By Kaitlyn LeBoutillier
For the Kanata Sapphires, attending the International Federation of Aesthetic Group Gymnastics World Cup in Spain this summer was like watching a Hollywood movie live.
“You get to kind of touch the famous world. Here in Canada, we watch [other teams] on YouTube and just think, ‘wow,’” indicates Irina Shivrina, who coaches the team at the Kanata Rhythmic Gymnastics Club.
The team felt goosebumps being surrounded by athletes and choreographers they idolize as they participated in the open international division alongside the World Cup event in Tarragona.
Alice Lavrenova, Ella Yi Qi, Sharon (Xinyu) Li, Fiona (Xinoi) Liang, Sophie Smirnyagina, Silvia Yu and Victoria Wang had been practicing their choreography for their routine for half a year before their season culminated with the trip to Spain.
The Kanata team has worked together for three seasons under Shivrina, on top of their individual training with Kanata Rhythmic.
They competed as the lone entry from outside Europe alongside Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece and a pair from host Spain.
Knowing points are hard to come by on the international stage, the Sapphires were pleased to score 27.550 for their two routines to place fifth of six in the age 12-14 category.
~~~~~~~~~ Advertisement ~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~ Advertisement ~~~~~~~~~
With a score of 34.500, the winning team in their division came from Bulgaria, which was also the champion country for the World Cup at 57.100.
There was another team from Vancouver competing in another division, and both Canadian groups supported one another.
“It was so nice to be there and cheer on the other Canadian team and have them cheering for us,” Shivrina highlights.
This competition was more about the experiences than the scores, and there were many highlights the Kanata athletes enjoyed.
“Many teams stay to watch after because there’s high-level teams from around the world,” Shivrina notes. “It’s a huge event going there.”
Outside of gymnastics, travelling to Spain for almost a week offered new cultural opportunities too.
“We tried different seafood and got to see some of the architecture,” Shivrina recounts. “It was really beautiful downtown.”
Outside of the competition, there was time for the athletes to “meet other teams, take photos together, and talk to girls from so many different countries,” adds the coach who moved to Canada from Russia roughly 15 years ago, originally to instruct dance for the March-Kanata Skating Club.
It was a special experience for the Kanata group to meet peers from around the world who share their love for a sport that doesn’t have quite the same following in Canada as some other countries. Seeing world-class gymnasts and performances also gave the local athletes some new fire as they prepare for their next season.
“They are really passionate about gymnastics and when they came back from the competition, they were still talking about the routines we saw there,” Shivrina signals. “They would like to move forward, improve their skills, get better and stronger.”