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RANKIN INLET
A large crowd was on hand to watch the Aqsarniit Ujauttaq (Northern Lights Gymnastics) club's recreational competition in Rankin Inlet this past week.

Shady Kavik accepts the special award for Most Dynamic Vault (ages three to six) during a recreational gymnastics competition in Rankin Inlet. -

About 50 young athletes took part in the show. Coach Lisa Kresky said the event was really more of a chance for the young gymnasts to show what they've learned in the program to date, rather than an actual competition.

She said the program was superb and the kids performed extremely well.

"Our competitive kids were the helpers and the judges," said Kresky.

"They really helped everything run smoothly, along with some of my parent/coaches.

"Everything went off without a hitch."

The display marked the end of the club's first session for the recreational gymnasts.

A second session will begin this coming month. Age wise, Kresky said the recreational program covers everything from "walking" to adult. She said the competition is optional and, usually, some of the older teens choose not to participate.

"We are amazed by how much these kids have progressed during the past couple of years, and how much the program continues to build.

"Many kids seem to really enjoy the sport and it gives them an alternative to the other sports available in town.

"Gymnastics is a lot of fun and it offers them a lot of different events to try.

"They have a lot of options, so, even if they don't excel at one event, they might do really well at another."

Aqsarniit Ujauttaq began at the Maani Ulujuk Ilinniarvik gym in February of 2004.

Kresky said there are now more boys involved in the program than in any other previous year.

In fact, she said, overfall enrolment this year is at its highest peak yet.

"I'm not completely sure what to attribute that to.

"It could be, with this being an Olympics year, a lot of kids saw it on TV and were intrigued by it.

"We start before a lot of sports and I've always tried to co-ordinate my schedule around other activities in town, such as hockey and cadets.

"Unfortunately they both decided to change up their days this year, so we've lost some kids to them."

Kresky said many of those kids would love to be in both, but with hockey having a relatively shorter season compared to gymnastics, and a choice having to be made, hockey prevailed. She said there is one positive aspect to those kids not being able to participate in the upcoming session.

"It will give some of the kids we had to turn away an opportunity to participate in the new session.

"We turned away about 30 to 40 kids this past session because we were so full.

"It's unfortunate, but, even if I had more coaches, we just cannot fit more kids in the gym."

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