Oakville Gymnastics Club's Men's Blog

This blog has moved

2010-09-07T09:10:00.001-04:00

For technical reasons, I have changed the host to Wordpress for this blog.

The new blog is here

The blog at this site will no longer be updated.

Is your child’s backpack too heavy?

2010-08-30T18:45:00.001-04:00

If he's wearing it the wrong way, he could be doing some serious damage to his neck, shoulders and back

Is your child’s backpack too heavy? - The Globe and Mail

39.23 sec. Iron Cross!

2010-08-27T20:37:00.001-04:00

Rings – new Iron Cross record — Gymnastics Coaching.com

End of August Break

2010-08-27T07:24:00.001-04:00

No training next week.

The Fall schedule starts on Tuesday September 7th.

Muscles Remember Past Glory

2010-08-22T08:39:00.001-04:00

Your son is laying down the foundation for life long fitness. Muscles Remember Past Glory | Wired Science | Wired.com

Everything you need to know about fast food in one big picture

2010-08-17T21:40:00.001-04:00

link: Everything you need to know about fast food in one big picture - My Modern Metropolis

Youth Olympics Men's Qualification

2010-08-16T15:12:00.001-04:00

Japanese newcomer Yuya Kamoto leads men's qualifying at Youth Olympic Games - National Gymnastics | Examiner.com

Why barefoot is best for children

2010-08-15T09:12:00.001-04:00

Another benefit to doing gymnastics.
Why barefoot is best for children | Life and style | guardian.co.uk

Easy snack to make with the kids

2010-08-08T15:21:00.001-04:00

How to Microwave Gourmet Popcorn in a Brown Paper Bag | Squawkfox

TV & Attention Span

2010-07-07T12:48:00.001-04:00

Study: Too much TV, games for kids = shorter attention span via The Globe and Mail

Article on Nathan Gafiuk

2010-06-15T10:07:00.001-04:00

Nathan Gafiuk's World Championships goal: Be 'in it' in the all-around

Article on Kyle Shewfelt

2010-06-15T10:06:00.001-04:00

Kyle Shewfelt: 'I did my best and I am convinced that that is the ultimate definition of winning'

Sleep May Be Athletes' Best Performance Booster

2010-06-04T08:14:00.001-04:00

Sleep May Be Athletes' Best Performance Booster

Chronobiology studies are giving athletes and coaches valuable information on sleep strategies that could help ensure that an athlete's performance doesn't become a victim of too little sleep.

Athlete A or team X, the top performers in their sport, sometimes lose to less-adept competitors. Lower-ranked athletes or teams, at their peak, may perform better than top-ranked ones at their worst. Even elite athletes aren't always at the top of their game.

Variations in sports performance may reflect normal ebb and flow of biological rhythms. Marked differences between time of training and time of competition—as commonly occur in figure skating and football—also may dent an athlete's performance, noted Teodor Postolache, M.D., an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Postolache served as guest editor of the June Clinics in Sports Medicine, which explores applications of body-time research to sports performance. (This issue was published as a book, Sports Chronobiology, by Saunders.)

Normal mid-afternoon drowsiness, jet travel, seasonal and menstrual-cycle variations in body rhythms, and lack of sleep can take the edge off athletic skills, Postolache said. Chronobiology lab findings can help athletes perform at their peak and reduce their risk of injury.

Psychiatrists and psychologists working in medical school psychiatry departments report their research in some of the book's 18 articles.

Psychomotor Vigilance Declines

Hans Van Dongen, Ph.D., and David Dinges, Ph.D., of the University of Pennsylvania, described studies assessing psychomotor vigilance performance after sleep deprivation. This skill involves reaction time and sustained attention. It is needed for not only sports performance but also everyday activities such as driving. It is highly sensitive to sleep loss, often experienced by athletes on road trips, particularly after they cross multiple time zones.

Such performance deteriorates markedly after 88 hours of continuous wakefulness, a duration comparable to staying up for three nights and long enough to show circadian patterns of alertness and sleepiness. Performance is consistently better in the day than at night, a reflection of humans' innate programming to stay alert in the day and sleep at night. Two-hour nap opportunities every 12 hours can blunt deficits in psychomotor vigilance.

Naps have a downside, though. Right after awakening, people often manifest performance deficits termed “sleep inertia.” They're foggy and clumsy. This effect intensifies with progressive sleep loss, especially at night, Van Dongen and Dinges found. Very short naps—roughly 10 minutes—may offer some recuperative benefit when people are sleep deprived, they said, without producing noticeable levels of sleep inertia.

`Sleep Debt' Snowballs

Chronic sleep restriction, widespread among American adults, has serious adverse consequences for physical and mental performance, asserted sleep researcher William Dement, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University. The most important aspect of the body's homeostatic regulation of sleep, he said, is that sleep loss is cumulative. “When total nightly sleep is reduced by exactly the same amount each night for several consecutive nights,” he reported, “the tendency to fall asleep in the daytime becomes progressively stronger each day.”

Dement calls this phenomenon “sleep debt.” As he explains, the brain records as a debt every hour of sleep that is less than a person's nightly requirement. This snowballing debt may include an hour of sleep lost a week or month ago, as well as the hour lost last night, he speculated. A large sleep debt can be reduced only by extra sleep.

In a landmark 1994 National Institute of Mental Health study, subjects stayed in bed in the dark 14 hours every night for 28 consecutive nights. At first, they slept as long as 12 hours a night, suggesting they entered the study with sizeable sleep debts, Dement said. By the fourth week, their sleep stabilized at a nightly average of eight hours and 15 minutes—a figure interpreted to mean that most adults need this amount of sleep each night.

