2000s
Lakewood 2009 Championship Team
After the inaugural win in 1998, the Lakewood team won 8 more times in the 2000s, becoming the team with the most wins in Y Nationals history.
During this time the consistent factor was coaching. Brian Muenz remained the optional coach, with Jackie Bellmer, a former Y gymnast joining the coaching team in the mid-1990s, and Kevin Milliren building a strong compulsory program.
While the pressure to remain on the top was high, another constant element of the team was how much fun they had trying to ‘decorate’ Brian’s room or car. It became a team ritual to break into his hotel room and spill rice krispies on his bed, or decorate with toilet paper. Much of the fun was wondering how Brian would pay them back. In 2006 he had a coach line the girls up for a team picture while he stood on the roof above them with a bucket of water. In retaliation, the girls broke into his room while he was at dinner, decorated it, and sent a picture of the damage to the cell phone of his dinner mate.
Numerous girls contributed to the team’s success during the 2000s, with Shirla Choy, Keeley Smith, Chelsey Haskey, and Mia Tabbutt capturing National Individual All-Around Titles for the team.
Another team that has fared well in the 2000s is from Darien, CN. This team won the titles in 2007 and 2008.
During this time the consistent factor was coaching. Brian Muenz remained the optional coach, with Jackie Bellmer, a former Y gymnast joining the coaching team in the mid-1990s, and Kevin Milliren building a strong compulsory program.
While the pressure to remain on the top was high, another constant element of the team was how much fun they had trying to ‘decorate’ Brian’s room or car. It became a team ritual to break into his hotel room and spill rice krispies on his bed, or decorate with toilet paper. Much of the fun was wondering how Brian would pay them back. In 2006 he had a coach line the girls up for a team picture while he stood on the roof above them with a bucket of water. In retaliation, the girls broke into his room while he was at dinner, decorated it, and sent a picture of the damage to the cell phone of his dinner mate.
Numerous girls contributed to the team’s success during the 2000s, with Shirla Choy, Keeley Smith, Chelsey Haskey, and Mia Tabbutt capturing National Individual All-Around Titles for the team.
Another team that has fared well in the 2000s is from Darien, CN. This team won the titles in 2007 and 2008.
In this decade the number of participants has been limited by facility size. There is no shortage of clubs or girls that want to compete.
In 2006 Hanover re-established competition for boys. This has been a challenge. Until the numbers of participants grow, teams do not want to travel across the county. Small numbers of boys competed in 2007, 2008, and 2009.
