Congratulations to all of the athletes who competed this weekend in the TGGA State Competition! All of the athletes, boys and girls, finished off a great season with great scores and great placings! ASI Gymnastics is so proud of all of the gymnasts who have been working so hard throughout the season. What a great ending to an amazing season!
The only thing I would change about Saturday is that I wished it had happened Sooner. This past weekend capped an incredible season of college gymnastics and celebrated the boom this sport continues to experience. The top teams in the NCAA converged in the Fort Worth Convention Center for a weekend of high-flying, awe-inspiring, powerful, beautiful gymnastics. Saturday night, the Super Six, Oklahoma, Alabama, LSU, Florida, UCLA, and Georgia set the stage for a night of competition that no one will soon forget.
As I sat in an arena with thousands of fans, I was a student first, gymnastics fan second, and Sooner fan third. I sat next to six of my competitive gymnasts and was able to see two of my recreational gymnasts as well. I saw something familiar in their eyes. Of course there was awe and dreams of maybe some day being one of those girls. The girls with phones were recording, texting, and snap-chatting parts of the competition. The younger ones were immersing themselves in every routine. The one thing I saw in all of them was passion.
I love this sport. Gymnastics is my lifelong passion. Saturday night as I watched Oklahoma stick every landing, hit every handstand on the bars, fly across the beam, and soar over the vault to a National Championship, I felt humbled by my journey in gymnastics. I felt a sense of responsibility to nurture the growth of the gymnasts that were sitting next to me, their teammates, future gymnasts, and my peers.
When I was young gymnast in Oklahoma, I was blessed enough to have coaches pour into me, challenge me, and nurture my love of gymnastics. I’m 5’7” and as much as I loved gymnastics, I didn’t always put 100% effort into my training. A career as a professional or collegiate gymnast was not in my future; however, Janet Rucker set a foundation of growth and opportunity in this sport that I will forever be grateful for. She nurtured the passion I had and turned this girl into a coach. As much as I loved doing gymnastics, I loved teaching it tenfold. I went on to coach through my college years and found myself at ASI Gymnastics in my mid 20’s. At ASI, I have been given the opportunity to continue to coach kids and coach coaches. My passion again, has grown tenfold.
This sport is more than high flying acrobatics and stuck landings. It’s fun. It’s discipline, respect, work ethic, teamwork, communication, and many other life skills that are invaluable. The fact that I am now in a role where I am responsible for imparting these skills and my wisdom to students and my peers is the most humbling thing I have ever done in life. I may not be a collegiate national champion or an Olympic gold medalist, but knowing that I impact so many lives through the sport that I love means more to me than any medal ever could.
Tiffany Warren is the ASI Girls Recreational Gymnastics Director and continues to coach preschool, girls recreational classes, and competitive team Level’s 3 and 4 at ASI Arlington. She has been at ASI since June 2012, but has been coaching gymnastics for 15 years. She was a competitive gymnast through level 6. She is a graduate of the University of Central Oklahoma with a degree in Journalism/Public Relations. She is a certified USA Gymnastics coach and continues her education in the sport of gymnastics by attending USAG Congress and the Gymnastics Association of Texas’ annual convention.
This past weekend was the Beach Blast competition hosted by ASI Firewheel! ASI had five gyms participating in this competition: Allen, Arlington, Firewheel, Lake Highlands, and Keller. This meet consisted of Levels 1-7 and Xcel Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
All ASI gym locations participated in competitions this weekend, including both boys and girls’ teams! The girl’s Level 1’s and 2’s from all the Dallas/Fort Worth locations competed in the Survivor Challenge meet hosted by ASI Keller. The girl’s Level 1’s, 2’s, and 3’s from Cypress and The Woodlands also competed this weekend in the Showcase Studios meet at Showcase Gymnastics. The boy’s teams Level 1-4 competed in the Rockin’ in the USA meet at Arlington. This was the last meet before the State meet coming up at the end of April.
For more pictures from the competition, visit the ASI Facebook Page!
Survivor Challenge
Level 1 Large Team
Level 1 Small Team
Level 2 Large Team
Level 2 Small Team
Showcase Studios Competition
Level 3P Small Team
For more pictures from the competition, visit the ASI Facebook Page!
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
The girls and boys did amazing this weekend! We are so excited to see them at the state competition coming soon! Keep it up ASI athletes!
Coach Cris is a part of our Senior Staff at ASI Allen. Cris is a huge hit with our Allen families. His coaching career started at ASI and has flourished throughout his thirteen years here! Cris teaches numerous classes that include Tiny Tots, Kidz Gym, Girls Gymnastics, Power Tumbling, Boys Team and Gymmie Kidz. He also does birthday parties and other fun products.