Does `Secret' Advantage Accrue?

When subjects slept until “slept out,” their mood, energy level, and sense of well-being as indicated on daily questionnaires all improved. Athletes who obtain all the sleep they need, Dement suggested, might have a “secret” advantage over their competition.

The adage “practice makes perfect,” long a truism of athletic training, has been modified by sleep and chronobiology studies in the past decade, according to Matthew Walker, Ph.D., and Robert Stickgold, Ph.D., of Harvard Medical School. After initial training, the human brain continues to learn in the absence of further practice, they said. The improvement develops in sleep.

These findings have a direct application to athletes' training schedules, they asserted. Athletes who train consistently across the day and then cut short their sleep to get up early the next morning for practice might shortchange their brains of sleep-dependent consolidation and plasticity.

Studies of bright light's beneficial impact on mood hold relevance for the depressed athlete who experiences adverse effects from antidepressant medications or needs to avoid psychoactive substances entirely, said Postolache and Dan Oren, M.D., of Yale University School of Medicine. Bright light's antidepressant effects start sooner than those of most antidepressant medications, they noted. They suggest light exposure could be used to hasten antidepressant response.

“Athletes who obtain all the sleep they need might have a `secret' advantage over their competition.”

Injured athletes simultaneously may experience diminished feelings of competence and self-worth and undergo an abrupt decrement in light exposure due to reduction in outdoor training. Postolache and Oren recommended that sidelined athletes continue to get bright-light exposure, either natural or artificial.

The contents of and ordering information for Sports Chronobiology is posted at<www.intl.elsevierhealth.com/catalogue/title.cfm?ISBN=1416027696>.▪

Gym Energy Invite Schedule

2010-06-02T21:45:00.001-04:00

Hello Everyone,

Attached you will find our schedule for next Saturday, June 12, 2010.

We will also be splitting the groups for awards as follows:
Interclub 1, Age 8, 9-12
Interclub 2, Age 8-10, 11-13
interclub 3, Age 10/11, 12, 13+
Interclub 4, Age 9+
Provincial 1, Age 8, 9-11

Thank you for all your patience.
See you next Saturday!

Lucia Hunt
Gym Energy Meet Director

Gymnastics Energy Invitational

2010-05-14T20:30:00.001-04:00

We will be attending the Gymnastics Energy Invitation on Saturday June 12th, 2010.

This competition is open to all of our Flares, Developmental, Pre-comp, Interclub and Provincial Level 1 boys.

The registration fee is $60 for all Interclub and Provincial Level 1 boys and $50 for all Flares and Developmental boys.

Please register with the front office (Agnes) by Thursday May 20th.

Provincials this weekend

2010-04-30T12:20:00.001-04:00

Good luck at Provincials this weekend! Levels 3,4 & 5 compete tonight.

No training on Monday May 3rd

2010-04-30T03:41:00.001-04:00

All competitive groups are off this Monday.

Good luck to all competitors at Provincials this weekend.

Being on Time

2010-04-25T18:01:00.001-04:00

While we understand that all sorts of factors affect your ability to arrive at training on time, it is very important that you do.

Warm-up and conditioning are done at the beginning of the training and set the tone for that training session. In the case of younger gymnasts, we do not have to ability to run individual supervised warm-ups every 10 minutes. Your son will feel rushed and will not have had a thorough warm-up.

Regular conditioning is vital to acquiring new skills and allows the gymnast to maintain the required body tension to successfully perform not only individual skills, but to also have the endurance to perform a routine.

It doesn’t take long to lose the physical attributes of strength and flexibility. Doing the correct action with good form for the required number of repetitions regularly will lead to increased results and therefore better gymnastic with a reduction in injuries.

Attendance

2010-04-25T17:55:00.004-04:00

Gymnastics is a very complex sport that requires many repetitions over many days, weeks, months, etc to solidify skills. Once these skills are ready to be put in combination with other skills, the combination of skills must also be repeated regularly over time. Several combinations strung together become a part of a routine which have to be be performed regularly until the timing, positions and endurance required to put these complex body actions together. When all goes well, a routine is born and it too must be repeated regularly to solidify the movement patterns and to build the endurance required for the demands of competition; training days, general and specific warm-ups all while performing the routine under stress at competition.

Gymnastics in not a simple sport. It is arguably the hardest sport on the planet. Most sports are extensions of natural movement; running, swimming, etc, and training is design to increase speed and / or endurance. Gymnasts must learn complex movement throughout their entire career and still squeeze in time for routines and competitions. After an extended layoff (winter), returning to biking, swimming, running , etc is not so much about remembering the movement, but enduring the pain.

Regular training / attendance is very important to improving a gymnast's skill repertoire, strength, flexibility, confidence and endurance. While it may seem that missing one practice is not a big deal, depending on where that practice falls in your son's training cycle, they may miss up to four days of training. Four days is a significant gap in the training cycle. They will have to work on getting their timing back, some strength will have been lost and, especially in the case of growing boys, they will have lost flexibility. If they were in the middle of learning a new skill, they will have to take a few steps back in order to go through some of the learning process again.

Please try to attend all trainings and communicate with your son's coach regarding any absences.

Provincials

2010-04-25T17:24:00.001-04:00

The 2010 Provincial Championships are in less than a week. Not much different from the other Qualifiers as far as parental preparation goes. The benefits of having a local competition are that everyone will get to sleep in their own bed and if your son forgets something at the gym, it isn't that far out of the way.

