Lightning gymnast builds confidence

Niagara Falls Lightning Gymnastics Club member Chloe Theriault is adjusting well to her first year of competition at Level 9.

Competing in the level below national stream competition, the 16-year-old Welland resident feels she has made improvements on the floor and in her confidence.

On the floor, she has found less is more.

“I do easier stuff, but it is cleaner than the people who do harder skills,” the Centennial student said.

As for her improved confidence, it has been a work in progress.

“At the beginning of the year, I wasn’t really confident in myself to do well and I was scared to let people down,” she said. “Andrei (Gorodetskii), my head coach, told me not to worry about it and your skills are going up. You might not be ready now but you will be ready for the big competitions.”

Theriault was third all-around at the first provincial qualifier and second all-around in the second which was hosted in Niagara Falls by Lightning.

“Both qualifiers I fell in one of my event and I want to have a clean qualifier where I don’t fall,” she said.

She fell on the bars in the first qualifier and during her floor routine in the second.

Gorodetskii saw a lot of progress in Theriault at the second qualifier.

“She placed second and just missed a little bit from finishing first, but the point is she has improved a lot this year.”

Theriault trains 20 hours a week at the club and also coaches and helps out with birthday parties at the club.

“She is very busy and very involved with this gym,” Gorodetskii said.

The gymnast can’t think of a place she would rather be.

“It’s the people here and I have good friends here,” she said.

Following are complete results of Niagara Falls Lighting Gymnastics Club members competing at qualifier in Niagara Falls.

Level 1: Yzabela  Basinang-Mariano, eighth vault, third uneven bars, second balance beam, second floor, third all-around; Mia Rajski, third vault, sixth uneven bars, fourth balance beam, first floor, fourth all-around; Athena Knarr, fifth vault, fifth uneven bars, eighth balance beam, seventh floor, seventh all-around; Elodie Foster, sixth vault, seventh uneven bars, ninth balance beam, sixth floor, 10th. all-around.

Level 2 Age 9: Arin Jung, third vault, second uneven bars, second balance beam, second floor, second all-around; Grace Subakone, second vault, third uneven bars, third balance beam, third floor, third all-around.

Level 2 Age 11: Lily Reile, second vault, second uneven bars, first balance beam, first floor, first all-around; Anasofia Gonzalez, first vault, third uneven bars, fourth balance beam, second floor, second all-around; Samantha Purnell, third vault, fifth uneven bars, second balance beam, fourth floor, third all-around; Mikayla Kelly, fourth vault, fourth uneven bars, third balance beam, fourth floor, fourth all-around; Neveah Whissell, third vault, sixth uneven bars, fifth balance beam, third floor, fifth all-around; Alyssa Nicol, fifth vault, first uneven bars, fifth balance beam, fifth floor, six all-around.

Level 3 Age 11: Evelyn Whetung, fifth vault, third uneven bars, fifth balance beam, first floor, second all-around.

Level 4 Age 9: Avelyn Saliba, second vault, second uneven bars, third balance beam, third floor, first all-around: Priscilla Kluke, third vault, second uneven bars, second balance beam, second floor, second all-around; Reagan Passero, second vault, fourth uneven bars, first balance beam, first floor, third all-around; Mehakdeep Bedi, fifth vault, third uneven bars, fifth balance beam, fourth floor, fourth all-around.

Level 4 age 10: Mira Bussi, second vault, eighth uneven bars, first balance beam, fourth floor, first all-around; Genevieve Heaton, third vault, third uneven bars, fifth balance beam, seventh floor, third all-around; Abigail Carey-Galante, first vault, seventh uneven bars, seventh balance beam, 11th floor, seventh all-around.

Level 4 age 12: Ryann Learn, first vault, first uneven bars, fourth balance beam, fifth floor, first all-around; Abbygale Thompson, second vault, fourth uneven bars, sixth balance beam, second floor, fifth all-around; Stefanie Rivett, fourth vault, second uneven bars, third balance beam, seventh floor, sixth all-around.

Level 4 age 13: Victoria Vacca, sixth vault, third uneven bars, seventh balance beam, seventh floor, seventh all-around; Penelope Cataldo, fifth vault, ninth uneven bars, fifth balance beam, eighth floor, ninth all-around.

Level 6 age 12 Group B: Kendra Myshrall-Canham, seventh vault, fourth uneven bars, sixth balance beam, fifth floor, fifth all-around; Reece Dunne, second vault, sixth uneven bars, fifth balance beam, fourth floor, sixth all-around.

Level 7 age 9-11: Ariya Schmidt, third vault, third uneven bars, second balance beam, first floor, second all-around; Sophia Slyva, third vault, fifth uneven bars, fourth balance beam, fourth floor, fourth all-around.

Level 7 age 12-13: Bridget McCulligh, sixth vault, second uneven bars, second balance beam, fourth floor, second all-around; Alexia Partheniou, fifth vault, fifth uneven bars, third balance beam, third floor, fourth all-around

Level 9 age 13-plus: Chloe Theriault, first vault, second uneven bars, second balance beam, third floor, second all-around.