Competitive Programs

Five Dock Leisure Centre Gymnastics Club offers opportunities for those gymnasts who wish to train more seriously to become a member of a squad. Known as our Competitive Program they are split into two categories known as Men's Artistic Gymnastics (MAG) and Women's Artistic Gymnastics (WAG). MAG and WAG are part of the national competitive program and allow the gymnast to compete at State, National and International competitions with other gymnasts from other clubs and states.

For more details on each discipline please select a tab above.

Registration

All competitive gymnasts must be registered with the NSW Gymnastics Association (NSWGA). Competitive registration is $75 and is a compulsory fee that FDLC must collect and pass on to the NSWGA. This fee includes insurance and participation in relevant sanctioned competitions at Regional, State and National Levels. A gymnastics pack is also issued to registered gymnasts.

Attire

Gymnasts must come to training properly attired. They should also bring a water bottle to training. Leotards, crop tops or fitted singlets and gym shorts are appropriate because they will not get caught in gymnastic equipment and allow the coaches to assess the shape and form of the gymnast.

All gymnasts are required to compete in the club leotard and club tracksuits at competitions. Gymnasts are allowed to wear their own choice of leotard at InHouse competitions. A club polo shirt is also available.

If your child is selected into the WAG Level 1 – 3 Inner City Region's State Team, you will need to purchase an additional leotard from the Regional.

Men's Artistic Gymnastics

There are six apparatus for Men. In Olympic order they are Floor, Pommel Horse, Vault, Rings, Parallel Bars and High Bar.

The Australian Men’s program is divided into 2 main competition streams:

• An Age Group
• An Open Division

This provides a pathway for development based on an individual’s physical ability. The objective is for all gymnasts to attempt to compete within their appropriate age group for as long as possible or to develop into an age group if they start gymnastics at a later age.

Some boys have been selected to represent our club whilst training at the NSW Institute of Sport / High Performance Centre (NSWIS/HPC) in Homebush. These boys have competed at State, National and International levels.

Competitions allow the gymnast to achieve a pass mark and advance to the next level. Level 1 – 5 competition season begins from April through to State Championships in September. Levels 6 - 10 compete from November with State Championships in May.

Boy's can represent Five Dock Gymnastics Club at State Championships if they score a pass mark of 52.00 or higher at a State qualifier during the competition calendar year.

Women's Artistic Gymnastics

There are four apparatus for women, in Olympic order they are Vault, Uneven Bars, Beam and Floor.

The competitive program in Women's Gymnastics is made up of 3 streams. The STATE Stream, the NATIONAL stream and the INTERNATIONAL stream. All streams follow routines and guidelines devised by Gymnastics Australia on the four apparatus, Vault, Uneven Bars, Beam and Floor. The objective of the competitive programsis to introduce every age and ability of gymnasts to the world of Competitive Gymnastics. Each stream varies in the number of hours and days the gymnasts train, the competitions they are eligible for and the overall commitment and motivation of each gymnast. The programs follow nationally set apparatus routines that are assessed at competition in front of a panel of judges and gymnasts are split into Junior, Intermediate and Senior age groups when competiting. The coaching staff at Five Dock provide the optimal learning environment for each gymnast and cater for every learning style and adapts their techniques to suit the individual.

State Stream Gymnastics (Levels 1-10)

The State Stream allows for gymnasts of all abilities to further experience the various benefits of gymnastics. This stream offers fun competitions and trains 2-5 hours a week. Each level has a variety of skills and routines the gymnasts learn on each apparatus. They may choose to compete on 2, 3 or all 4 apparatus. Once a gymnast has mastered the skills in a level, they may compete those skills in routines at the club for InHouse 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 Development Program (Levels 1-10)

The National Development program is the largest participated program of the competitive gymnasts within Australia. It is flexible and encourages safe developmental progressions to enable gymnasts to development to a national standard from Level 1-10. Each level has a set routines for each apparatus that once the gymnast has mastered they can compete at InHouse, Invitationals, Regional and State organised competitions. Gymnasts within this program train 2 - 20 hours a week according to the level, age and commitment of the gymnast.

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 Internationl competition by the age of 12-14. The Australian Junior and Senior National Teams are selected from the International Development 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 3-9 sessions a week and compete in InHouse, Invitational, State, National and International organised competitions.

Within the National and International programs a very important component of their training 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 proportion of the training time each session.