Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost?
This depends on many factors. Factors include what pathway, class and level enrolled in. How long the class is, and how many sessions attending per week.
What day do you have classes?
Refer to the timetable.
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Do you have any vacancies?
Contact the office for more information. At times due to high demand, we have to have a waiting list from certain classes. Whilst awaiting a class space, if there is a vacancy in another program, suitable for your child, this may be offered in the meantime.
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How young can they can start gymnastics?
Children can start as young as 2 in the Building Blocks class.
20 REASONS YOUR PRESCHOOLER SHOULD DO GYMNASTICS (THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH LEARNING GYMNASTICS)
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I'd like to trial a class, what should I do?
See the trial information here, here and here.
I need a leotard, where should I buy one from?
Club leotards are available for purchase from the office, there are also plenty of online suppliers (we do not recommend ones from Best and Less as the elastic is not tight enough on the legs for our sport - they are made for dance and for stockings to be worn underneath).
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Do you have Efpos?
No, however, we offer another 3 ways to pay your fees! Cash, EFT or cheque.
How old is too old to start in gym sports?
It's never too late to start learning here at Maryborough GymSports as we currently cater for beginner children and adults.
It’s incredibly sad that as a society we tell kids as young as eight or nine that they are “too old” to start a sport. Even if you have a teenager who is interested in beginning gymnastics, it’s not “too late.” Let’s not squash a child’s interest in trying something new that is has so many benefits and is so much fun!
Do you have adult classes?
Subject to availability, make sure you check with the timetable, contact the office and book in!
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No, although females may engage in this sport more than males, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Boys are able to be enrolled in all programs except women's artistic gymnastics (WAG).
There is no better sport than gymnastics to assist your young man to develop strength, agility and coordination. The flexibility gained, learning how to fall and kinaesthetic awareness helps prevent injury. Finally, gymnastics helps all kids take coaching feedback, time management, confidence, perseverance and goal setting, which are all valuable skills for sports and life.
Isn’t Gymnastics a dangerous sport?
‘…Sport should be safe and enjoyable. It will never be risk free, but good planning and sport safety management can help to prevent injuries…’
Gymnastics is one of the safest sports in Australia in comparison to other sports according to statistics. We teach children skills in their ability level with appropriate build ups and skill progressions. We have put in place measures to make our sport safe including:
•Basic skills are mastered prior to teaching harder skills
•All of our coaches are accredited and receive ongoing training
•Our club regularly undergoes risk management audits and equipment safety checks
•MGS is a Gymnastics QLD and Australia affiliated club and is covered by insurance.
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Gymnastics coaches have much more training than most other sports coaches, having to pass multiple assessments as set by Gymnastics Australia to ensure they are proficient in both knowledge about their discipline and coaching. They are considerably more knowledgeable than the average youth sports coach on topics such as injury prevention, conditioning and proper rehabilitation.
Furthermore, many of the injuries in gymnastics are repetitive stress injuries due to over training. A member taking a class once or twice a week is highly unlikely to develop such an injury. Finally, most gymnastics related injuries don’t take place under at a gymnastics club, instead they happened at school or home!
Gymnastics, when practiced at a well-equipped club with safety certified, professional coaches who follow a safe, logical and developmentally appropriate lesson plan is quite safe.
"My child is going to be too tall for gymnastics"
While it is half true that most elite level gymnasts are quite petite, certainly not all are. And, for the level of gymnastics that most children who participate achieve, height is not a major limiting factor in their ability to progress. If your child is interested in gymnastics or is enrolled and having a good time, that’s what matters!
"I don’t want gymnastics to stunt my child’s growth"
It won’t! As mentioned, most high-level gymnasts are quite short. However it is likely because smaller, lighter people have an easier time doing high-level gymnastics and therefore succeed at a greater rate than their taller teammates. In other words, it isn’t gymnastics that makes them short, it’s them being short allows them to succeed at elite level gymnastics.
Additionally, it isn’t until gymnasts are on an elite training track (30 plus hours a week) that delays in puberty or normal growth curves are of concern. A couple hours a week of gymnastics will have no effect on your child’s growth. It will, however, have a positive effect in preventing obesity, strengthening bones and encouraging a lifetime of fitness.
"My child isn’t very coordinated/strong/flexible, so they should not do gymnastics "
All the more reason your child should do gymnastics! Gymnastics works on those fundamental gross motor skills that all children need to develop to become physically fit.
My child wants to learn ‘flips’, when will they be able to do this?
Children need to progress through the levels according to their individual ability. ‘Depending on the type of 'Flips’ you're referring to, they will be taught when the child has enough strength and foundation skills to advance to these techniques. Our coaches take great pride in their work.
My child already does flips at home, why aren't they learning them already?
In gymsports, skills are built upon throughout the levels, missing foundation skills is potentially dangerous and can reinforce bad habits, which takes the coach and athlete a lot longer to correct, that the length of time that it took to learn. Focus is on mastery of basic skills before progression; this makes harder skills easier to learn. Our focus is to have athletes engage in a sport they love, safely.
Is gymnastics expensive?
At Maryborough GymSports we believe that our expenses are relatively low in comparison to other activities in our region such as swimming, dancing and music lessons. Most of these lessons are only 30 mins-45mins. So if you do the math, ours are equivalent, if not cheaper than their hourly rate!
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Plus as all of our coaches are accreditied to work in the sport, they are paid
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Fees include registration, equipment levy and coaching fees. Invoices are issued at the end of the term and to be paid by the advised date.
Are you a competitive or recreational club?
Both. We have members who participate for the sheer joy and physical activity gymnastics or cross training with other sports/physiotherapy programs. The clubs also offers athletes in the levels program opportunities to compete at local, regional and state competitions.
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(Credit to Annie Joseph at JAG GYM for providing some of the information on this page. To see the original post, click here )
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