The Shawnee Mission School District gymnastics program won’t continue after the current season is over, and the sport will be retired. Due to the program ending, more gymnasts have joined the team such as juniors Piper Kiehne, Bella Drier and sophomore Zoey Allen.
Allen and Kiehne practiced gymnastics for 12 years before deciding to quit because practicing and competing for 20 hours a week simply became too much. Allen and Kiehne got a text on July 23 from head coach Sarah Hink about how the program was being shut down and to encourage them to join the team. They didn’t know how to react at first but later on thought it would be nice to return to a sport they know and love.
They both miss the feeling of flipping through the air and being a part of a team. They also enjoy having a place to call a second home.
“[Sarah] reached out to me that they were shutting it down after this year so I decided it’d be fun to just be able to do the movements of gymnastics again,” Allen said. “And to be with a team able to compete in gymnastics has always been special to me.”
To prepare, Kiehne and Allen went to open gyms at Impact Gymnastics where they can use the equipment and practice their skills on Wednesdays, causing them nostalgia of being back in the gym. When Kiehne stepped into the gym she immediately smelled the chalk-filled air that came from the bar. This was the deciding factor as to whether they wanted to commit to the gymnastics team or not, and they wanted to see if they had the muscle memory of doing their old skills.
Club and high school gymnastics had many differences Allen and Kiehne weren't ready for, nor anticipating. The main difference is being on a dead mat, meaning the floor has no springs, whereas the club does.
When Allen was trying to do a roundoff backhandspring backflip, she realized how much more power she would need to flip high enough through the air. She tried again, this time running faster and using more force, making adjustments to gain more stamina and being tighter to protect her body, all to do well on the floor. Here lies another difference: the scoring dynamic and the different requirements needed in routines.
Senior Andi Prendiville has been on the high school gymnastics team for three years now and this will be her fourth. She has been working to expand the team since the seniors from last year graduated as they lost three of their strong gymnasts.
After the gymnsts left, Prendiville knew she wanted to continue competing, but when she found out the program was coming to an end, she felt bittersweet. She was upset because of the work she had put into the program but was happy that she got to do her last year. She had worked hard to build up the program for the past three years, watching her and her teammates push through injuries whether it’s a knee injury or back related.
“It’s weird now because there's no one older so I kinda do my own thing,” Prendiville said. “It’s a little more intimidating this year because I don't have someone that knows it like I do and can defend my decisions.”
Prendiville gets to meet people from a bunch of different schools, and after three years, she knows all the judges who help her by pulling her aside after meets and talking to her, and they try to give everyone the best score possible. It’s really just one big family, according to Prendiville.
Hink reached out to current and former gymnasts when she found out the team was coming to an end to give everyone who could the opportunity.
Hink was told there were two or three seasons left until she opened her email during the summer to a PDF attachment from a person she had never heard of, saying they were sunsetting the sport.
She was devastated after hearing this news as it was abruptly sprung up on her. Hink has coached gymnastics since she was 16 and when she found out there was a high school opening she signed up immediately and has formed a passion for helping and coaching these gymnasts.
“Particularly for East, I knew there was talent and I heard through the grape vine of some higher level gymnasts who walked the halls of East,” Hink said. “So I reached out because I really want East to go out with a bang after getting third in state last year," Hink said.
Hink loves coaching high school gymnastics as it gives girls the opportunity to try gymnastics one more time, whether they have quit club or not.
“I just love watching girls find their love for the sport again,” Hink said. “ You can be at your own pace, it’s just kind of rewarding to watch.”