ELITE gymnasts across the region are unsure where, or if, they can continue to train next season.
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More than 150 junior and teenage gymnasts have been left in a spin with City of Ballarat declaring it would end its women’s artistic gymnastics program at Ballarat Aquatic and Lifestyle Centre in November.
Families were informed via a letter from the City on Monday night.
Parents are concerned it will end a pathway for girls in the sport, due to a lack of appropriate alternatives and consultation in exploring other options to maintain the competitions program.
The City took over operations of the BALC about a year ago from the YMCA, which ran the elites.
But the City reiterated in a statement released on Tuesday it did not employ elite sporting coaches and it commitments to Ballarat’s elite sporting programs would remain in sponsorship. The centre will continue to host recreational gym sessions.
Eureka Gymnastics Club and Ballarat Gymsports have been named as training alternatives for elite gymnasts.
Mr Lightfoot said both were really good clubs but neither was properly equipped for an elites program – Eureka lacked the coaching personnel and Gymsports lacked training equipment and space.
“Talk to any sport and people will say you’ve got to have pathways,” Mr Lightfoot said. “There are 750 gymnasts across all streams alone...This is like getting rid of (Victorian Football League team) North Ballarat Roosters and just having a heap of Auskick.”
A parent advisory group was formed to work with council and the City through operational alternatives and a transition process for the program but their last meeting was two months ago.
Mr Lightfoot said this week’s announcement came as a shock. He said the parents’ aim had been to find a program operator and retain BALC as a base, like most Ballarat sporting clubs on council sporting grounds.
The City of Ballarat states it formed a partnership with Eureka, Gymsports and Gymnastics Victoria to ensure pathways to elite gymnastics in Ballarat and to increase participation of females in the sport.
“Council is confident the Eureka Gymnastics Club and Gymsports have the expertise and facilities to provide a home for all elite gymnasts from Ballarat and the wider region,” the statement read.
Cr Hudson told The Courier council could consider a strategy to explore how to better develop both.
Elite gymnasts can train up to 20 hours per week. Mr Lightfoot said they were dedicated children who could be forced to travel to Melbourne to find the right coaching and facilities to help them reach their potential.