FAMILY & COACHES

— LOCKDOWNS & CHALLENGES —

Lockdowns were really difficult but our coaches did everything in their power so we could keep on engaging with each other and training. They made online meetings so we could all go on video and exercise together, which was really fun. And when we could, we tried to meet up just in small groups to skate... outdoors though, because indoors wasn’t allowed.

Zoe. Age 18.

In 2020 the school band was supposed to go to New Orleans and L.A. The band was at its peak, we were going to play in a worldwide music competition, so we were all very excited. But because of COVID it got cancelled just two weeks before leaving.

Everyone was gutted. Some people had already started packing, others had already taken time off work to go. We were all shocked, and the atmosphere was sad for a while. The memories we would have had... we don’t have. But throughout that, our senior band conductor was amazing. His passion is unparalleled and he kept us doing band rehearsals during lockdown. He made it fun and engaging so even at home people started to come to online sessions more and more and turning on their cameras. Everyone seemed more confident and happy when we were playing together. It was a reminder that even if we couldn’t travel, we could still play our music.

Indie. Age 13.

I didn’t like training through videocalls. It was hard to motivate myself because I didn’t have anyone else training with me.

My group is very important when it comes to training – they are always there when I’m struggling, they encourage me and they make everything fun.

Rylee. Age 11.

Mum: One day Rylee came to me after some unpleasant situations with other players and said: ‘Well, I’m going to go prove them wrong.’ She went and trained on her own. She spent a lot of time every day practising. Nobody told her to. Then people started realising she was improving, and she eventually got selected to compete in the team.

Lockdowns and not seeing my friends was really hard; someone at my school got COVID and we were all made secondary contacts so we couldn’t go outside at all.

When we were finally allowed out of the house, I didn’t want to leave. But I had to learn to keep on going and have hope things would get better.

— FAMILY & COACHES —

Mila. Age 13.

My mum, dad, sister and friends always support me in competitions and auditions.

This year, I was accepted into a dance program, and all the choreographies are really challenging so I sometimes had breakdowns. But if I felt overwhelmed and started crying, my mum would always come to me and tell me, ‘You can do this. Be confident.’

Dad was a gymnast so our parents thought gymnastics would be good for me and my sister.

Having my dad and sister doing gymnastics is pretty good because we can do lots of training and games together. And if we need help with a skill we can always ask each other.

Lien. Age 15.

The relationship with a coach is very important because when you are first learning skills you have to trust that your coach will catch you when you fall or do something wrong.

For example, a while back I had a mental block with backsaults. It took me a while to get over it because I was afraid I wasn’t going to jump high enough or that I was going to back out and land on my neck. So my coach and I had to break it down into little steps to slowly build it up enough to do it by myself. He was always spotting me and helped me get the confidence to do it on my own.

Zoe. Age 18.

My mum and dad were both in the high school band and loved it. And they wanted us, kids, to have the same experience. So music has always been a big part of my family. Everyone plays an instrument and on Christmas we go to my grandparents house and play.

It always brings a smile to our faces because we can all share our love and enjoyment for music when we play together.