Back, 15 or so years ago when my daughter was young, she started taking roller skating lessons and eventually got into competitions. Basically, the same as ice skating. Same jumps, spins, etc.
She pulled me into the club too, and then I started competition also. Except, for me, it was dance and figures. I left the freestyle stuff for the young kids.
The national skating organization, akin to the USTA, runs a Junior Olympic program whereby "new" skaters were able to compete against each other. There are leagues, based on geography; and regions, usually a whole state, or group of states (the smaller ones). Competitors are also divided into age groups.
To be eligible for the Junior Olympic program, one could not have competed in previous years. Any one competitor is allowed to compete at the Junior Olympic level for a maximum of three consecutive years. The program is further divided into Level I and Level II. If someone places at regionals one year (a top four finish in a region, the superset of local leagues, and qualifies one for nationals), that person moves up from Level I to Level II the following year.
If in the second year, someone also places at regionals and goes on to nationals, they are out of the program and have to compete the following year in "normal" league contests.
Would such a "Junior Olympic" structure be advantageous for tennis players new to the sport in the United States? Seems like it is worthy for further investigation.
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(In case anyone is interested, I placed second in my first J.O. year at regionals in both dance and figures. Didn't do too well at nationals. The second year, at Level II, I won regionals in figures and placed fourth in dance. At nationals, didn't do too well in figures, but made the finals in dance, finishing fourth in the entire country. The next year I had to compete with the "big boys" and it was just too political, (just like ice skating).)
She pulled me into the club too, and then I started competition also. Except, for me, it was dance and figures. I left the freestyle stuff for the young kids.
The national skating organization, akin to the USTA, runs a Junior Olympic program whereby "new" skaters were able to compete against each other. There are leagues, based on geography; and regions, usually a whole state, or group of states (the smaller ones). Competitors are also divided into age groups.
To be eligible for the Junior Olympic program, one could not have competed in previous years. Any one competitor is allowed to compete at the Junior Olympic level for a maximum of three consecutive years. The program is further divided into Level I and Level II. If someone places at regionals one year (a top four finish in a region, the superset of local leagues, and qualifies one for nationals), that person moves up from Level I to Level II the following year.
If in the second year, someone also places at regionals and goes on to nationals, they are out of the program and have to compete the following year in "normal" league contests.
Would such a "Junior Olympic" structure be advantageous for tennis players new to the sport in the United States? Seems like it is worthy for further investigation.
- - - - -
(In case anyone is interested, I placed second in my first J.O. year at regionals in both dance and figures. Didn't do too well at nationals. The second year, at Level II, I won regionals in figures and placed fourth in dance. At nationals, didn't do too well in figures, but made the finals in dance, finishing fourth in the entire country. The next year I had to compete with the "big boys" and it was just too political, (just like ice skating).)