Unlike the Qualifiers, the award categories will be by Level and Age Group only. The larger groups will not be separated into groups of 20.

Remember; the day of the competition is not the time to experiment with new pre-game meals, energy drinks, etc.

Also, this is not the time to shift the focus from a performance centred approach to a results based approach. Results cannot be controlled by the gymnast; there are too many variables. If the gymnast changes their focus to achieving a particular result, they will most likely err. They must be focused on their performance. If all of a sudden the gymnast, coach, and / or parent changes the focus to achieve a certain result, the gymnast will be distracted and not perform to their full potential.

As always; cheer them on, congratulate their performances, ask them if they had fun and go out for a treat afterwards.

Provincial Championships Schedule

2010-04-15T08:57:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to all that qualified!

Durham Invitational Schedule

2010-04-15T08:53:00.001-04:00

March Break

2010-03-13T09:18:00.000-05:00

Modified training for Monday march 15 to Friday March 19. Regular training resumes Monday March 22nd.

All Groups

Saturday, March 13: No Training
Sunday, March 14: No Training
Saturday, March 20: No Training
Sunday, March 21: No Training

2010 Ontario Winter Games

2010-03-03T11:03:00.001-05:00

Michael Buczkowski is representing Oakville at the 2010 Ontario Winter Games in Muskoka.

Six teams will be competing for the Winter Games title. There is no individual or event competition.

This is one of Michael's rare opportunities to compete optional routines as he competes compulsory routines in the Argo HP category during the regular season. At OWG, he will compete under National Youth rules.

Opening ceremonies are on Thursday night and the competition is Friday morning at Muskoka Woods.

3rd Ontario Cup Schedule

2010-02-23T09:48:00.002-05:00

Here's the schedule for the 3rd Ontario Cup in Ottawa.

Uniform Update

2010-01-26T12:41:00.001-05:00

Uniforms will start to arrive this afternoon.

New Uniform

2010-01-12T12:51:00.003-05:00

The new competitive uniform is now available. All competitive boys must purchase the new uniform. The old uniform can now be used for training.

Boys in the under 10 years old category will not wear long pants (Chin, Koren, Pederson, Perrier & Shannon).

The costs per piece are:

Singlet = $60
Shorts = $25
Long pants = $75

Please make cheques payable to the "Oakville Gymnastics Club" and return to Agnes (Front Desk).

Calendar

2010-01-04T13:44:00.002-05:00

Just a reminder that the full size calendar is here.

You do not have to have a Google account to view it.

REVISED First Qualifier Schedule

2010-01-04T13:42:00.003-05:00

Competitive Levels

2009-11-29T21:13:00.003-05:00

Below are our Team rosters for the 2009-10 Season.

Please note that the Ontario Provincial Levels 3, 4 & 5 are very different this year.

Level 1:

Aidan Chin

Emmette Morgante

Eric Shannon

Hunter Koren

Jacob Kammerman

Kyle Farnsworth

Logan Pederson

Max Perrier

Oliver Ralph

Level 2:

Andrew Sheehan

Cole Becker

Kieran Bryne

Steven Woolley

Level 3:

Nathan Bollinger

Sam Tziougras

Level 4:

Eric Mariglia

Robert Wilson

Level 5:

Chris Hazineh

Sean Marko

National:

Chase Norman (Youth)

Alex Danahy (Open)

High Performance:

Michael Buczkowski (Argo)

Cory Paterson (Tyro)

Thanksgiving Weekend

2009-10-05T09:34:00.005-04:00

There will be regular training on Saturday October 10th.

The gym will be closed on Monday October 12.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A few Reminders

2009-09-12T00:09:00.002-04:00

Great attendance is very important for all competitive athletes at Oakville Gymnastics. For our younger athletes, the repetition and consistency is so important when trying to build strength, gain flexibility or in learning how a new skill should feel. For our more-seasoned athletes, maintaining skill combinations or the feeling of new skills and working for routine consistency is imperative. Please, try and make sure your son gets to every practice.

Arriving Late- We are having some difficulty with athletes arriving late for the start-time of their classes. Of course there will be times when people are held up at work or hit bad traffic- that we understand. But the problem arises when athletes are arriving for class late quite often.

This poses a few problems; The athlete will miss similar parts of the warm-up which may be something that is particularly important to them. Or, they may be missing conditioning which will eventually make them fall behind the others who are getting all their conditioning done daily. Please do everything you can to make sure your child arrives at the gym, on time and is ready to go when the class is scheduled to begin.

Thanks for your efforts.

Welcome Back!

2009-09-10T21:52:00.003-04:00

To all of our returning athletes and our newest members of the Men's team at Oakville Gymnastics- welcome back!

I hope everyone has had a chance to settle into their school schedules as we get back into the swing of things this fall too. As you have likely noticed, there have been a few changes in groupings/ schedules etc from what was handed out at the end of June. I do know how tough it is to get your children's schedules figured out for the Fall and apologize for the late notice for some of the changes.

We are not trying to make your lives difficult- and the groups and schedules have always been tentative. The summer is the best time of year- especially with new athletes joining, to assess and re-evaluate the groups to make sure that each athlete is in the best possible group for THEM!

All athletes, we hope, should be in a group that challenges them to work hard, but we also need them to be able to see success in that group. From our experience, athletes who are in a group too far above their current level will become frustrated - so we'd rather see them do well and succeed and move up when it is in their best interest.

The boys are constantly tested and evaluated to make sure they are in the most-appropriate group for their current ability. IF we feel an athlete would be better off in either a higher group or would benefit from fewer hours, then we will make that change- even mid-season.

