Beyond the excitement of the medal podium, The Bahamas proudly registered an important “first” during the 17th Pan American Games in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The games represented the first time The Bahamas has participated internationally at such a high level in the sport of gymnastics. Representing The Bahamas was gymnast Kianna Dean.

“I truly enjoyed this competition and I felt so honored to be given the opportunity to represent my country in artistic gymnastics,” she said. “I went into the competition a bit nervous, but knowing that my skill level was not on par with the other competitors. Instead of letting that discourage me, I took it as inspiration and as a learning experience. My next stop is the world championships in Glasgow, Scotland this coming October which I am very excited for. Being in Toronto at the Pan American Games this week has definitely opened my eyes to a new side of sports… My hopes are that in years to come, other Bahamian gymnasts are able to attend competitions of this caliber and experience this wonderful feeling.”

Dean was coached at the Pan Ams by Trevor Ramsey. National Gymnastics Coach Ramsey said: “The experience of attending these games was very exciting. It made me very proud to be the coach of the first Bahamian gymnast to attend these games. Kianna did a great job representing our country and we should all be very proud of her accomplishment.”

Coach Ramsey had cautionary words for Bahamian sports fans: “Attending the Pan Am Games made me realize that the country has a challenging task ahead, if we are going to produce world-class athletes. We must invest in our gymnasts by providing them with the proper training facilities, additional training for our coaches and more exposure to high-level competitions like the Pan Ams. We have a very strong resource of capable, talented kids on our islands, and it would be a shame if these youngsters could not reach their full potential because of where the state of gymnastics currently is in The Bahamas.”

Barbara Thompson, president of the Gymnastics Federation of The Bahamas; was extremely proud of Dean.

“She represented The Bahamas with a great accomplishment. Indeed, amongst the 7,500-plus athletes from the 41 nations participating in the games, she was a great ambassador for our country. On behalf of the federation, and in the interest of advancing gymnastics in The Bahamas, we are grateful to have had the opportunity to compete in these games. It will open the door to further high-level competitions and serve as a stepping stone to expand the sport of gymnastics for our local athletes. We are all thrilled at Kianna's accomplishments and look forward to more great things ahead from our gymnasts. There is so much talent. Hopefully, we can harness more of it and get gymnastics better established as a sport in The Bahamas.”

Dean finished 41st overall in the women’s all-around competition in artistic gymnastics at the games.