The Bahamas Gymnastics Federation (BGF) is sending a three-member team, Simone Hall, Taneka Johnson and Kiana Dean, to compete in the 2014 Pan American Senior Championships, at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The competition commenced on August 19 and will end on September 1. Trevor Ramsey and Alexandra "Muffy" Deal will serve as the coaches for the three-member team.
Currently, the young women are participating in a two-week training program at the Branch Gymnastics facility in Kalamazoo, Mich. to prepare for the trip to Canada. The relationship between the BGF and Branch Gymnastics developed through the Atlantis Crown Invitational, that is held annually in the Imperial Ballroom of the Atlantis resort.
President of the BGF Barbara Thompson expressed gratitude to Branch Gymnastics, which was generous enough to open its doors to the Bahamian gymnasts.
"The main reason that we chose to send the girls to Kalamazoo was because of their high-end gymnastics facility. The facilities and equipment that are here in the country are really not up to par, and so the girls were able to travel to Michigan due to the connection that we made with Branch at the invitational," said Thompson. "So far, Coach Ramsey has told me that the girls are working very hard, but are also having a hard time adjusting to the long training hours. At no point have they had to train for so many hours at a time, but they are still giving it their best effort."
All three of the young ladies are level nine gymnasts, but the competition they will face will be either level 10 or elite level competitors. The thought of the young ladies winning medals seems a bit far off, but Thompson isn't at all concerned about the athletes' medal count.
"This is the first time that we have had athletes compete in this event. If we do manage to get a medal or two that would be great, but it's all about the experience the girls will gain going up against top-level competition. Having our athletes take part in this provides exposure and really brings attention to what we are trying to do with our program," she said.
The BGF has been busy over the past few weeks, with members taking part in the Pan American Olympic Festival in Guadalajara, Mexico, in particular. The two athletes that were sent to compete at that event were Rashad Cunningham and Simone Hall.
"Although none of the athletes were able to medal, everyone came back saying that they had learned so much from the trip. The coaches and the athletes relished the chance to represent the country at such an event, and we gained valuable exposure from it as well," said Thompson.
Aside from the upcoming Pan Am championships, the BGF will be sending junior athletes to a week-long training camp in Houston, Texas, starting on November 2.
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