Okanagan Gymnastics Centre has turned into one very popular destination.
The Kelowna-based club last weekend hosted its largest ever Ogopogo Invitational competition, with more than 700 athletes attending the event from B.C., Alberta and the Yukon.
The previous high in the almost three decades since Ogopogo began was 525 participants.
This year, the Ogopogo was the trial event for selecting the B.C. team that will compete at this year’s Western Canada Summer Games in the Level 5 category for both men and women.
Jenna Mick, who competed in the CPP Level 5 category, started out her competition with a strong floor routine and vault where she finished second in both events. She also showed off her best beam routine of the year and finished first. Her bar routine, however, was not her strongest and she finished in seventh overall.
Mick has made the short list for the Western Canada Games, but now it is up to the Women’s Technical Committee to choose the best team to represent B.C.
In the national level of competition, Gabriela Beselt finished first overall, competing with athletes a few years older than her. She won gold on vault, uneven bars and balance beam and finished second on the floor exercise.
In the Aspire category, Amanda Jaggard finished in the top spot after a gold on floor, silver on uneven bars and bronze on vault. Samantha Pelletier won bronze on the balance beam.
All other female athletes competed under the Junior Olympic (JO) program.
In Level 8, Regina Abedrop earned the gold overall in the Senior B category after winning the vault and balance beam. She also won silver on the uneven bars.
Vanessa Bulcock finished in second, winning the uneven bars and winning silver on the balance beam.
In the Junior B category, Jillian Beaudreau finished with a silver medal overall after winning the balance beam and finishing second on the floor exercise.
In the JO 7 category, Braelyn Dillon won the all around after winning the vault and finishing third on the uneven bars.
Danica Graves was third overall in the same category after earning two bronze medals on the vault and floor exercise. Maddi Nethercote finished with a bronze medal on the beam in the same category.
In the JO 7 Junior B category, Kayleigh Nicolson finished with a silver overall after winning the floor exercise and earning a bronze on the uneven bars.
Kenedi Woodcox won two silver medals on the balance beam and floor exercise.
In the JO 7 Junior A category Camille Phillips took home a silver on the uneven bars and bronze on the vault.
In the JO 6 Senior A category, Mackenzie Carroll finished off her first year of competition with another first place overall. She earned gold on the balance beam and floor exercise and a silver on the uneven bars.
In the JO 6 Junior B category, Hailey Pritchard won silver on the floor exercise.
Thea Elma won the floor exercise her first time competing in the JO 4 category.
In the JO 3 category Junior A, Ava Gray won a silver overall after earning three bronze on the uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise.
Syndey Ortynski earned a silver for her bar routine in the Junior B category. In the Senior JO 3 category, Kate Levinsen won the balance beam and took bronze on the floor exercise.
Okanagan Gymnastics is home to eight girls who competed for their very first competition in the JO 2 category.
Izabelle Coetzee earned silver on all four events and overall.
Summer Houston finished with five silvers on vault, bars, beam, floor and overall.
Junelle Sabang earned a gold on vault, silver on uneven bars, bronze on balance beam, silver on floor and silver overall.
Hailey Hollenbeck earned silver on vault, bronze on bars, silver on beam, silver on floor and bronze over all.
Elisa Schoen earned silver on vault, bronze on bars and beam, silver on floor and bronze overall. Talia Westwood finished with silver on vault, bronze on bars, beam, floor and overall.
Eva Solano earned silver on vault, bronze on bars and beam, silver on floor and bronze overall.
Alexandra Kennedy won silver on vault, bronze on bars, silver on beam, floor and overall.
In the men’s competition, Hani Rehan earned gold on floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, high bar and overall and finished with a silver on the parallel bars in the Level 1 category.
In the men’s Level 2, Jack Nyrose won a gold medal on the vault.
Oliver Eisele-McDougall finished second overall in the Level 3 category after winning the rings, vault and high bar. He also won silver on the floor.
Willis Plant won the bronze medal on the pommel horse and high bar.
In the Men’s Level 4, Brady Clegg won gold medals on the rings, vault and high bar finishing second overall.
