Seven young gymnasts will be representing the Spring Swing and Flip Club (SSFC) at the Level 3-5 Ontario Championships May 31 to June 3 in London. Pictured here with two other athletes from SSFC, from top left: Kyra Faulkner, Emma Kruisselbrink, Ella Stepaniak, Sadie Rahn. Middle: Kaelynn O’Brien, Bella Hobson, Rylan McCulloch, Olivia Redmond. Front: Chloe McKinnon. Absent: Natasha Frankum and Ava Bridge.
Hub Staff
Seven gymnasts from the Swing, Spring and Flip Club (SSFC) will be heading to London from May 31 to June 3 to complete in the Level 3-5 Ontario Championships, representing a “huge percentage” of the Level 3 gymnasts from the Saugeen Shores club, said Coach Patty Bowman.
The attending athletes, aged 9 and up, were chosen based on qualifying scores from competitions held earlier this year.
Gymnasts representing SSFC at Level 3 in a variety of age groups are:
Hope Milton, age 9, who had a qualifying score of 36.3875 and ranked 88 out of 198;
Rylan McCulloch, age 11, ranked 3 out of 232 with a qualifying score of 38.1125;
Bella Hobson, age 11, ranked 16 out of 232, with a qualifying score of 37.7375;
Kyra Faulkner, age 12, ranked 89 out of 206 with a qualifying score of 36.6125;
Emma Kruisselbrink, age 14+, ranked 19 out of 123 with a qualifying score of 37.300;
Natasha Frankum, age 14+, ranked 60 out of 123 with a qualifying score of 36.1875.
Gymnast Sadie Rahn, 13, will be competing in Level 5. She is going in ranked 37 of 70 with a qualifying score of 35.2750.
This will be the second time at the Ontario Championships for gymnast Bella Hobson who has been competing competitively for three years. Hobson said that she became interested in gymnastics after her father brought her to SSFC one weekend. “I spend a lot of time here with all my friends... basically they’re a part of my life because I'm with them almost every day,” said Hobson, adding that her favourite practice is the Bars. She said she is looking forward to the Ontario Championships because “they are a lot of fun”.
It will be 13 year old Emma Kruisselbrink’s first time competing at the Ontario Championships and her entire family is excited to watch her perform. Even her mother whose due date is the day, she said jokingly. Kruisselbrink is from Tara and has a competitive personality so said it felt natural to start competing. She said she loves every component of gymnastics including her coaches.
“My coaches are amazing, they're really good,” said Kruisselbrink. “They correct you... but yet they're really nice, they're perfect coaches.”
Bella Hobson (black pants) and fellow gymnasts at a May practice at the SSFC in Port Elgin.
A SSFC gymnasts completing a Back Tuck.
Gymnast Rylan McCulloch with a Back Tuck during a May practice.