As the school year began, the gymnasts of Langley High School did not have a team to participate on, and were left having to either practice outside of school or join cheerleading. Unless the school could find a team coach, gymnastics was a sport that was merely part of Langley’s history.

“If we didn’t find a coach we wouldn’t have had a team, but luckily the coach of the Fairfax team offered to coach us,” said sophomore Malia Berner.   

It all began when, during the first meet that his team participated in, Coach Daniel Kallick noticed that Langley did not have a team. He then took the initiative to ask about the availability of a coaching position and the possibility of forming a team.

“Once I got the job, I met with the girls that wanted to be part of the team and worked out details to have a competitive team,” said Coach Kallick.

The team consists of only five members, three freshmen and two sophomores.

Langley’s practices are held at either Madison High School or Fairfax High School, depending on the day of the week.  Once in a while they have the privilege of practicing with the Madison, Fairfax and Oakton teams. At practice, the team works diligently on their routines to ensure they are ready for competition.

Although they have missed the first two meets, an added invitational meet in late January will help the Langley girls gain an additional meet experience. The team didn’t place during their first meet; however, they were optimistic and are looking towards the upcoming meets that are held each week in January.

“At meets, it’s actually a lot more of sitting and waiting or warming up than the actual competing, but it’s still lots of fun. We cheer for each other when someone is competing,” said freshman Julia Hara.  

The team tries to compete in every event as long as they meet the requirements and have a routine in place. Langley is very lucky to have a great coach and young athletes on the team- hopefully they can start a new Langley tradition of their own.