YMCA Synchro Stars
Beginning of the Years…
Beginner & Intermediate
Program runs September to June, practices meet 2-3t/week.
Target : This is generally active youth ages 7~16 with some interest in aquatics.
Programs aimed at elementary and middle school girls that teach synchronized swimming and also include a curriculum which addresses self- esteem, healthy habits, and encourages healthy emotional, social and physical development.
There will be an emphasis on teamwork and building confidence. Training together for a full year gives pre-team members the opportunity to form close friendships and to learn to perform a full length routine. Beginner members will learn simple technical elements (“Novice” figures), participate in fun and perform in the YSS Synchro Annual Show. Beginners are welcome, and girls with some synchro experience will also be challenged.
Intermediate & Stars. Age Group
Program runs September to June, practices meet 3-4t/week.
The Age Group ( 12& under to Seniors) team is for athletes who have moderate to significant prior synchro experience(individual squads are formed by age and skill). The Age Group program is designed to build upon basic skills and teamwork, and offers swimmers a path to progressively more advanced skills and competitions. Age Group athletes perform much more complex figures (technical elements), compete in local meets, and can qualify to compete in regional, zone and national meets. Participate perform in the YSS Synchro Annual Show.
YSS Synchro’s Goals
* Curriculum which addresses self- esteem, healthy habits, and encourages healthy emotional, social and physical development.
* Though not a requirement of participation for YSS Synchro, athletes participate in USA Synchro’s “elite” level of training and competition.
* Athletes attend Development Camps and National Team Trials .
* Age Group team members develop into confident, team-oriented athletes with strong synchro skills. For those interested in college, the YSS Synchro experience is a unique addition to their application that is valued by admissions officers. Regardless of whether they continue synchronized swimming, time management, leadership, and other life skills learned from YSS Synchro contribute to their
collegiate success. YSS Synchro alums often do continue their synchro careers in college.
* Placement on any Age Group team requires coach recommendation, documented attainment of age-defined synchro skills, and a high level of commitment to the regular practice & meet schedule.
* Older members of the Age Group team can serve as Student Coaches and Team Captains for YSS Synchro.
Future…
YSS Synchro team members get in to the United States National Team.
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Coaches
Jonghee Lee is a US Synchro Level 3 coach and Level 3 Judge. Currently, she is the head coach of Synchro Stars at the YMCA in Bergen County.
She used to be a synchronized swimmer and attended many international competitions in Italy, France, Spain, Canada, Japan, USA, etc in the Korean National Team from 1989 to 1994. She soon became a coach of the Korean National Team and trained swimmers for the Atlanta Olympic Trials in 1995.
She was a commissioner and also a judge for the Korean Synchronized Swimming Federation in Seoul, Korea from 1995 to 1999.
She joined Synchro Stars at YWCA Bergen County in 2015 and has trained her swimmers to receive Intermediate Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals at the NJ Association, Region, and East Zone competitions in 2016 with the help of Coach Laura and Coach Kris .
Laura Alt is a US Synchro Level 3 coach who began competing in synchronized swimming at age nine. She has been swimming and competing ever since. She is the head coach, choreographer, and competitor for the Rampo Aqua Masters of Suffern, NY. Alt received 2 bronze medals at the 2006 FINA Master World Championships and a bronze medal at the 2009 US Master Championships. Most recently she earned two gold medals at the US Master Championships in Sarasota, FL. In 2013, her peers voted her the winner of the May McEwan Award, which is given annually to a Masters Synchronized Swimmer who has made an appreciated contribution to the sport. She is also a swimming teacher and certified Lifeguard instructor.
With fellow coach, Kris Ann Gutenmacher, they founded the YMCA Synchro Stars in 2012.
Kris-Ann Gutenmakher’s passion is synchronized swimming. She has been involved in the sport for over fifteen years. Starting as a competitive swimmer she has competed and earned medals at US Masters national competitions in Florida, Las Vegas, California and Oregon. She has also represented the sport in a wide variety of events such as appearing on the Travel Channel Extreme Pools, Cake Boss, performing as a mermaid in the New York Aquarium and performing at Harrah’s Atlantic City for New Years Eve. Beginning in September 2016 she took over the responsibility of Zone Treasurer for the East and attended the National Convention in Atlanta, Georgia.
Having transitioned from competitive swimmer to a USA sanctioned zone coach and regional judge, attending Coaches College and the elite training sessions at the Olympic Training center at Lake Placid, she finds great pleasure in choreographing routines and training the next generation of swimmers.
Practice Time
