Its only been a week since 17 new coaches received their Level I certification, but that did not stop the local gymnastics program in the country from making plans to expand their programs.
The intense coaching course put on by the Gymnastics Federation of the Bahamas was conducted by experts Lilla Ortiz and Lorena Gortie. With the Level I Women's Artistic Gymnastics certification, the 17 coaches can now teach the sport to interested gymnasts. The technical and practical sessions were a hands-on experience for the participants, in the four events offered in women's gymnastics. Those events are inclusive of the balance beams, vaults, floor exercises and the uneven parallel bars.
The week-long course, funded by the Bahamas Olympic Committee, was held at the Atlantis Resorts. Participants came from Spanish Wells, Freeport, Nassau Nastics, the Bahamas Gymnastics Parents Booster Club, Bahamas Star gymnastics, Nassau Dance Theater, and the Georgia School and Dance Theater in Freeport, Grand Bahama.

President of the local governing body for the sport, Babara Thompson said she was pleased with the turnout and thanked everyone for their continued support in the growth and development of the sport. Special thanks were given to the Bahamas Olympic Committee and the Atlantis Resort.
Thompson said: "It was very, very worthwhile. To our surprise, we had two guest lecturers. They were only supposed to send one from the International Federation of Gymnastics, but two came. It was benefical for all who were in attendance. It was so worthwhile, everyone found it very useful, in terms of developing their coaching abilities.
"We are going to try and do more, but our only limitation is funding. We were fortunate to receive assistance from the Bahamas Olympic Committee. If we hadn't gotten the funding from the Bahamas Olympic Committee, we couldn't have done this. We were also supported by the Atlantis Resort. They were gracious enough to provide us with hotel accommodations and a conference room. Without that, we couldn't make this possible."
The coaches were brought up to speed on the different methods of warming up, and the bio-mechanics of muscle contractions and human emotions. According to Thompson, the types of triggers that make one athlete more resilient to long-term strain and stress was also discussed. Instructors Ortiz and Gortie also pointed ways gymnasts can progress through the different levels and advance in their skills.
Even though this important step was taken by the federation, Thompson believes that more needs to be done in order for the gymnasts to grow.
"We are trying to reach the Family Islands and get more students involved, extending beyond New Providence," said Thompson. "We will do it as soon as possible.
"But, like any other sport it is very beneficial to bring experts into your locale as suppose to sending one person out. When you bring the experts in, more persons benefit, as suppose to just one person who will travel to that course. We are most definitely going to try and continue this as soon as we can. One problem we are having is government assistance. We have been neglected by the government. We have not gotten an annual grant from The Bahamas government since 2008. If we had gotten grants, like every other sports, we could have already been advanced in this type of coaching courses."
The 17 new coaches join more than 15 persons who have already received the level one coaching certificates in the country. Thompson is hoping more persons will be involved in the sport.

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