Civic Holiday

2009-07-29T06:47:00.001-04:00

No training on Monday August 3rd due to the Civic Holiday.

Enjoy the long weekend and let's hope for some reasonable weather!

Fall / Winter Schedule updated

2009-07-07T15:46:00.002-04:00

The Fall / Winter schedule has been updated to reflect the confirmed competition dates for next season's competitions.

Gym Energy Schedule (St. Catherine's)

2009-06-08T15:54:00.002-04:00

Saturday June 13th

Demo:

Registration: 9:00 am

Competition: 10:00 am

Awards: 12:10 pm

Interclub:

Registration: 11:45 am

Competition: 12:50 pm

Awards: 5:00 pm

Friday afternoon ends early

2009-06-07T22:54:00.001-04:00

Training this Friday afternoon (June 12), will end at 2:00 pm.

There is going to be a press conference in the gym from 2:00 until 4:00 pm.

Pre-competitive Schedule Changes

2009-05-27T21:24:00.003-04:00

Eric is pummelling the books in preparation for his CFA exam on June 6th. Therefore, he has adjusted the Pre-competitive training schedule that weekend.

No training on Friday June 5th. I would have gladly taken them off of your hands and worn them out, but I am away.

The Saturday June 6th class has been moved to the same times on Sunday June 7th.

Changes to "Greg's Group"

2009-05-27T21:19:00.002-04:00

Due to Nationals the week of June 1st to June 7th, there have been a number of schedule changes to "Greg's Group".

Morning trainings will run as scheduled under Dave.

Monday and Thursday will run from 4:30 to 7:30 under Kyle.

Tuesday and Friday are off.

The boys will train on Saturday under Kyle & Dave from 12 to 4 pm in lieu of Sunday.

Canadian Championships

2009-05-25T12:40:00.007-04:00

"Nationals" starts Monday, June 1 and runs until Sunday, June 7 at McMaster University in Hamilton.

Provincial Champion Matt Grinter, Sean Lord and two time Argo National Champion, Cory Paterson will be representing the Oakville Men's Program.

Matt and Sean are competing in the Senior High Performance category. This will be their last Nationals. Matt is retiring to focus 100% of his energy into his studies at York. Sean has just finished his BSc in Kinesiology at McMaster and is hoping to land a spot with Cirque du Soleil.

Cory is competing in the Tyro High Performance category this year. Since he's been recently diagnosed with a small fracture in his wrist, his focus will shift to performing well enough to keep his National Team status.

Blog Survey

2009-05-25T12:37:00.003-04:00

Thank you to all the parents that took the time to fill out the survey.

I will endeavor to publish more "News".

2009-05-13T11:42:00.001-04:00

Gymnastics Energy Boys Invitational

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Where: Gymnastics Energy Training Centre

101 Hannover Drive

St. Catharines ON

When: Saturday, June 13th

(we will let you know the specific times when more information becomes available)

Directions from Toronto:

Take the QEW towards Niagara
Exit on 7th Street
Turn right on to Seventh and IMMEDIATELY turn left on to South Service Road
Turn right on to Hannover and the gym is number 101 Hannover on your right hand side.

The entry fee for the competition will be:

Interclub: $55.00

Demo: $45.00

Please make a cheque payable to Oakville Gymnastics Centre no later then Friday, May 15.

Your son will be registered in the same category as the previous competition. Please note the appropriate competition fee for your child.

If you have any further questions, please speak with your son’s coach.

OGC Men’s Coaching Staff

Pre-competitive cancelled

2009-04-26T20:33:00.002-04:00

The Pre-competitive class on Monday April 26th is cancelled.

The boys just competed and Eric has an exam.

Directions to Oshawa invitational

2009-04-24T22:25:00.003-04:00

Easter Weekend

2009-04-06T20:58:00.002-04:00

The gym is closed on Good Friday (April 10th) and Easter Monday (April 13th).

Greg's Group will train from 10 AM until 1 PM on Friday and Saturday. No training on Sunday.

Regular training days and times on Saturday.

Please let your son's coach know if you will not be attending training this weekend.

Pre-competitive Group Schedule

2009-01-22T13:24:00.002-05:00

There will not be any disruptions to the Pre-comp group's schedule during the upcoming Qualifiers.

Second Ontario Cup

2008-12-31T11:10:00.002-05:00

The Second Provincial Qualifier and the First National / HP qualifier will be hosted by the National Capital Boys Gymnastics Academy in Nepean (Ottawa) January 30th to February 1st.

Rising Stars Camp

2008-12-31T11:02:00.006-05:00

Oakville is hosting a Rising Stars Camp this weekend from Friday afternoon until Sunday afternoon.

OGC's Sam Tziougras and Michael Buczkowski are two of a select group of 18 up and coming Ontario boys.

The regular training schedule resumes on Monday January 5th.

Gym Closed

2008-12-19T10:47:00.002-05:00

Friday December 19: Due to the weather, the gym is closed today.

First competition

2008-12-02T11:19:00.001-05:00

The first Men's competition gets underway this weekend at Gymnastics Energy in St. Catherines.

Friday night is the Provincial Tour selection.

Saturday morning starts with the Level 1 competition followed by the National Youth & Open competition and Tour selection and the day finishes with the Level 2 competition.

Sunday morning starts off with the Level 3 competition followed by the Level 4 and 5 competition.

Good luck to all competitors!!

Schedule Change

2008-11-26T13:30:00.002-05:00

Due to the WAG Qualifier, all groups will finish training at 7:30pm on Thursday December 4th.

