Ja team pockets 116 medals at Yamilet Pena Classics
Published:Tuesday | September 5, 2023 | 12:10 AM
FRESH from their solid performance at the recently concluded Yamilet Pena Classic held in the Dominican Republic, which saw Team Jamaica collecting a total of 116 medals, Nicole Grant, president of the Jamaica Gymnastics Association (JGA), believes that the achievement is testament to the hard work being done on local soil.
“We are very pleased with the performances as the kids from several clubs took time to train together, and it showed in their execution. They were amazing” she stated.
Grant said that, in addition to the medal haul, which was impressive, the Jamaican team got much-needed exposure at the highly competitive event. This, she said, should not only bear fruit in the future for Jamaica, but also help to improve the individual team members.
“The medal is a tangible asset to remind them of their performance, but the most important intangible is the experience they have gained and the exposure. Seeing other kids their age competing in a fun-filled atmosphere, demonstrating that gymnastics is fun and, as individualistic as it may seem on the outside, it’s really a team sport. They really bonded together even though they came from different clubs from across Jamaica,” Grant explained.
At the 2022 championships, the country was represented by two local clubs, Jamaica School of Gymnastics and Westmoreland Gymnastics. One year later, two more clubs were added to that group, Painite and First Dance Studios. Grant said this shows that the sport of gymnastics is growing in the country.
“Painite and First Dance are both dance studios that expose their children to gymnastics. This is an amazing expansion, which shows that dance and gymnastics really enhance each other. These two clubs are, basically, new to gymnastics and we are proud of them,” the JGA president said.