From Troy on the FIG minimum age rule for Worlds and Olympics:
Anyone that thinks that the age rule is stopping moron coaches from over-training their athletes is naive’ or inexperienced in this sport. There are no rules that are going to keep idiots from doing whatever they want to train their kids with no foresight or care about their well-being or their future.
Our sport, and every other sport is rampant with these undisciplined, unapologetic, excuse-making losers that care only about their own careers and reputations, and don’t think twice about the repercussions to their athletes.
And most of these dolts have little to nothing to do with Olympic caliber athletes. No rule is going to change this. The only way to change these things is the leadership at the top of the organization, the judges and the way they reward difficulty comparative to mastery, and the continuing efforts to train coaches and educate them as to what is important in training.
Something I would be interested in pursuing is if there is some way for meet referees, judges, etc. to start filing reports on coaches who have several gymnasts at a meet doing things that are obviously “over their heads”. We have all been to meets and seen this tool that has his kids flipping vaults that they have probably never made safely in practice. Why are there no sanctions for this jerk? What is stopping that guy/girl from going back in the gym and continuing to put his/her kids at risk? No one is telling him/her not to.
I’ve heard judges complain about a certain coach and their dread in having to watch his/her kids compete. Why are we not doing something about that? Think of a football player at age 10 coming on to the field without a helmet because his coach told him that he didn’t need one. The ref would send him right back to the sideline and I’m pretty sure the coach would be dealt with by the organization. Why do we not have similar oversight? I, for one, am sick of watching some coaches disregard the best interest of the gymnast because of their own stupidity, and the rest of us looking the other way.
Well said.
As a judge, I’ve been instructed to stop any performance I deem dangerous.
And I have stepped in and questioned a coach about things I’ve seen in the warm-up. Judges are oft to say, “Don’t scare me. It won’t help your score.”
On the other hand, I can only think of 2 or 3 instances over decades where a routine was actually stopped by a judge at meets I’ve attended.
Avril Enslow, New Zealand
Gymnastics Coaching.com 