.

Garvey was once in gymnastics herself and has been coaching the team since 1987.

The former gymnast co-coaches with Liz Kuipers, a teacher at St. Peter. Both women said they’re stepping down from the team next year.

The coaches said that their school is the only one in the city with a team. This means that unless another certified coach steps up, it could spell the end for local high school gymnastics.

Jacalyn Ellis, a coach for the team from Lindsay Collegiate and Vocational School, said gymnastics is different from most other high school sports.

“At a lot of high schools you have to try out for a team and a lot of people don’t make it,” she said. “With gymnastics – at least at our high school – everybody who comes gets to compete.”

Ellis said that it was unfortunate numbers were going down in the sport. She said this was mainly because there aren’t that many coaches who teach it anymore.

The gymnastic competition took place at the Kawartha Gymnastics Club and featured a series of individual performances in vault, bars, beam and floor for each gymnast.

Gymnasts from six schools in neighbouring regions competed at COSSA to qualify for the provincial OFSAA Ontario Championships.

Megan Hyde, a gymnast from St. Peter, said she was out of the running for OFSAA after her score on vault.

“It’s still fun, we worked the whole season for this,” said Hyde.

Hyde was the only local gymnast in the level 1 category – a ranking of levels from 1 to 6 – but said there were some girls in other levels from her high school.

The six finalists in each skill level will go on to the provincial championships in Belleville from April 9 to 11.

CLIFFORD SKARSTEDT/EXAMINER LCVI gymnast Keegan Woods is hugged by her coach Jacalyn Ellis during COSSA high school gymnastics championship on Wednesday at Kawartha Gymnastics Club. See more photographs from the event in the online gallery at www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com.

CLIFFORD SKARSTEDT/EXAMINER LCVI gymnast Abi Allison performs on the floor during the COSSA high school gymnastics championship on Wednesday at Kawartha Gymnastics Club.