By Pablo Medina
Since he was a kid, Connor Nguyen has always had a thing for jumping around and performing stunts. From flipping off the couch, to bouncing endlessly on his parents’ bed, he had an energy that could not be calmed by anything until it finally landed him in gymnastics.
“I’d always jump on my parents’ bed and fall off, getting these big bumps on my head,” Nguyen recalls with a laugh (but not in song). “Eventually, they just said ‘enough’ and signed me up for a trampoline class.”
Jumping around has now become a major part of his life. Nguyen trains five times a week at the Ottawa Gymnastics Centre, where his dedication most recently paid off with a victory in the men’s age 15-16 Junior high-performance division at the April 10-13 Ontario Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Windsor.
“It was really fun,” Nguyen highlights. “I had my two teammates with me, and we were just trying to enjoy the experience. Honestly, I was also just trying to get it over with so I could get back to training.”
Former OGC athlete Yasir El Sakka, who now represents Kemptville Infinity, won half of the events in the category and was second in two others, but a costly rings routine allowed Nguyen to take the all-around title with gold medals on high bar and floor, silvers on pommel horse and parallel bars, and bronzes on vault and rings. OGC’s Kyle Jubea was fifth overall in the same division.
“I tried not to think about anyone else,” Nguyen indicates. “I was just focused on not falling or making a fool of myself.”
Despite his jesting, the past Eastern Canadian Championships participant is eager to get back to work in advance of his first appearance at the Canadian Championships, coming up May 26-30 in Calgary.
“For nationals, we’re hoping to add upgrades to my routines,” he explains. “There’s more time between competitions now, so it gives me the chance to train some new skills. The goal is to add difficulty — and not fall.”
Nguyen says a big part of his success stems from the coaches he’s had the chance to work with, and the tight-knit community at OGC.
“They’re more like friends than coaches, really,” he adds. “They’ve played a big role in helping me get where I am.”
OGC is currently celebrating its 65th anniversary season, and Nguyen is looking forward to seeing his name engraved on the club’s extensive wall of champions, which appears near the entrance of the Westboro facility.
“The last time I was on there I was really young, and they forgot to put my name up,” smiles Nguyen, who debuted with a Provincial 1, age 8 title at his first Ontario Championships in 2019. “So hopefully this time they remember.”
As he rises the ranks while filling his schedule with competitions, practices and often homework afterwards, Nguyen hasn’t set any long-term goals in stone. He’s still enjoying the feeling of flying through the air, now without the frequent bumps on his head.
“I haven’t thought too much about the future,” he notes. “At the moment, it’s just a hobby I really love. I like the flipping, and laughing with my friends at the gym.”
5 local female gymnastics punch nationals tickets
Dalia Weisz also earned herself a repeat inscription on the OGC’s wall of champions with her victory in the women’s Level 9, age 15+ division.
“It was really cool,” Weisz recounts. “I definitely wasn’t expecting to place that high. I was just focusing on routines, not really the outcome, but I was really surprised and proud of myself.”
The 2023 Level 8 champ powered her way to the top of the 50-competitor standings with a dominant winning score of 9.5 on balance beam.
“I was definitely really proud of that moment – being able to stay calm and just do what I’ve been practising and training,” Weisz signals.
Weisz will now also head to the nationals in Calgary, which will be her second big trip of the year for gymnastics, having earlier travelled with Team Ontario on tour in Houston, TX.
“I’m super excited to compete with a team again,” she underlines. “We competed in Texas for the Simone Biles Invitational, and I’m really looking forward to doing it all again.”
Two members of Nepean’s Corona School of Gymnastics earned Team Ontario berths for the Canadian Championships as well.
Ella Meyer will compete alongside Weisz in the Level 9, age 15+ event thanks to her fifth-place performance at provincials, while Shanae Emmanuel will represent Ontario in Level 10, age 12-15 after finishing third all-around and winning vault gold in Windsor.
“I’m pumped,” Emmanuel says of the upcoming nationals. “I just want to go out there and do my best.”
Both Emmanuel and Meyer train 20 hours a week at Corona while also juggling their studies.
“It’s hard,” Emmanuel notes. “This year, I started high school, and finding time to manage everything has been a challenge.”
Also a member of the Team Ontario contingent for the tour to Houston earlier this year, Emmanuel was pleased to see her dedication rewarded at provincials. She says qualifying for nationals was the proudest moment of both her career and her teammate Meyer’s.
“It felt really good to see all the hard work pay off,” Emmanuel highlights. “Windsor just had a different energy — it was fun and competitive.”
Also named to Ontario women’s team for the Canadian Championships were Edge Gymnastics’ Mackenzie Grant, who dominated the women’s novice category at the 2024 nationals, and Samantha Couture of Tumblers Gymnastics Centre.
The provincials did not include a Junior women’s high-performance division for those athletes, although Couture did represent Team Canada at an international meet at the same time. Competing in the City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy, Couture won a bronze medal in the uneven bars event final and placed 15th out of 35 in the individual all-around standings. She also contributed scores as one of Canada’s best three gymnasts on bars, beam and floor towards to her team’s fourth-place finish.
There were four other local gymnasts who earned women’s all-around podiums at the provincials: silver medallists Ellie Wink of Kanata Gymnosphere (Youth) and Edge’s Alyssa Briggs (Level 8, age 11-12), and bronze medallists Ella Colledge from TRYumph (Level 7, age 11-12) and Gymnosphere’s Tia Biggar (Level 7, age 9-10).
Also earning berths on Team Ontario for the May 9-11 Eastern Canadian Championships in Oshawa thanks to their top-six finishes were Kanata’s Ava Formica (Level 7, age 11-12) and Tumblers teammates Ivy Clouden and Ivory Cash Hendersen (Level 8, age 11-12), while TRYumph’s Kennedy Ryan was named alternate in Level 7, age 13-14.
Five Tumblers athletes landed on the men’s all-around provincial podium. Amare Thomas was the Provincial 1, age 10 champion, while Thomas Da Silva (Development Stream, NextGen), Louis Ruest (P3, age 16+) and Declan Grigorenko (P1, age 11-12) were all second, and Sullivan Gilchrist (Open) placed third.
Rideau Gymnastics’ Artem Petrov dominated the P1, age 8-9 competition, while Rideau teammate William Daley finished right behind him in second overall.
~ SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM ~
We need your help to keep producing the local sports news you can’t find anywhere else!
