Hoffmann finds niche on New Ulm gymnastics team

Exchange student experiences 'American way' through new version of familiar activity

By JEN SEAVEY

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- German exchange student Stephanie Hoffmann has become so immersed in "the American way" through a supportive family and a role on the New Ulm gymnastics team, that she is not looking forward to spring when she will leave it all behind.

Hoffmann made the jump from her hometown Dreieich, Germany, which is near Frankfurt, to New Ulm Aug. 20 -- two weeks before school started. What she found was very different from the Ricarda-Huch-Schule, the gymnasium where she goes to school in Germany.

Her host parents, Gerry and Lorie Reinarts, as well as her two host sisters, Jill and Rachel, tried to help her adapt, which didn't turn out to be that difficult.

"It's not much different, really, because she just fits right in with our family," said Rachel, 14.

But soon, Hoffmann found something that helped her more than she could have imagined: gymnastics.

"It's great because you get to know a lot of people," said Hoffmann. "The first couple of weeks here, I was sitting at home after school and doing nothing because I had no idea who the people were and what to do. Now ... I really feel like I am doing something, and I am part of the American way, and not just sitting at home."

New Ulm High School gymnastics coach Jeanine Backer thinks that sports are a great way for exchange students to become involved and see what being a teenager in the United States is all about.

"It's probably the absolute best way to get connected and have a full experience," said Backer. "It also helps get your mind away from thinking about your hometown."

Gymnastics turned out to be a connecting feature throughout Hoffmann's American experience. Her younger host sister Rachel, is also on the gymnastics team.

"Rachel has been with me in the youth program for several years," said Backer. "So her family kind of understands gymnastics and the pains that you come home with, and know how to deal with them. I think it's a really good match-up."

"I love them. It is a lot of fun. We do a lot of stuff together," said Hoffmann. "I really get along with Rachel, because she is in gymnastics too, and we talk about gymnastics."

This is Hoffmann's first endeavor at American gymnastics, but she is not a stranger to the sport. Hoffmann competes on a team at home in Germany, but she is quick to point out that the two types of gymnastics are dissimilar, even though they are the same sport.

First, sports in Germany are not school-related. Athletes belong to clubs, and those clubs compete against each other. There are also different levels of gymnastics. The type of gymnastics Hoffmann is involved in is more informal. Her team -- more of a group, she says -- still competes, but it is different.

"The group feeling is better on my team in Germany, I would say, because we are more of a group -- we talk more," said Hoffmann. "But the practice itself is better here. I feel like I learn much more, and it's more that you really do something."

"I think it's very different," said coach Jeanine Backer. "From what she has expressed, what they do in Germany is more dance type gymnastics. It sounds like ours is more physical.

"She has had to adapt to the demands of the physical part of it, and it's been pretty challenging for her," said Backer. "But I think she's really happy here."

The other girls on the team are enjoying having Hoffmann on the team because of her tenacity in learning. Since Hoffmann started, she has learned not only new tricks and techniques, but has also learned how to be tough mentally.

"She tries so hard -- no matter what, she doesn't want to let down," said senior captain Christine Otis.

"She is pretty motivated to learn new tricks," said Backer. "I think she just has the personality that rises to the challenge. Part of that too, is the team personality. The girls who are here are extremely motivated."

Amongst other tricks, she has learned how to do a round-off back handspring since she came to the team. It's a trick that coach Backer says is a considerable one to learn. It's a trick that leads to many, more difficult moves.

Hoffmann is trying to learn as much as possible in the time she has; then, she will take that knowledge back with her to Germany -- to her team and to groups of young people she teaches in her spare time.

"I want to teach them something, but they just want to have fun," said Hoffmann. "I know what happens when you only have fun every time. But I think they're getting good."

Because she teaches with others, she will be able to go back to Germany and pick up where she left off, but with more experience.

As for her older teammates at home, she is a little more wary of teaching them new things.

"They already told me I should teach them a lot," said Hoffmann. "They are older than me. I am the youngest on the team, so I don't know if I really feel good to teach them, but I will show everything."

In addition to learning, teammates in New Ulm say she also lends a unique spirit to the team.

"She adds the lightheartedness," said Otis. "We've all been in gymnastics for quite a few years, and she brings in innocence and character that just lightens things up."

Because of their experiences, team members, coach Backer and Hoffmann would all recommend the exchange student experience, as well as athletic involvement to others.

Hoffmann will finish the school year at New Ulm High School, and will travel to California and Hawaii with STS, the organization that brought her here. Even though she looks forward to traveling and seeing her friends and family again, Hoffmann will be reluctant to go.

"I love it here. At the beginning, I was like ... 'Okay, two more weeks'," she said. "But now, when I think about going home, I think about leaving everything, and then it's all over. It's sad.

"I really dreamt last night that I called my organization and asked if I can stay the whole summer."

The gymnastics team competes at the Gustavus Invite Saturday at 1 p.m., and at home Tuesday, Jan. 14 against St. Peter at 6:30 p.m.