Ellie's Gymnastics Level 3

Last May, Ellie's class in gymnastics got promoted to level 3 gymnastics team. They started working really hard in the gym for 9 hours a week.  Then they started the competition season.  They have gone to 6 meets this year, including a "mock meet" that they put on for parents with only their team (but with real judges) at our gym.  Ellie competes in 4 areas- floor, beam, bars and vault.  Each area has a routine that has been designed by USAG that all girls in the same level do at meets.  When they get into the higher levels, then they start having choreographed routines.  At Ellie's gym you start competing in what they call achievement.  In achievement you get scored, but you don't get placed and there are no medals.  In order to move up to placement, you have to get 2 overall scores of 36.  They get a score of up to 10 in each level, above a 9 is a really good score, above a 9.5 is pretty rare.  Ellie still has not gotten her 36's so she is still doing achievement. 

Ellie's favorite areas are floor and bars, and her greatest strength is bars. 

Beam is scary for her.

It's been fun to watch her compete this year, she has a great time interacting with her friends on her team. I get SO nervous for her, hoping she does well (even though somewhere deep inside I know it doesn't matter).  She has 2 more meets this season, one in Dallas and one in San Antonio.  She will probably compete at the same level next year, but just do it for placement so she gets the experience of competing against other girls.  She is learning the skills for the  next level, and doing well at that though. Just this week, she got her kip!