All groups are cancelled from Friday to Sunday.

The regular training schedule resumes on Monday December 8th.

Dave's Away

2008-11-17T12:43:00.001-05:00

Dave's 16 hour Provincial class will be coached by Kyle this Friday, November 21st, from 12:30 to 4:30pm.

Dave's 16 hour Provincial class will be coached by Matt Grinter on Saturday, November 22nd, from 1:00 to 5:00 pm.

Dave is in Montreal at a Power Tumbling training camp

First Provincial Cup & Tour Selection Schedule

2008-11-17T12:40:00.002-05:00

The schedule for the first competition of the 2008-09 Season is out.

National / HP Rescheduled.

2008-11-04T09:48:00.001-05:00

I will be away at the Rising Stars / Provincial training camps this weekend.

Therefore, the 25 hr National / HP group will train on Saturday from 12:00 to 4:00 in lieu of Sunday.

Pre-competitive Rescheduled

2008-11-04T09:45:00.001-05:00

Eric has a mid-term this Friday November 7th. Therefore, Friday's Pre-comp class has been rescheduled to Sunday November 9th from 10am to 1pm.

His end of term exam schedule should be out soon. We'll keep you informed.

PA Day

2008-11-04T09:42:00.001-05:00

This Friday November 7th is a Halton PA Day.

Please note the following changes:

Kyle’s 6 hr Developmental group will train from 10:30 to 12:30
Greg’s 25 hr National/HP group will train from 12:30 to 4:30

Rising Stars & Provincial Camp

2008-10-29T16:27:00.002-04:00

All registered Provincial competitive athletes age 8 and up (1996 and later) are invited to the Provincial Level Training Camp on November 7-9, 2008 at Bramalea Gymnastics Club (25 Rutherford Road South, Unit 6, Brampton).

This will also serve as the Rising Stars Selection camp for competitive male gymnasts ages 8 to 12 years old (1996 to 2000) who are not on the Canadian National Team. All members of Dave's 16 hour group, Sam Tziougras and Michael Buczkowski are eligible for the Rising Stars program.

We will not be staying at the hotel due to the proximity of the event. Therefore, cost for the Camp is $70 for Rising Stars candidates (see above paragraph) and $100 for all others. Please make cheques payable to Oakville Gymnastics Club. Register for the Camp with the Front Desk (Agnes et al).

Club registration for both camp is due by November 1.

Halloween

2008-10-27T12:10:00.004-04:00

This Friday October 31st, all Flares, Development, Interclub, Pre-competitive & National / HP groups are cancelled.

Dave and Kyle's 16 hour Provincial competitive groups will train as scheduled (12:30 - 4:30) on Halloween.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Pre-comp rescheduled (Eric)

2008-10-14T15:38:00.001-04:00

Due to a mid-term this Saturday October 18th, Eric's 12 hour Pre-competitive group has been rescheduled to Sunday October 19th from 10 am to 1pm.

Thanksgiving

2008-10-06T15:44:00.001-04:00

All Saturday classes will run as scheduled.

Greg’s group is rescheduled from Sunday to Saturday from 12 to 4 pm. No training for Greg’s group on Sunday.

The gym is closed on Thanksgiving Monday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

PA Day

2008-10-06T15:38:00.001-04:00

This Friday October 10th is a PA Day.

All classes will run as scheduled except:

Eric’s 12 hr. Pre-competitive group will train from 10 am until 1 pm.
Greg’s 25 hr. Competitive group will train from 1 to 4 pm.

Competitive Attire

2008-10-06T14:16:00.003-04:00

By now, all boys should have been sized for competitive attire and the new club tracksuit.

Please have your son try on their competitive uniform. If you are unsure of the fit, have your son show their coach. If you need new attire please contact me (Greg) ASAP with your requirements.

Jagwear will sew the singlets and shorts. Please let me (Greg) know what you need. All Jagwear orders must be in by October Tuesday October 14th. Jagwear is very busy due to the fact that there are two girls qualifiers the same weekend as ours.

Our long pants are from ‘GK’ and may be ordered through the club. We have sizers in stock. All GK orders must be in by Thursday October 16th.

All eight and nine year old gymnasts do not need to wear long pants in competition. I encourage you to save your money and let the boys focus on their competition and not on changing from longs and socks to shorts and no socks and back again.

Please be sure to put your son's name on their attire. It all looks the same and several clubs will be wearing navy shorts made by Jagwear.

Uniform Sizing

2008-09-15T15:10:00.001-04:00

Jagwear will be at OGC on Friday September 26th from 3:30 to 5:30 pm to size the boys for singlets, shorts and longs.

Competition attire will be available for order at this time. Payment for competitive attire will be through the club. Agnes will invoice you when your order is ready for pick-up. Prices are; Singlets $35, Shorts $25 and long pants are $65.

Training attire will be also be available for sale at this time. Training singlets cost between $30 and $45. Payment for training attire is directly to Jagwear.

Class Cancellation

2008-09-15T13:05:00.001-04:00

The 12 hour Pre-Competitive Group on Friday, September 19th has been rescheduled to Sunday, September 21 from 10:00am - 1:00pm.

If you have any questions, please speak with Eric directly.

Class Cancellations

2008-08-23T07:01:00.001-04:00

No training for all groups the weekend of Saturday September 6th and Sunday September 7th.

The club is hosting a coaching and a judging course.

Fall Schedule

2008-08-23T07:00:00.004-04:00

The Fall schedule starts on Wednesday September 3rd.

