It’s nearing the end of the level 10 season and so, just as happens in college gymnastics, all eyes are on nationals. For every level 10 athlete trying to get recruited to a college team, qualifying to Level 10 nationals feels like the Holy Grail. It’s the meet where they have the opportunity to get as many coaches’ eyes on them as possible, and increase their chances of getting recruited to the school of their dreams.
Those eyes certainly are watching; flanking both sides of the competition floor sits almost every college coach in the country. They proudly drape their school’s flag over their table and search, with a list of names of potential recruits in hand, for the athletes who will contribute the most to their team and have the potential to fill holes in their lineups. They meet with coaches to try to get as much information about their potential recruit as possible. They can finally see the side of a recruit that you can’t see in an Instagram post or an email – how do they compete? How do they handle a bad warmup? How do they treat their coaches and teammates under stress?
By the time nationals rolls around in early May, most recruits have done their fair share of emailing and connecting with coaches online. Their goal is to do their best gymnastics…
