IF ever Jamaica’s Gymnastics Association (JAGA) needed a significant boost of another kind then they would have received it during the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) Technical Committee’s recent visit to the island.

Though JAGA President Nicole Grant-Brown had much to celebrate in terms of being the first country in the Pan Am region to host the FIG technical committee meetings, she was even more overwhelmed that it proved more fruitful beyond the formalities.

Outside of the four-day gatherings when the men’s and women’s artistic gymnastics presidents Arturs Mickevics and Donatella Sacchi, as well as their vice-presidents, met with other members of their respective committees, there was also a revelation or two which Grant-Brown said will go a far way to assist in the sport’s development locally.

The FIG Technical Committee is the body responsible for all code of points and the technical direction of artistic gymnastics.

“The FIG Technical Committee president’s [Donatella Sacchi] visit to the gym was not only another milestone in our development but it was also truly an eye-opener for us. Based on her assessment of the kids it is clear that we need a local FIG judge in Jamaica to really help with the technical development,” Grant-Brown told the Jamaica Observer.

“So, it was a great opportunity for us to host this meeting as the first country in the Pan Am region to do so because it went beyond that, and we are happy that we were able to capitalise in a big way so we know in what areas we need to improve,” she added.

Sacchi and her Vice-President Nehad Zayed, as well as committee member Johanna Gratt, prejudged some of the national junior elite athletes as they prepare for the Pan American Gymnastics Union (PAGU) Youth Championship in Colombia scheduled for December 2-11.

While their assessment of the gymnasts was integral to improving their technical abilities Grant-Brown stressed that it injected more life into the growth and development of the sport locally, as both the association and its athletes were presented with a platform to achieve the intended goals.

“These are the code writers and skill assessors who determine the skills that are to be entered in the code of points, the value of the skills, and [they can] reduce skill values if necessary. They are the ones who also determine the technical direction of the sports for artistic gymnastics, and we are grateful to them for arriving here a day early to assess our team heading to Colombia.

“Their assessment was very helpful as several of the routines would have lost valuable points due to the sequence or order of the skills in the routine as well as missing requirements for the beam. We had to make several changes to the choreography to make them more effective and dynamic; showing more artistry, body positioning and tighter body posture were also important,” Grant-Brown said.

She continued: “We received several videos to demonstrate and to help us with better choreography, and several physical preparation videos to help them over a period of time to adjust their body posture.

“So all in all, the visit was a much-needed one and they have left their doors open to us to help with our development as it relates to the gymnasts.”

On that note the president expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Tourism, the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) as well as Elite Diagnostic, who all assisted in making the visit a success.

“I can’t say how much I am grateful to those who partnered with us because without them, it wouldn’t have been possible,” Grant-Brown noted.