Sudbury Salto Gymnastics ceases operations after 40 years

A gymnastics club has folded after 40 years, Sudbury Salto Gymnastics has donated its remaining funds and equipment to other non-profit clubs in the city.

After 40 years of serving local youth, Sudbury Salto Gymnastics has officially dissolved its operations, a casualty of the long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It was a really hard decision,” said former president Stacey Chamberlin.

“I know other parents had been there much longer than me. They had done so much work fundraising, buying equipment and getting competitive suits that we rented out to the kids to make it more cost-effective.”

Chamberlin said the club never fully recovered from the two-year pandemic shutdown, which eventually led to the loss of its facility.

“After the two years that COVID had closed everything down, a lot of our coaches had moved on and the gymnasts had moved on,” she said.

“So things kind of collapsed.”

Since the 1980s, Sudbury Salto has prioritized making gymnastics accessible to families of all financial backgrounds. Chamberlin said it was a welcoming, encouraging environment.

“There was one instance where they were doing a strength training exercise, and one of the kids sort of had collapsed in the middle of the floor, and everyone else had completed it,” she recalled.

“Instead of just moving on, all of the kids that were watching started shouting encouragement and telling them -- ‘keep going, you got this.’”

The challenges that forced Salto to close are being felt by other local organizations. Alexandra Larocque, club manager for Sudbury Laurels and Gym Zone, said the pandemic created a “knowledge gap” in coaching that has been difficult to bridge.

“It was nearly impossible to train staff because it takes months, even years, to get to a certain level,” Larocque said.

“It’s been hard to replenish those key people or more senior roles. But we’re getting there now.”

She said they had to cut certain programs.

Cutting programs

“Certain programs with lower numbers or low provincial growth,” Larocque said.

“So, it’s been a struggle. We feel it more up north. And when you’re travelling again to those competitions, it can get really expensive for the families and it’s expensive for the club to sustain, as well.”

Rather than letting their legacy fade, the board of Sudbury Salto decided to ensure the future of the sport in the north by donating its remaining funds and equipment to the city’s last two remaining non-profit gymnastics clubs: Sudbury Laurels and Extreme North Gymnastics.

Laroque said the donation will go a long way.

“It’s extremely hard and challenging for some families to keep their kids and sport and all of the extras that go along with it, whether it’s equipment or gear -- all of that stuff,” she said.

“So I know the Laurels want to help take some of the financial burden off families in that way.”

For Sarrah Day, manager and head coach at Extreme North, the donation couldn’t have come at a better time.

“We’re doing seven competitions this year, and a lot of money goes into coaches’ accommodations, food, and travel,” Day said.

“Our lease is also going up at our second location, so this is really helpful.”

In addition to financial support, equipment from Salto has been distributed to local clubs.