From cartwheels to confidence: gymnastics workshops lighting the way

Artistic gymnastics involves performing complex acrobatic movements—jumps, tumbling, landings and dismounts—on the floor or on apparatus such as, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, and uneven bars. Many parents in Hong Kong view these eye-catching movements as posing serious injury risks and therefore prefer that their children do not learn gymnastics at school. Due to these concerns, most primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong do not offer gymnastics training during PE lessons.

The lack of confident gymnastics teachers is also a major contributing factor to this situation. “While all HPE students receive basic gymnastics training during their studies, only a small proportion feel willing to teach gymnastics once they become PE teachers. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, they fear potential injuries when teaching gymnastics. Secondly, graduates often feel they lack the necessary skills and knowledge to teach the subject effectively,” explained Dr Gary Chow Chi-ching, Associate Professor from the Department of Health and Physical Education (HPE).

This situation will negatively impact the future development of gymnastics in the city. With few opportunities to try gymnastics, children are less likely to develop an interest in the sport. “To reverse this trend, we need to train more confident and qualified PE teachers. At the same time, we must also address parental concerns about the sport’s safety,” said Mr Shek Wai-hung, M.H., a retired elite athlete of the Hong Kong Gymnastics Team who graduated with a Bachelor of Health Education (Honours) (BHE) in 2022.

To change the situation, HPE co-organised the “Artistic Gymnastics Badges Award Scheme Workshop” and the “Artistic Gymnastics Badges Award Scheme Examinations”, with support from the Gymnastics Association of Hong Kong, China. The department invited Mr Shek Wai-hung, along with other alumni and experienced gymnastics coaches, to the University’s Tai Po campus to demonstrate how to perform gymnastics movements safely. The workshops included guidance on the appropriate use of apparatus and essential safety measures. These experts also served as examiners for the qualifying examinations.

The Artistic Gymnastics Badges Award Scheme offers a structured framework for gymnasts to develop their skills, progressively and set clear goals for improvement. Under the scheme, gymnasts earn badges at each level by demonstrating the required skills and techniques. Level-one and level-two workshops were held on 6 and 9 May respectively. A total of 94 students from the BEd(PE) programme and the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Physical Education) (PGDE(PE)) programme took part in the examinations held on 20 May 2025.

Miss Leung Ka-man and Mr Jim Man-hin, both BHE graduates and former members of the Hong Kong Gymnastics Team, along with Mr Shek Wai-hung, acted as examiners during the qualifying exams. In addition, the Gymnastics Association of Hong Kong, China appointed professional artistic gymnastics coaches Mr Yim Chi-hung and Mr Lee Man-hin as examiners to ensure a fair and professional assessment.

“There was a significant amount of liaison and logistical work behind the workshops and examinations. Above all, we needed to motivate current students to participate,” Dr Chow said. He recalled that fifth-year BEd(PE) student Serena Ho Ka-yui has always shown a strong interest in gymnastics. “I asked Ka-ka to assist with the project and she agreed immediately. She even took the initiative to recruit students from other years to form a five-member organising team,” he said enthusiastically.

“The badges award scheme is very meaningful as it nurtures our students’ gymnastics skills and techniques. Gymnastics is much more than just strength; it enhances motor skills, balance, and coordination. Such abilities are helpful in other sports. I also appreciate gymnastics because it builds character. When a gymnast falls during a movement, they must get up, and persevere to complete the action. It fosters resilience,” said Serena, affectionately known as Ka-ka.

To further promote the sport, Serena chose to design a teaching toolkit for her final-year project. The toolkit explains how to teach school students to execute gymnastics movements safely. She hopes it will improve the skills and confidence of both prospective and current PE teachers in teaching gymnastics.

Fourth-year BEd(PE) student Moses Mok Ho-yeung was another member of the organising team. Moses developed an interest in gymnastics as a child, and deepened his knowledge of the sport at the Jockey Club Ti-I College. “We have great respect for Shek, who is a graduate of this University and a prominent figure in Hong Kong’s gymnastics community. At the recent on-campus workshop, I learnt that safety should always be the top priority when performing and teaching gymnastics. The workshop also gave me an opportunity to share my experiences of learning gymnastics movements with my juniors,” he said.

Mr Shek Wai-hung, nicknamed Stone by his friends and teachers, praised the badges scheme workshop and examination initiative. “Gymnastics cultivates resilience under pressure. For example, a vault or balance beam gymnast has only 30 seconds to retry a failed movement. I understand Hong Kong parents’ safety concerns. However, with proper protective measures in place, teaching and learning gymnastics is very safe,” Stone said.

Stone felt proud of his juniors for having a passion in promoting gymnastics. “In the US and Europe, many parents enrol their children in gymnastics schools. I hope school management in Hong Kong will trust that PE teachers are capable of instructing children to practise gymnastics safely. I also hope more schools will include gymnastics in their PE curriculum,” the retired gymnast who has won numerous medals for Hong Kong said.

Dr Chow’s face lit up as he described the success of the initiative. “We managed to find one or two students to kick-start the project, and their passion soon inspired others to join the team. I also thank the Gymnastics Association of Hong Kong, China for its continuous support of HPE’s initiatives. I am grateful to my colleague Samantha and her Elite Athlete Development Team for helping arrange for Stone and other alumni to volunteer as coaches and examiners. They inspired the next generation of PE teachers through their personal experiences,” said the HPE professor.

At the start, Dr Chow and Samantha had only a rough idea of how to improve the current situation. “We made phone calls and sent messages to ask students, alumni, and the gymnastics association for help, and the responses were very positive. I had several sleepless nights as the project began to take shape and all the different parts came together. Seeing alumni, students from different years, faculty, and the professional body work voluntarily to turn an idea into action is a perfect example of passing the torch,” Dr Chow added with a smile.