The junior gymnasts had a terrific day, winning three of the four medals. Reigning Canadian champion Michel Vivier of Toronto, ON won silver in the junior all around competition and was joined by teammate Natalie Garcia of Mississauga, ON who won the bronze medal. Vivier scored 55.650 points while Garcia scored 52.550 points.
Vivier and Garcia also won a silver medal in the team event with fellow junior gymnast Sophie Crane of Toronto, ON. The women combined for 136.100 points, putting them four points back of the United States who finished first and almost twenty points ahead of Mexico who took home the bronze.
“My goal here was to perform clean routines and I’m happy with the outcome,” said Vivier with two silver medals around her neck. “I was especially excited about my hoop routine because it’s new and my first time competing with it.”
“I’ve been fighting a head cold since I arrived and had difficulty breathing during my routines,” said Garcia. “Today I felt stronger especially with my clubs routine. My ribbon was shaky, which I hope to improve in finals tomorrow.”
Teresa Orr, national team director for rhythmic gymnastics at Gymnastics Canada was pleased with the results: “Going into the championships we knew we had a strong team. Our preparation included two control trainings in September and early October involving the team coaches and Brevet judges, which really helped. Today the junior women did very well. Although Sophie unfortunately made two major mistakes with ribbon, she had three strong routines with ball, hoop, and clubs and was able to finish 6th all around.”
The Canadian senior rhythmic group won the bronze medal in the all-around competition finishing with 29.100 points overall. The group was sitting in fourth place following the first day of competition but moved up and into podium position following a big score of 15.450 points in their three ball, two rope routine.
Cecilia Moreno of Vancouver, BC is a part of the junior rhythmic group, which finished fourth overall. It is the group’s first international experience and they are quite pleased with the results. “It feels really good to be at a big international event competing for our country,” said Moreno. “It’s really exciting being in the venue and it’s such a new experience. I learned that there’s a lot of support within our country as well as the senior group and all the individual gymnasts. I learned more about my teammates and how to work with them under high pressure. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s finals, with a fresh start for our routines, we’re hoping for great results.”
The Canadian senior individual rhythmic gymnasts struggled with their final two routines. Carmen Whelan of Aurora, ON has advanced in all four event finals, while Katherine Uchida of Toronto, ON has advanced in hoop and ball.
The Canadian acrobatic gymnasts had some impressive routines and scores on the final day of qualification. Due to the number of entries in the competition, all Canadian gymnasts have advanced to Sunday’s finals.
11-16 Women’s Pair Ava Gokiert and Evelina Merkulov of Calgary, AB finished the qualifying rounds today in fourth place with a score of 52.300 after their dynamic routine. “I’m hoping we can hit our routine and not fall on any skills and get a good artistry score,” said Gokiert. “I would love to do better than today and go home with a medal.”
The junior acrobatic women’s trio achieved the highest Canadian score of the day with their balance routine, scoring 28.170 points. Team members Alexandra D’Souza, Charlotte Penner, and Erin Oswald of Oakville, ON will perform again on Sunday in the event final.
The following gymnasts have also advanced to event finals on Sunday:
- Karyzza Guillermo and Nikki Krigos (Gymnastics Mississauga): 11-16 women’s pair (qualifying score: 51.000)
- Kristian Diana and Maxwell Hendershot (Oakville Gymnastics): 11-16 men’s pair (qualifying score: 48.850)
- Mila Di Salle and Theo Rotts Chan (Oakville Gymnastics): 11-16 mixed pair (qualifying score: 51.600)
- Lola Gray, Piper Lafayette, and Cassandra Larner (Oakville Gymnastics): 11-16 women’s group (qualifying score: 50.750)
- Mikaela Pingol and Juliana Summers (Oakville Gymnastics): 12-18 women’s pair (qualifying score: 52.600)
- Ashlee Chan, Kiara-Carin Kacvinsky, and Kiana Wilson (Oakville Gymnastics): 12-18 women’s group (qualifying score: 52.950)
- Allison Attard, Emmanuelle Shemko, and Ally Swanepoel (Oakville Gymnastics): 12-18 women’s group (qualifying score: 50.470)
Please click here for full Rhythmic Gymnastics results and Acrobatic Gymnastics results.
For a competition schedule and live scoring, click here.
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First established in 1969, Gymnastics Canada is the national governing body for the sport of gymnastics in Canada. Gymnastics Canada works closely with the twelve Provincial Federations and the 700 local clubs to provide a broad range of programs and services to meet the needs of all participants. From athlete development, to coaching and judging education, Gymnastics Canada sets the operating standards and practices for the sport in Canada. Our mandate is to promote and provide positive and diverse gymnastics experience through the delivery of quality and safe gymnastics programming. Visit www.gymcan.org for more information, or follow us @CDNgymnastics.
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