Acrobatic gymnastics is the newest discipline of gymnastics to have a competitive program at Okanagan Gymnastics Centre and a pair of athletes and their coach travelled to Calgary last weekend to compete at the first competition of the season.
Ellen Bradford and Sadie Mamchur competed in the level 7 women’s pairs competition in Calgary last weekend at Western Canada’s first Acrobatic Gymnastics competition. The sport is still relatively small in Canada, but is growing. The Okanagan Gymnastics team plans to travel to the USA this year where the sport is a lot bigger.
The girls are the first acrobatic (or acro) gymnastics team from Okanagan Gymnastics Centre to compete in 2013. The girls had a great performance and earned gold medals for their efforts. Coach Shawna Peters stated she was very proud of the girls for their great achievement at the first competition of the season. The team scored 25.13 which is one of the highest scores across all categories and levels.
The girls performed a three minute combination routine that combines balance and dynamic pairs skills as well as individual skills performed in unison to music and choreographed by Heather Ivanitz. The girls were judged on their technical skills as well as their choreography, performance and expression.
In March, three pairs from Okanagan Gymnastics Centre will be travelling to Alberta again for another competition.
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The men’s artistic gymnastics team competed in North Vancouver at the North Shore gymnastics competition last weekend with their coach Norihiko Horie at the first trials to nationals and westerns for the boys.
Liam Dawson won the National Youth category by earning a gold medal on the parallel bars and pommel horse and silver medals on floor exercise and vault. Dawson made the national standard score at this first competition of the season and has qualified for Canadian Championships which will be held in May 2013.
Kolten Marino finished in second place all around in the National Youth category after earning a gold medal on the rings and bronze medals on the floor exercise, pommel horse, and parallel bars.
Both of the National Youth athletes are in a good position going into the second of four trials for Canadian Championships and the second of two trials for Western Canadian Championships.
Okanagan Gymnastics Centre had three athletes competing in the level 4 competition. This is the first of two trials to Western Canadian Championships for this level.
Shane Hiscock finished in top spot all around after winning gold on floor exercise, pommel horse, parallel bars and horizontal bar. He also earned silver medals on the rings and vault.
Lucas Fabian finished with a silver medal on floor exercise while Jase Goerzen earned bronze medals on the rings and horizontal bar.
