INDIANAPOLIS, September 30, 2015 – Going into its fourth year, USA Gymnastics will once again select clubs to participate in the Trampoline Development Center program in 2016. The goal of the program is to incorporate competitive trampoline into the curriculum in gyms across the nation to expand its Olympic pipeline.

If you are interested in starting a Trampoline and Tumbling program in your gym and would like to apply to become a Trampoline Development Center, please fill out the application at https://usagym.org/pages/tt/tdc/ and return by December 1, 2015.

Since March 2013, 12 clubs have been named Trampoline Development Centers (TDC) to help develop trampoline and tumbling in the United States by incorporating competitive trampoline into their curriculum. The clubs include:

  • Mills Gymnastics USA in Southgate, Michigan
  • Wendy Hilliard Foundation in New York City – partnership with Harlem Children’s Zone.
  • California Sports Center in San Jose, Calif.
  • Suncoast Gymnastics Academy in Odessa, Fla.
  • Oconee Gymnastics and Cheer in Watkinsville, Ga.
  • Montgomery County Sports Performance Center in Harleysville, Pa.
  • Gymfinity of Fitchburg, Wis.
  • Williamsburg Indoor Sports Complex, Williamsburg, Va.
  • DC Gymnastics and Tumbling in Wildomar, Calif.
  • Roots in Westfield, Mass.
  • Summit Sports Center in Nolensville, Tenn.
  • Orange County Sports Club in Florida, N.Y.

To assist the clubs in incorporating trampoline into their gyms, each club will have a monthly visit with Joy Umenhhofer, a member of the national trampoline coaching staff. On the visits, she will host clinics to educate club staff on scheduling, coaching and teaching trampoline, basic skills, conditioning and flexibility, and progressions; available talent identification development programs; and interactive coach and athlete training sessions. Each club will also receive marketing materials, operational guidelines and curriculum support. In addition, local area gyms will be able to attend one of the coaching and athlete workshops during each visit.

Umenhhofer is a member of the USA Gymnastics national coaching staff for trampoline and tumbling and junior men. She has coached several trampoline and tumbling national and World Age Group champions, as well as placing athletes on all trampoline and tumbling developmental teams. Umenhhofer, a former gym club owner, is currently the head trampoline and tumbling coach at Matrix.

Athletes of all ages and body types can enjoy and benefit from trampoline, which also enhances skill development across all gymnastics disciplines. Trampoline may also retain athletes who are looking for something different from gymnastics or need to adjust to accommodate outside scheduling challenges. Additionally, the artistic gymnastics and trampoline competitive seasons complement one another, which makes it is possible for an athlete to participate in both. Many gym clubs in the U.S. already have trampoline as part of their programming, which has proven to be very successful.