How Much Does It Cost To Do Gymnastics?
Gymnastics has been around for 2,000 years and has been a competitive sport since the 1800s, with gymnastics being added to the Olympics in 1896. The sport attracts around five million participants every year. For those who want to get into gymnastics, one must consider the costs. These include classes, whether group or private, outfits, accessories, and competition fees, just to name a few. Read on to learn more about all the hidden costs that go into gymnastics.
Classes
To start out in the sport, one must enroll in a class. Classes range from a recreational class, which is mainly for kids starting out in the sport, to private lessons.
The fee for a class depends on age and time. For example, if a kid enrolled in a 30- to 60-minute recreational class, it may be $10 a class. For intermediate classes, it can cost around $15 to $25 per class. If the child were to move on to a higher, more advanced class, then it would cost around $50, with the class being around two hours in length. For those wanting to take a private class, it can cost between $25 to $75 an hour.
When enrolling in classes, a gymnastics facility may charge extra fees. Some gyms will charge an annual registration fee for using their facilities and participating in classes. This fee could range from $15 to $50.
Outfits and Accessories
Gymnasts are required to wear leotards during competitions and lessons. For this, the price can be relatively cheap, with a leotard costing at around $15 at commercial retailers. However, if you want to have a better quality leotard, it can cost gymnasts around $50 to $75.
Shoes cost around $35 to $50. For gyms that are less strict about what you wear during training, a gymnast can wear shorts, which cost around $13. Other clothing items gymnasts wear include shirts, pants, and slippers. All of these can be bought at retail stores for a reasonable price. For grips to help hold onto bars, the cost can range from $10 to $50.
Outside of the gym, a gymnast may need their own equipment to help their training. This includes equipment such as a balance beam, tumbling mats, and horizontal bars. A balance beam can range from $80 to up to $400, depending on if you want a competition size beam or just a low practice beam. For tumbling mats, these can cost between $50 to $300 and for horizontal bars, it can range from $250 to $400.
Competing
For those who want to compete, there are multiple extra charges and fees that go into competing in this sport. For one, competitors are required to join the US Gymnastics Association. A part of joining is paying an annual fee of around $50. This will help competitors gain access to special events and competitions. For each competition, a competitor is expected to pay an entry fee, which can range from $40 to $150. In addition to their own entry fee, if the competitor is a part of the team, they must pay an additional $30 to $50 fee. The only times when fees are covered are if the gymnast places first or second.
A coach is a must if a gymnast wants to compete. Training fees can cost around $300 per month, with the average hourly rate for a coach being around $18.50. In addition to the training fee, there is a training insurance fee of around $63 a year. When going to competitions, a gymnast needs to bring their coach along, which is an added $20 to $50.
For travel costs, a gymnast needs to account for flights, hotels, rental cars, gas, food, and incidentals. On average, a flight would be around $300, plus $150 a night for a hotel, $30 per day for a rental car, $60 to fill up a tank of gas, $150 a day for food, and around $250 for incidentals. All around, the minimum cost for a competition would be around $940.
If a gymnast wants to compete on a team, then there is the additional cost of team warm-up suits, which can cost around $150 to $200. For high-level competitions, athletes may have to buy leotards that cost up to $400. For competition team classes, it can cost around $350 to $650 per month.
To calculate all of those costs, a competitive gymnast pays at least $2,300 per year. There are grants that gymnasts can apply for to cover these costs. These include the General Mills foundation grant, which gives $10,000 annually, Finish Line Youth Foundation Grant, which gives grants ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, and the Nike Foundation grant, which provides basic equipment and accessories.