Every year, schools in China must administer jump-rope tests for kids. If students want to be eligible for scholarships, they have to score well. Failing to get a top score can mean a future of academic and, consequently, career mediocrity. Because the stakes are so high, some parents hire special tutors to coach their kids jump-rope skills.
The Wall Street Journal (paywall link) describes the testing standards. First graders must skip 17 times a minute. That goes up with age. At the fourth grade, boys must skip 99 times a minute and girls 103 times. Moving slowly or tripping a single time can result in a very low grade. This is why parents are willing to pay professional coaches as much as $50 an hour to train their children to be top competitors. These coaches have studied the body mechanics of jump-rope carefully and can spot minor errors that throw kids off of their full athletic potential.
-via Super Punch | Photo: Pixabay