Please double check your son's days and times.

Gym closed for maintenance

2008-08-23T06:58:00.004-04:00

The gym will be closed from Saturday August 30th to Tuesday September 2nd for duct cleaning.

Schedule change

2008-08-23T06:53:00.002-04:00

"Greg's Group" will be training from 10:00 to 2:00 with Dave from Monday August 25th to Thursday August 28th.

Training on Friday August 29th is cancelled.

2008-09 Competition Schedule

2008-06-26T07:08:00.001-04:00

Dates for the Gymnastics Ontario qualifiers and Provincials have been posted. Locations have not been finalized and it is possible that dates may change.

Competition	Date
First Qualifier	December 5, 2008
Second Qualifier	January 30, 2009
Third Qualifier	March 6, 2009
Provincials	April 3, 2009

Schedule Changes

2008-06-25T11:59:00.001-04:00

Just a few changes to the schedule over the next few days.

The gym is closed on Thursday June 26th and Friday June 27th. We're rearranging the competitive beam and recreation areas.

No training over the July long weekend. From Saturday June 28th to Tuesday July 1st.

The 2008 summer schedule starts on Wednesday July 3rd. The schedule is in your package and on this blog.

Due to a training camp, "Greg's Group" is off on Wednesday July 3rd, but will train on Thursday July 3rd and Friday July 4th from 12:30 to 4:30 with Dave and Kyle. Regular "Greg's Group" training starts on Monday July 7th from 8:30 to 1:00.

Have great long weekend!

National Championships

2008-06-23T14:01:00.001-04:00

Six members of the OGC Men's Team traveled to Calgary, Alberta to compete in the 2008 Canadian Championships.

Competing in the Argo High Performance (HP) category were; Michael Buczkowski, Daniel Capstick and, 2007 Argo National Champion, Cory Paterson.

Representing Oakville in the Senior HP category were Matt Grinter, Sean Lord and, National Team member, Matt Albrect.

The Argos competed compulsory routines over two days of competition. The total of the two day's scores were used to determine the All-around and apparatus awards.

The Seniors competed on the first day to determine the All-around champion and to qualify for Event Finals.

It was Michael's first Nationals and first year competing in the Argo HP category. He placed a respectable 21st out of 32 Argos.

Daniel came in at 19th place All-around, but brought home a fifth place ribbon on vault.

Cory, who was competing at his fifth Nationals, was consistent on all 12 of his routines, won his second All-around title and brought home three gold and three silver apparatus medals.

Matt Grinter placed 18th and Sean placed 19th All-around.

Matt Albrecht finished 13th All-around and qualified for vault finals where he placed sixth.

Congratulations to ALL (WAG, TUM & MAG) Oakville athletes who competed at Canadian Championships.

Greg's Group change

2008-06-16T15:28:00.001-04:00

Due to the Gymnastics Canada AGM in Ottawa this weekend, I have had to make some changes to "Greg's Group" schedule.

Please note the following changes to the schedule:

Friday June 20: NO training
Saturday June 21: 12:30 to 4:30pm
Sunday June 22: NO training.

Summer & Fall Schedules

2008-06-12T14:50:00.003-04:00

Class Cancellations

2008-06-05T10:16:00.002-04:00

Unfortunately, we will be cancelling ALL pre-competitive and competitive classes this Saturday, June 7, due to a pre-competitive competition.

If you have any questions please speak with your son’s coach directly.

Class Cancellation

2008-05-26T08:42:00.002-04:00

All Provincial groups are cancelled on Saturday May 31st due to the men's competitive tryouts.

Pre-competitive groups are still on at their regular time (10am to 1pm).

Gymnastics Energy Boys Invitational

2008-05-24T12:11:00.002-04:00

As the final event of this year's season, we have decided to attend the Gymnastics Energy Invitational. This event will once again be a great opportunity for your son to practice for future competitions in a fun and motivating environment. Please confirm if your son will be attending by Wednesday, May 28, and make any cheques payable to the Oakville Gymnastics Club.
If you have any questions please speak with Eric or Kyle.

When: Saturday June 7th, 2008

Cost: $50 All Interclub Boys

$35 All Demo Boys 7 yrs. and under

Four Eastern Canadian Champions!

2008-05-22T15:16:00.001-04:00

The Men’s Program qualified six boys to this year’s Eastern Canadian Championships.

Eric Mariglia is the Level 3: 13+ parallel bar Gold medalist. Eric also brought home a Bronze medal for vault and placed fourth on both Floor and Rings. Overall, Eric was fifth.

In the Level 4: 13+ category, Jeremie Quek won a Silver medal on pommel horse, placed fifth on highbar and was consistent enough overall to place fourth. His teammate, Alex Danahy, tied for Gold on parallel bars and placed fourth on vault for an overall finish of seventh.

In the Argo High Performance category, Cory Paterson placed first all-around and won four apparatus Gold medals, a Silver on parallel bars and a Bronze on high bar. Teammate Daniel Capstick won high bar and added a Silver medal on vault to place fourth overall. Michael Buczkowski competed in his first Eastern’s and placed fourth on floor, fifth on rings and placed sixth all-around.

Congratulations boys!

Long Weekend

2008-05-12T15:13:00.002-04:00

Some very minor revisions to this weekend's schedule:

Flares I (Dave): will train from 9 to 11 am on Saturday instead of Sunday. (Dave sent an email on May 9th)

National (Greg): will train from 9 am to 1 pm on Saturday instead of Sunday.

Pre-comp (Eric & Kyle): NO Changes to the schedule.

