Canmore Illusions gymnasts Ivy Tupper and Victoria Greene shone brightly with a series of standout performances at the Alberta Gymnastics Provincial Championships in Fort McMurray, April 16-17.
Tupper qualified to compete at the national championships this June in Edmonton after acing all eight of her routines at provincials. Tupper is one of four Level 9 Alberta athletes to earn a trip to nationals.
“She is an all around athlete. She is strong in all four events,” said Illusions coach Ashley Sporten.
Tupper, 11, rose to the occasion at provincials, linking eight solid competitions across two days. It was the first time this year she’s been strong in every event.
“I wasn’t nervous, because it was a two-day competition. The first day I did well, and I didn’t want to lose my place,” Tupper said.
Tupper is now targeting a top five finish at nationals, as she is seeing her hard work pay off. Training 18.5 hours a week, Tupper was thrilled to get the win,
“I made a deal with my mom. If I made it to nationals, I’d get a rolly bag (suitcase on wheels) for the trip,” Tupper said.
Her coaches knew she was capable of such a performance, but were most impressed with her pre-event preparation.
“I’m most proud of her confidence going in. She wanted to be a contender to make the team,” Sporten said.
Victoria Greene, 13, also broke through with a provincial title of her own, winning the Level 6 all around championship title. Greene won gold on bars, and was fourth on vault, beam and floor to clinch the win.
“Greene was an alternate for the Alberta Winter Games. For her to come back and win provincial championships is a big accomplishment,” said coach Jordana Drukarsh. “She is very coachable and keen.”
Greene switched from the rec program to the competitive program four years ago and surprised herself with the provincial title performance.
“For me, it was really exciting after coming to the gym for hours, and working hard, to finally win it,” Green said. “I honestly didn’t think about the provincial title. I didn’t get worked up or get nervous. I thought it was the provincials and I should do my best. I was pretty surprised, and really excited after,” Greene said.
Greene is also a multi-sport athlete, but still trains 11.5 hours a week at the Canmore Rec Centre. Her coaches state she’s an extremely powerful athlete who should be proud of the win.
“She is very coachable and keen,” Sporten said.
Tupper and Greene weren’t the only Canmore Illusions gymnasts to do well. Rianne Hambly, Kyle Yawney, Amelia Capel, Lindsay Nunn, Britt Richardson, Jesse House, Lydia Ridgely, Bella Unterasinger and Matilda Kirk also landed on the podium at provincials.
The team of Kirk, Ridgely, Unterasinger, Ainsley McCaffrey and Olivia Pfister had 15 top eight performances, much to the delight of their coaches.
