Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, March 28, 2007

RANKIN INLET - Competitive athletes in Rankin Inlet's Aqsavniit Utauttaq gym club put in an outstanding effort at their first gymnastics competition in Yellowknife earlier this month.

Coach Lisa Kresky says the young gymnasts did better than she could have hoped and the group enjoyed their time in the city.

"We wouldn't have complained if we had been weathered in for an extra day or two over there, that's for sure," laughed Kresky.

"We had tons of fun and the competition went great.

"The kids behaved superbly and enjoyed themselves shopping and bowling in addition to the actual competition."

Kresky says holding a gym show before leaving Rankin was a big confidence builder for the young athletes.

She says it gave them an idea of what the competition would be like and prepared them for competing in front of an audience.

"The Yellowknife competition was low key, but it helped prepare them for Ontario on May 6, where there will be a lot more competitors and spectators.

"They were a little nervous before performing, but that's to be expected for their first time.

"They fought their way past that and really did the best they could."

Kresky says she was surprised by how well her gymnasts did on the bars, considering they only got their own a few weeks ago.

She says even though they didn't have time to learn the full bar requirements, a few of them performed moves they'd never tried before without her help.

"They might still find the Ontario competition a bit intimidating because of its size, but they're really excited about getting the chance to compete in an event that big.

"They saw some higher-level gymnasts in Yellowknife, so they have some ideas about what they want to work towards now.

"They came back to the gym really pumped and excited to be working hard on mastering some of these skills.

"That should carry on to the Ontario event where they'll see even higher-level competition to further motivate them to improve."

Kresky says the Rankin kids received numerous compliments on their new uniforms while in Yellowknife.

And, she says, the judges were impressed with their floor routines.

"We try to find a piece of music that brings out a bit of each kid's personality and uniqueness.

"They get a say in what they want, but we try to find music to match their skills and dancing abilities to bring the whole package together.

"That showed in our Yellowknife results, which were better than I hoped for.

"Now we do our end-of-year show on April 18 and then it's off to Ontario to see how we fare there."