Brynnley Gertner was the competition's all around champion and finished first place in the 2011 Xcel Silver competition.--SUBMITTED PHOTO
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The SALTA Gymnastics Club participated in their first competition of the year and the kids from Medicine Hat and surrounding area took home first place in six out of seven age categories.
The event was hosted by Westwind Gymnastics Club in Lethbridge, however all athletes had to record their routine and have it judged virtually.
“We had to record each of their routines on video and post them on YouTube,” said Danielle Clark, SALTA’s competitive co-ordinator. “We had four weeks to prepare, so I was very pleased with the results.”
Brynnley Gertner was awarded the best All Around Champion of the event and won first place in her 2011 Xcel Silver age group. She scored first on vault, tied for first on her floor exercise, second on the uneven bars and third on the balance beam.
SALTA took first, second and third place in the Xcel Platinum group, the highest level of competition, with Liyana Khan winning gold. Chelsia Cooper also took home gold in the Xcel Gold group.
Other winners from SALTA included Alexis Beebe (2008-10 Xcel Silver), Skylar Berner (2012-13 Xcel Silver) and Kapri Wirth (2013-14 Xcel Bronze). Juno Pasco participated in her first ever competition and was the only participant in the 2015-16 age group.
“I know a lot of the athletes weren’t sure what to expect with the virtual competition because it is very different, you don’t get to travel, and you don’t get to see any other athlete. But I think they still enjoyed it and they were definitely excited to see their results,” said Clark.
Clark says the gym is currently shut down again under the current COVID-19 restrictions and she believes this competition may be the only one they compete in this year. She adds that after the two-and-a-half month shutdown to start 2021, the kids were able to prepare for this competition quickly.
“I think it was great that the athletes were able to work hard and stay motivated throughout the two-and-a-half-month lockdown and then come back and pick up at a lower level than they were before because they lost some strength and flexibility, and then re-develop those skills so that they were ready to compete in such a short amount of time,” said Clark.
SALTA was able to run the competition together as at the time restrictions allowed them to be together as long as they were distanced. Other areas like Calgary and Edmonton would have had to have gymnasts come in at different times due to being hot spot areas for COVID-19, says Clark.
“We were able to run a competition in terms of we had six to 12 athletes come into the gym, then they warmed up and then they competed each event within that group,” she said.
