About Women’s Competitive Gymnastics

The competitive program in women’s gymnastics is made up of 3 streams.  The state stream, the national stream and the elite stream.  Each stream varies in the number of hours and days they train, the competitions they are eligible for and the overall commitment and motivation of each gymnast.  Gymnasts in these programs train from two to six days per week, with some of the top-level gymnasts training up to 32 hours per week. The competitive squads are generally made up of groups with six to eight gymnasts per group. The coaching staff provide the optimal learning environment for the gymnasts.  The Senior Coaches and executive team at NBG will have the final decision in which stream the gymnasts will compete in and all gymnasts will compete in competitions where they will have the most success.

State Stream Gymnastics (Level 1-10)

The state stream Program allows gymnasts of all abilities to further experience the various benefits of gymnastics.  Once a child has gained sufficient skills in the FitNastics program they can move over to the state Level Program.
This stream offers competitions and displays on training 6-10 hours a week.  Each level has a variety of skills and routines the gymnast must learn on each apparatus.  Once a child has mastered the skills in a Level, they may compete those skills in routines at the club and state organised competitions.  As the gymnast progresses through the levels they achieve a sense of accomplishment and confidence within themselves.  This stream of gymnastics allows all children to achieve and have success at gymnastics in a fun environment.

National Stream Gymnastics (Level 1-10)

The National Stream Program is designed for all competitive gymnasts. It is flexible and encourages safe developmental progressions to enable gymnasts to develop to a national standard from Level 1 – 10.

The most important activity in the National and Elite streams of gymnastics is physical conditioning. Without mastering this, the gymnast will struggle with the demands of the National and International Levels Program.  Physical conditioning will take up a large proportion of the training time.  These girls train 9-20 hours a week.

Elite Stream Gymnastics (International Development Program)

This program is designed for very talented gymnasts who are able to accelerate through an alternative training program. The long term aim is to prepare them for national and international competition by the age of 12-14. The Australian Junior and Senior National Teams are selected from the Elite Stream gymnasts. Only a very small percentage of gymnasts are selected to train and compete in this Stream and they must have a strong desire to do so. They train five to nine sessions a week and compete in local Club Invitational’s as well as State, National and International competitions.