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Gymnastic prodigy

Eight-year-old Sydney Marler may be on her way to becoming a phenomenon in the sport.

By MIKE CAMUNAS, Times Staff Writer
Published January 25, 2008

Sydney Marler, 8, a gymnast at Suncoast Gymnastics in New Port Richey, practices her technique on the balance beam.
	[Photo by Mike Camunas]

ADVERTISEMENT [Photo by Mike Camunas] Sydney is already at Level 5 of the 10-level program. Her coach says she excels on the balance beam even though she prefers the uneven bars.

NEW PORT RICHEY

Sydney Marler is ahead of schedule.

The 8-year-old gymnast at Suncoast Gymnastics is part of the Talent Opportunity program, designed specifically for the more talented, stronger athletes. There are 10 levels of experience, and after just three years, Sydney is a Level 5.

"She's only 8 years old and she's at Level 5 - that's halfway up already," Suncoast owner and coach Arnold Gwinn said. "That's very impressive."

Even more impressive is that Sydney won two state championships in separate divisions: one in USA Gymnastics USAG and another in Amateur Athletic Union (AAU). And she still has at least 10 more years at Suncoast before moving onto the next level: a possible gymnastics scholarship.

"It wasn't that hard (to move up so quickly), at least I don't think it was," Sydney said. "I really like the two coaches and learning all the routines. I really want to move up to Level 10 - I guess that's my goal."

Watching Sydney perform flips and tumbles with ease, it's easy to understand why her coaches have no doubts about her future.

"She'll be a Level 10 one day, no doubt," Level 5 coach Ivan Gueorguiev said. "She is very strong. She has so much talent that you can easily see, and she works very hard. She will get things done, learn things, very fast, which shows how talented she is."

Although Sydney's move to Level 5 seems quick, Gwinn said, "We're trying to take some different routes with her.

"She does have some lofty goals, such as making the USAG national team. ... Obviously, we challenge her, but not extremely hard, not at this age when you still want gymnastics to be fun."

It's fun, but it's also competitive. Take this weekend's Suncoast Sports Fest Invitational, for example. Sydney will be competing in Pre-optional Level 7, designed to prepare her for Level 7 while skipping 6 completely.

Sydney will compete in four different events - balance beam, uneven bars, floor exercise and vault. "The uneven bars are my favorite because you get to do all these flips and handstands on the bars," she said.

But Gwinn said Sydney is more skilled at the balance beam. "For some odd reason, she really excels there," Gwinn said. "She likes to be on show, she likes to show off, so she feels real at home there. ... It can also be very intimidating. Think about it: It's high off the ground, the beam is just four inches wide, and they're on display for everyone to watch. A lot of kids can be intimidated by that."

Gwinn said gymnastics at this young age can be all "push, push, push. (But) we don't want that," because that would "burn her out."

But Sydney is moving right along, saying that while difficult at times, gymnastics has still come pretty naturally.

"It's kind of easy and it's kind of hard," Sydney said. "To learn all the skills and to learn all the new skills, it can be kind of hard because I get pushed a little more. I've learned a lot so fast, but I've been able to keep up with it."

Suncoast Sports Fest Invitational

When: Saturday and Sunday

Where: Florida State Fairgrounds, Expo Hall

What: An AAU- and USAG-sanctioned event

Events: Boys, girls gymnastics, tramp and tumbling, cheerleading, tae kwon do

For more information on Suncoast Gymnastics, contact Arnold or Cindy Gwinn at (727) 849-5542 or head to www.suncoastgymnastics.com, where you can also find more details on the Sports Fest.

[Last modified January 24, 2008, 22:10:19]