Ryan Graham, Observer Reporter
Quesnel Gymnast Jessica Higgins was the talk of the town at the B.C. Secondary School Championship Feb. 23 – 25 in Prince George, where she was crowned all around champion.
Along with that she also claimed top spot in the uneven bars competition and was named to the top 100 in the RBC ground event. Higgins, who is in grade nine has been competing in gymnastics for 13 years and is finally seeing her hard work pay off.
“She has been a talent since she was young and we recognized that and worked with her to help develop her abilities,” Head coach Peggy Wilcox said.
“Now we are seeing all of her hard work finally come to fruition.”
During the competition she finished seventh in vault, first in uneven bars, sixth in beam and fourth in the floor event. Wilcox says one of her strongest events is bars.
“She’s been really strong on bars and I don’t see that ever changing, no matter what level she reaches,” Wilcox said.
She added being an all around gymnast is a huge benefit for her.
“Jessica is a really good all around gymnast so she doesn’t have many weak areas,” Wilcox said.
“Sometimes you see gymnasts that have a strong event but it’s at the cost of other events being weaker. Personally I never train gymnasts that way I teach them to be all around. Being all around develops their body and mind which is great for their growth rather then just concentrating on one event.”
Higgins’ results were also a first for the club.
“We have never had a gymnast place at high school provincials and in all around and uneven bars,” Wilcox said.
Higgins shows that with hard work and committment to your goals you can achieve anything.
