Think about the different hats a parent has to wear: working professional, grocery store runner, taxi driver, cook, cleaner. Now imagine adding the additional job of project manager for a level 10 gymnast who trains anywhere from 20 to 40 hours a week. For the parents of high-level gymnasts, finding balance in their families is an ongoing challenge. What goes on behind the scenes? What does it take to parent a collegiate gymnast?
To help their kids reach the highest levels of gymnastics, parents need to be equally as committed as their kids to turn dreams into reality. Kelly Piedrahita, the mother of Penn State gymnast Ava Piedrahita, is one of these parents who has to juggle multiple roles. Beyond managing the financial aspects of training like paying for tuition, grips, tape, and competition fees, Kelly also handles the logistics: scheduling physical therapy appointments, talking to teachers and academic counselors, and just making sure Ava has a meal to eat when she gets home from practice. Kelly’s daytime job as a pharmacist, working 12-hour shifts, makes the logistics aspect extremely difficult and requires her family to think multiple steps ahead constantly. “I had to make arrangements with friends, teammates, parents, neighbors, and even co-workers to help…
