Gymnasts push through practices, nerves in drive to stick landing
Gymnastics is quite literally a leap of faith. Whether through a pattern of elaborate leaps or twirling around bars and beams--the sport most definitely offers both high stakes and high rewards. The Oshkosh gymnastics team has started off the season strong with both varsity and junior varsity flipping into firsts.
The team, a combination of girls from North and West, hosts many State hopefuls. The long and grueling practices, lasting two hours, prepare athletes for tough competition. The sport has four events: vault, bars, beam, and floor. Head coach Leah Levine has 16 years of experience and knows the formula to success.
“If you dedicate time to something, I want you to put 110 percent in no matter what,” she said. “I don’t care if it’s for school, a job, or sports. Just put your all in and do your best and just know you did your best and be happy with that.”
Junior Rayleigh Okon, a 10-year sport veteran, enjoys the sport and the fruits of her hard work.
“I got a new mount on beam, a new dismount on bars, a roundoff on beam, and five new tumbling passes on floor,” she said. “It's fun to tumble and jump around, and I feel myself in my floor routine.”
Sophomore Janiyah Ford expresses her emotions through her moves.
“I just love tumbling, and my routine’s really sassy, so it fits me,” she said. “I enjoy competing and showing off my routine.”
Ford took a hiatus from the sport last year and when she returned she could feel the break in her performance. She has been in the gym every night fighting to get back what she lost, and the results have been coming in.
“When I first came in, I could barely do my splits,” she said. “My ankles and wrists have gotten really strong by just practicing lots, and I'm able to land a trick on the vault.”
The uneven bars event sends the girls' bodies flying in the air onto the higher bar and flipping back onto solid ground. Sophomore Henna Kaiser contributes her improvement to her coaches who are there to support her.
“The coaches here have helped me a lot,” she said. “I have gained so many new skills. I got more skills in not even one year here than in five years elsewhere.”
The program places an emphasis on learning new skills and helping out athletes in every situation. Even when excelling in certain events, the challenging aspects of the sports can hold athletes back.
“My bar dismount is the hardest part for me,” Okon said. “It's very hard to land and twist all at once.”
Ford stays optimistic about her own difficulties with her moves.
“I’m going to try and get my landing very soon, and I think it’ll look good once I get it,” she said. “I have a hard time spotting, and I think it just takes practice”
The right mindset going into some of these dangerous acts can be the most essential component. Kaiser acknowledges the challenges that come before success.
“Roundoff back handspring is the most challenging,” she said. “I’m having a mental block and sometimes I just can’t do it.”
The team includes both high schools combined together due to low participation. Ford wants to see an increase in student interest.
“I think all people think of is impossible tricks and high injury rates,” she said. “But the sport is so much more and I would love to see our numbers increase.”
As the season progresses, Levine hopes to recruit more athletes and install a positive attitude in her team that will transcend any skill or flip.
“This is supposed to be fun,” she said. “Anything you do in high school is supposed to be fun.”
by Ashley Schumann
Published January 30, 2023
Oshkosh West Index Volume 119 Issue 4