Living Well

Sports

A Family Affair

Photo by Bill Hansen

This top young gymnast has a strong support network behind her.

CARL WALDMAN
Special to the Jewish News

A

n eagerness to excel —
that's one thing she's cer-
tainly got.
At age 3, she mastered
the art of tumbling. By age 8, she was
working privately with gymnastics
coaches.
By 9, she passed the fifth and sixth
compulsory levels in the gymnastics
rating system. Now, she is a Level 7
gymnast, placing in the top categories
of almost every event.
Eleven-year-old Danielle Zaft's
long-term goal is to become an elite
level collegiate gymnast, and in time,
to train for the Olympics. Along for
the ride is her family, making it possi-
ble for her to have those goals.
A fifth-grade honor student at
Hillel Day School of Metropolitan
Detroit in Farmington Hills, Danielle
focuses on homework and gymnas-
tics, leaving little time for recreation.
Four days a week, her teachers let her
out of school five minutes early, so
she can be at team practice on time.
Outside school at 3:25 sharp,
either her mom, Stephanie, or grand-
ma Marilyn Klein is waiting with a
full tank of gas and protein-packed
snacks, like bagels with tuna fish. Like
clockwork, they leave Farmington
Hills for their 40-minute ride to M-
59 and Crooks Road, where the
Gymnastics Training Center of
Rochester awaits Danielle.
With 11 teammates aged 10-14,
she practices three hours a day, five
days a week, including Saturday
mornings. As part of the team prac-
tice, Danielle has qualified to train in
the TOPS (talent opportunity)
Program, which offers additional con-
ditioning and intense flexibility and
strengthening exercises.
Taking a supplementary ballet class
once a week adds to her grace and
posture.
By 7 or 8 p.m., Danielle is done
with practice, but still must get

ITN

7/21
2000

96

Stephanie and Danielle Zaft are always
commuting.

Danielle Zaft has collected a lot of
hardware pursuing her dream.

home, eat dinner and do her home-
work. "I don't know many adults who
could keep up that pace," says her
dad, Gidon Zaft, who resides in
Israel. "Her type of persistence and
dedication is what it takes. And she
loves it."
No one is allowed to watch the
gymnastics practice. For Danielle's
designated drivers, that means a
three-hour wait in Rochester or a
ride back and forth to the West
Bloomfield area in traffic. "I drive
Danielle two to three times during
the week," says Klein of Orchard
Lake, "and one-way on Saturday to
help give her the opportunity to
achieve her goals." That also helps
Danielle's sister, Julia, a seventh-
grader at Hillel, get equal time and
attention from her mother.
"My daughter is a single mom and
she can't be in two places at once,"
says Klein. When Stephanie is dri-
ving, Julia is often with her grandpa
Sonny and I."

"There is no doubt that it is a lot
of road time," says Stephanie, a per-
manent substitute in the West
Bloomfield Public Schools.
"Sometimes I stay in Rochester
and see a movie, shop, or run errands.
But doing that five times a week gets
expensive.
"Many times, I come back home
and make dinner for the girls, and
then go back to get Danielle. She has
the potential, will-power and talent to
reach her goals, so as a parent I feel I
want to help cultivate her ability to
be the best she can be. Her coaches in
Rochester have an excellent standing,
so that's why she is there."
Along with perfecting her form on
the bars, vault and beam for the 10
competitions she does each year,
Danielle is also concentrating on her
floor routine, which she does to a
rendition of Guys and Dolls.
"As a Level 7 gymnast," says
Danielle, "we hired a choreographer,
additional coaches and someone to
orchestrate the music. As levels rise,
more skills must be achieved in the
routine, and variations become more
difficult."

Adds Stephanie, "That makes it
more interesting for both the gymnast
and spectators."
At the end of the six-month com-
petition season, Danielle qualified to
compete at nationals in Orlando, Fla.
on June 19. In front of thousands of
spectators, she performed against 100
Level 7 girls, ages 9-11 from around
the country.
"I have been trained not to notice
the loudness and distractions around
me," she says. "Instead, I concentrate
on what the next skill will look like."
She wound up placing 15th at
nationals, and her team finished
third.
"Danielle has a good attitude
towards competition," says Stephanie.
"She doesn't get devastated. It's a lot
of pressure.
"At a meet when she was 8 years old,
she turned to me and said, 'I'll do my
best, and that's all a person can do.'
"She has the aspiration. So together,
we are going for the gold." 111

The Scene

For young adults, college age
through 30-something.
July 23 Sunday, 9:30-11:30 a.m.
B'nai B'rith Leadership Network soft-
ball. At High Meadow School,
Farmington Hills (on Aleckay, north
of 12 Mile and east of Orchard Lake
Road). Bagels provided. Call Annise
Berger, (248) 478-2451.

July 24 Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. Young
Adult Division Roaming Bar Nite at
Woody's in Royal Oak. No charge.
Contact Lauren Dworkin, (248) 203-
1492 or dworkin@jfmd.org

July 30 Sunday, 10:30 a.m. Nature's
Mitzvot with Hillel of Metro Detroit.
Help city of Farmington Hills with
minor construction, landscaping,
cleanup. Meet at Costick Activities
Center, 28600 11 Mile Road (corner
of Middlebelt). Enter gate 3 or 4.