Provincial I & II (Eric & Kyle): NO Changes to the schedule.

There is no training on Sunday May 18th.

The gym is closed on May 19th due to Victoria Day.

Please let your son's coach know if they will not be attending training this weekend.

Have a great weekend!

Eastern Championships

2008-05-06T08:32:00.002-04:00

Six boys will be representing the Men's program at the 2008 Eastern Canadian Championships in Montreal this weekend.

They will be traveling by train from Toronto to Montreal, competing against boys from all of the other Eastern Provinces and visiting the National Circus School!

Eric Marilia will be representing OGC in the Level 3 category. Alex Danahy and Jeremie Quek will competing Level 4. Cory Paterson, Daniel Capstick and Michael Buczkowski will be competing in the Argo High Performance category.

Good Luck to all competitors!

Note: All Pre-competitive and Provincial schedules are unchanged.

Competitive Gymnastics Tryouts

2008-04-28T14:59:00.006-04:00

The Men's Program is looking for new candidates for our Pre-competitive and Interclub Programs. Boys must be at least five years old by of September 2008.

The minimum time commitment is four hours per week (two days per week).

Auditions are on Saturday May 31st from 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

Please register with the office

Photo Day - Saturday May 24th

2008-04-15T11:03:00.002-04:00

This year, all pictures that are taken of your athlete during photo day will be produced and available to purchase on a CD for $25. However, pre-registration for photo day is required.

This years' photo day will include pose pictures, group/team pictures and "new" action shots. Approximately 50 pictures per CD.

Action shots of the Women's programme will be taken on Bars and Beam. Men's will be on P-Bars and Rings. Tumbling will be Tumble Track and Trampoline. Attire should be club suits.

There will be multiple photographers available allowing us to photograph more than one athlete at a time. Please understand, should all athletes pre-register, we will have almost 200 athletes to "shoot" and this is the first time organizing an action shoot.

Schedule will be issued/posted after the total # of athletes is confirmed. Approximate start time is 3:30 pm.

Since some gymnasts will be at a competition on May 24^th, the main team pictures will start when these groups are at the gym. The club hosting this meet are aware that this is our photo day and are accommodating us by having our athletes finish a little earlier. Any athlete that is at the competition earlier in the day will still have the opportunity to be photographed.

Please fill out the registration form and return, to Agnes no later than May 3^rd.

NOTE:
Due to the data management required to make the CD and the actual organization of the shoot itself, only athletes that have pre-registered will have their pictures taken and put on a CD.

If you decide not to register your athlete for photo day, we please ask that your athlete be available May 24^th to participate in the team/group pictures.

Note: We may also use some pictures taken to update our website.

We will need some volunteers to help on Photo Day and a posting will be put up on the volunteer board.

Class Cancellations

2008-04-10T12:28:00.002-04:00

All Provincial level classes are cancelled on Friday April 18th due to Springfest (pre-comp meet).

All Pre-competitive classes are cancelled on Saturday April 19th due to the competition the previous day.

Flares Re-scheduled

2008-04-10T05:36:00.003-04:00

Both Flares I & II groups will train this Saturday April 12 from 9 to 11am instead of Sunday April 13. Dave is in Belleville at a Tumbling meet.

The Flares II group is training on Saturday as a make-up for April 21. Dave will be in BC for a Tumbling meet.

Canadian Championships

2008-04-09T10:01:00.004-04:00

The Men's program has qualified six boys / men to the 2008 Canadian Championships.

Argo High Performance gymnasts Cory Paterson, Daniel Capstick, Michael Buczkowski and Senior HP gymnasts Matt Albrecht, Matt Grinter and Sean Lord will all represent OGC and Team Ontario in Calgary.

Eastern Canadian Championships

2008-04-09T09:52:00.003-04:00

The Men's program has qualified six boys to "Easterns".

Congratulations to Alex Danahy, Cory Paterson, Daniel Capstick, Eric Mariglia, Jeremie Quek and Michael Buczkowski.

The boys will travel to Montreal May 9th to the 11th to represent OGC and Team Ontario.

Provincials Results

2008-04-08T13:25:00.006-04:00

Another successful Men's Provincial Championships for Oakville.

Three All-around Provincial Champions.
Nathan Bollinger (Level 1), Cory Paterson (Argo HP) and Matthew Albrecht (Senior HP) all won their respective categories.

Four All-around Silver Medalists
Adam Kassam (Level 3: under 15yrs), Alex Danahy (Level 4: 11-15yrs), Brad Schnurr (Level 4: 16+) and Sean Lord (Senior HP) each placed second in their respective categories.

Twenty Two Apparatus Gold Medals
Adam, Brad, Christopher Hazineh, Cole Becker, Cory, Daniel Capstick, Matt Albrecht, Matt Grinter, Nathan and Sean Lord all won one or more events.

Eighteen Apparatus Silver Medals
Adam, Alex, Brad, Cory, Matt Albrecht, Nathan, Robert Wilson, Sam Tziougras and Sean all placed second on one or more events

Eight Apparatus Bronze Medals
Adam, Alex, Brad, Camden Palkovic, Matt A., Matt G., Nathan and Sean all placed third on one or more events

Complete results are available here

Springfest

2008-03-30T19:16:00.006-04:00

The next Invitational competition for the Pre-comps is "Springfest" hosted by the Bramalea Gymnastics Club (map).

There are two different flights on Friday April 18th:

From 3 to 6:30 pm for all boys 7 years of age and under.
From 6 to 9:30 pm for all boys 8 years of age and over.

