By Ryan Laverty
An army of really small and really big people invaded the Jack last weekend.
The Eighth Annual Jurassic Classic went off without a hitch and despite the beating Team Canada took at the hands of their more experienced counterparts from the United States on Friday night, everyone was extremely happy about the competition.
Like most amateur athletes, Canadian gymnasts suffer from a lack of funding and thus very limited exposure to international competition. So, it is understandable to those "in the know" that the domestic squad was a little nervous and a little overmatched. In Friday night’s dual meet between the continental rivals, the Americans were quite simply dominant.
On the big people (the men for those of you have never seen the size of these guys) side, the Red, White and Blue walked away with gold through bronze in the all-around. Abbotsford, B.C. native Grant Golding was the top Canadian finisher with his fourth place effort.
The Canadian small people (the women, who usually top out at three-foot-four) felt an equal wrath from our southern neighbours. The expectations surrounding the domestics were not as high for the small as the big but, a star spangled domination of the top four places may have been more than the homegirls had hoped for. Calgary’s Kylie Stone scratched at the U.S.-set floor, finishing fifth.
Saturday was a welcome sight for Canada’s athletes. With the nerves worked out and nothing to lose, the home country represented. Halifax’s David Kikuchi relegated Friday’s winner, American Todd "The Tornado" Thornton, to the silver as he took the all-around title in the open competition. Calgarian Kyle Shewfelt also brought his A game on Saturday, winning both floor and vault.
The "Classic" has gained notoriety and has grown to be one of the country’s largest gymnastics meets but the organizing committee believes this could be the saturation point if corporate sponsorship doesn’t step up. But, the committee is looking foward to next year where they hope to approach–in coordination with other Canadian gymnastic organizations and competitions–the CBC to televise next year’s international dual meet.
The Jurassic Classic was once again a three day blur of gymnastics but don’t worry if you missed it, there’s only 362 more days until it returns. The competition will return next season with all the fury and rowdiness you’ve come to love and expect.