What happens if my child gets hurt at a meet?
Rule- USA
- USA Gymnastics
- Women's Development Program
- Levels 1-10
- Ages 4+
- Safety & Response Policy
- 2026-27 Rules & Policies
- 2026-27 season
- Parents
Minimum medical coverage at sanctioned meets:
| Levels | Risk level | Medical staff required |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Low | None. The coach or Meet Director should be comfortable with basic first aid |
| 4-7 | Moderate | 1 medical professional with first aid training (nurse, PT, athletic trainer, MD/DO, EMT, paramedic) per 100 athletes competing at once, and at least 1 per venue |
| 8-10 | High | 1 qualified provider (e.g. certified athletic trainer, EMT, paramedic, sports medicine physician, sports-certified PT) per 64 athletes competing at once, and at least 1 per venue, during warm-up and competition |
At an in-gym meet where every athlete is from the host club, medical coverage is recommended but not required. Once athletes from another club take part, the coverage above is required.
After an injury
- After a serious injury, the medical provider works with the coach and you to decide whether she can return without significant risk of further injury.
- If she needed a medical assessment, she may finish her routine and continue in the same session once medically cleared, and may get a 30-second touch warm-up.
- If she can't do some events, she presents to the Chief Judge and touches the apparatus to get a zero, which keeps her in the meet. She stays eligible for awards on events she completed.
- Gymnasts may not warm up or compete in a hard, non-removable cast.
- Pushing an athlete back into training too early after a serious injury, without medical clearance, is physical misconduct under the SafeSport Code.
Updated 21 Oct 2026