Please allow plenty of time for travel due to the time of day and the location of the gym.

Registration for this competition is $50 payable to the Oakville Gymnastics Club. Please register with the main office by Wednesday, April 2.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask either Eric or Kyle.

Schedule Changes (ver. 1.2)

2008-03-24T13:51:00.007-04:00

The following training schedule has been adjusted to reflect the changes brought forth by the most current version (1.2) of the Provincial Championships schedule.

Thursday April 3:

Greg's group; Regular training
Eric & Kyle's groups; 4:30 to 7:00 (early finish)

Friday April 4:

Cole, Sam and all Level 3s train from 12:30 to 2:00 with Eric.
Pre-competitive has been moved to Monday April 7 (4:30 to 7:30)

Saturday April 5:

Pre-comps are training from 10 to 1 with Kyle and C.I.T.

Sunday April 6:

Flares I: regular training with Dave (9 to 11)
Greg's group: no training

Monday April 7:

Greg's group; no training.
Pre-comps are training from 4:30 to 7:30 with Eric and Kyle.

Jurassic Results

2008-03-22T13:58:00.002-04:00

Another successful Jurassic Classic.

Daniel Captstick brought home a High Bar Bronze medal and placed seventh all-around.

Cory Paterson won Pommel Horse, Rings and Parallel Bars and came second on Vault, High Bar and all-around.

Provincial's Schedule

2008-03-22T13:48:00.007-04:00

Provincials Schedule version 1.2 (march 25, 2008) is now available.

Please double check your son's competition date and time.

Easter Training

2008-03-11T23:15:00.006-04:00

On March 21, the gym is closed due to Good Friday. Saturday and Sunday Pre-comp, Provincial and National groups will be run as per the regular schedule. Both Flares groups will run from 9 to 11am on Sunday.

On Easter Monday:

Both the Flares groups (I & II) will run from 4 to 6pm
The Pre-competitive group (9 hrs.) are in from 1:00 to 4:00pm
The Provincial groups (12 & 16 hrs.) are in from 4:00 to 7:00pm
Greg's group is in from 9am to 12pm

Happy Easter!

OWG Team Champions

2008-03-11T13:04:00.005-04:00

Camden Palkovic, Cory Paterson and Jeremie Quek all brought home a golden souvenir from the 2008 Ontario Winter Games. All of the boys put forth excellent performances to put "Team A" in first against five other Teams.

Fellow OGC member, Daniel Capstick, was the team captain for "Team E". Dan put together some solid routines for his team, but we missed having him in our group.

Thanks to Cheng Quek for the photo

"Provincials" Registration Fees

2008-03-11T13:03:00.001-04:00

On March 19th, registration fees for the Provincial Championships are due to Agnes. These fees were not included in your initial payment due to the qualification process.

The fees are payable to the Oakville Gymnastics Club (Provincial Stream $65, Argo & Tyro $130 and Senior $80)

Ontario Winter Games

2008-03-04T08:13:00.002-05:00

The Ontario Winter Games gets underway this Thursday in Barrie. This is a multi-sport Games and is a stepping stone towards the coveted Canada Winter Games.

Opening ceremonies are at Blue Mountain and the gymnastics venue is the 50,000 square foot field house on Base Borden.

Six teams will be competing against each other for the Team title. There are no individual awards.

Oakville has qualified four boys on two different teams. Camden Palkovic, Cory Paterson and Jeremie Quek are all members of Team 1 and Daniel Capstick is the lone OGC member on Team 5 - we still like you Dan.

Good luck to all and enjoy your Games experience.

Flares I & II

2008-03-04T08:03:00.002-05:00

Dave is away in Poland judging a tumbling World Cup.

On Thursday March 6; Matt Albrecht will coach the Flares I group from 4 - 6pm and Matt Grinter will coach the Flares II group from 6 - 8 pm.

Both of the substitute coaches are in their twenties, certified and experienced coaches and Senior High Performance athletes.

A reminder that over the March Break, both Flares I & II groups will train together on Tuesday and Thursday from 1:30 to 4:00.

Third Qualifier Results

2008-03-03T07:48:00.004-05:00

The Oakville Men’s Program brought home 48 medals this weekend with Brad Schnurr (Level 4 16+), Cory Paterson (Argo HP) and Sean Lord (Senior HP) winning their respective categories.

Apparatus gold medalists include; Adam Kassam (2), Alex Danahy, Brad Schnurr (2), Camden Palkovic, Cory Paterson (3), Daniel Capstick, Matt Albrecht (4) and Sean Lord.

Other apparatus medalists include; Chris Rome, Eric Mariglia, Jeremie Quek, Kieran Byrne and Matt Grinter.

Congratulations to all of the boys for some great performances!

Canuck Cup

2008-02-27T15:14:00.001-05:00

Due to a lack of registration, Futures has cancelled the boys' session.

Woodstock Invitational

2008-02-25T13:55:00.007-05:00

Congratulations to all of the boys that competed at the Woodstock invitational meet.

March Break Schedule

2008-02-20T16:23:00.004-05:00

Revised training schedule for the March Break week is below.

Please Note:

All classes on Saturday March 8th and Sunday March 9th are cancelled.
All classes on Saturday March 15th and Sunday March 16th are cancelled.

Please advise your son's coach if they will not be attending training during the March Break.

Third Provincial & Second National Qualifier Schedule

2008-02-17T20:45:00.006-05:00

The Schedule for the next Qualifier hosted by The East York Gymnastics Club (map) is on the Gymnastics Ontario web site.