Aquatics athletes Gabrianna Banks and Nathaniel Thomas both advanced from their heats as action continued at the Junior Pan Am Games, in Colombia, on Saturday.
Banks won her heat in the 200 metres freestyle while Thomas finished second in his heat, in the 100 metres butterfly, in a personal best 58.36.
Sabrina Lyn was also in action in the Women's 100 metres butterfly and her time of 1:05.02 has earned her a spot in the B finals.
The Junior Pan Am Games began on November 25th and will end on December 5th.
Bradley Jacks is a budding journalist and an avid sports fan. His love of research and sports has led him to SportsMax.tv, a place where those passions work hand in hand to allow him to produce content.
Ja's gymnasts take positives from failed qualification bid at PanAm Champs in Colombia
Despite failing to secure qualification to the Pan American (PanAm) Games nor the World Championships, Jamaica's artistic gymnasts Tyesha Mattis and Kiara Richmon took heart from their respective performances at the just-concluded PanAm Gymnastics Championships in Medellin, Colombia.
Mattis, Richmon and newcomer Mya Absolam, all produced credible showings in a highly competitive environment at the three-day championships which ended on Sunday but were unable to break into a coveted top 12 position.
The England-born Mattis, who was Jamaica’s standout performer at last year’s event when she qualified for the World championships, expressed some disappointment that she wasn’t able to repeat the feat, as she was firmly set on getting to the PanAm Games in Chile and the World Championships in Belgium, later this year.
She placed 32nd overall with an all-around total of 44.500, after scoring 12.867 on vault, 10.533 on uneven bars, 10.733 on the balance beam and 10.367 for her floor routine.
"I was happy with parts of my performances, but I felt like I put a little bit too much pressure on myself to qualify and so I didn’t do as well as I would have liked to,” Mattis said shortly after competition.
However, the 24-year-old did find a few positive takeaways that she hopes to improve on ahead of next month’s Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in El Salvador, when she is next expected to parade her skills for the island.
“I managed to complete a 2 1/2 twist off beam again after not putting that out in competition for over four years, so I am super proud of myself in that regards as I am proving to myself that I can do more than I am limiting myself to,” she reasoned.
“I am more than capable, and I just need to trust that my body can do the work and again, not putting too much pressure on myself. I work so hard in the gym and when I really wanted to put out my best, I made a couple mistakes.
“But I have to remember I’m only human and I can learn from some of my mistakes and so I am really looking forward to a better performance out in El Salvador in a couple weeks. Looking forward to trying some different routines there and putting out more of my skills as I know I have so much more up my sleeve and the more I compete internationally, the more confident I feel,” Mattis added.
For Richmon, who placed 36th overall with an all-around score of 42.866, just being able to represent Jamaica at the event, represents a remarkable achievement and another significant milestone in her budding career.
Her total includes score of 11.100 on vault, 10.233 on the uneven bars, 10.400 on the balance beam and 11.133 for her floor routine.
“I feel like I did my best with my performance at the championships, especially being that I only had two weeks to prepare. So, I am definitely proud that I was able to hit all four apparatus and getting to be here with the team,” Richmon shared.
With this being her first elite outing since 2019, the 21-year-old Fisk University student is eagerly looking forward to continuing her journey, as her unwavering determination, relentless work ethic and immense potential positions her as one of country’s gymnast to watch.
“It felt amazing, and this performance will definitely serve as motivation for me going forward, I just need to just trust my training and do not over work myself. I also need to have more confidence and belief in myself and hopefully on my next competition I can produce a stronger performance with cleaner routines,” the US-born Richmon said.
Meanwhile, Absolam, another England-born gymnast, had an all-around total of 39.533, after scoring 10.333, 10.033, 8.600, 10.567, on vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor, respectively. She placed 42nd overall.
On the male side, Canada-born Elel Wahrmann-Baker, was Jamaica’s top performer, placing 27th overall, with an all-around total of 72.301. Wahrmann-Baker had scores of 12.767 on floor, 13.067 on the pommel horse, 11.067 on rings, 13.100 on vault, 13.133 parallel bars and 10.167 on high bar.
Caleb Faulk placed 29th overall with scores of 12.300, 10.900, 12.400, 12.767, 11.9667 and 11.667 for an all-Around total of 72.001, while Matthew McClymont tallied 63.165 for 47th overall. His scores include 12.233, 9.133, 7.533, 12.733, 10.800 and 10.733.
Jamaica’s other representative Michael Reid only took on the pommel horse and parallel bars where he scored 11.933 and 12.467 for a total 24.400.
Mattis raring to go for PanAm Gymnastics Champs, eyes World Champs qualification
After a year-long wait, Jamaica's England-born artistic gymnast Tyesha Mattis is excited to finally be back on the PanAm Gymnastics Championships stage, with the main objective being to repeat her World Championships qualification feat.
Mattis, who enjoyed a fairly successful debut season for Jamaica after switching allegiance, qualified for the World Championships on the back of a stellar performance at last year's Pan Am Championships in Brazil. However, she was unable to take up her spot at the World event, which serves as an Olympic Games qualifier, due to financial constraints.
With that disappointment still fresh in her mind, Mattis is now eager to spring into action in Medellin, Colombia, as she hopes to surpass her performances from last year.
She will be joined by United States-based Kiara Richmon and newcomer Mya Absolam as Jamaica's representatives at the three-day championships scheduled to begin on Friday.
The other team members Danyella Holmes and Jamilia Francis, both pulled out due to injury and a lack of readiness, respectively.
"I am so excited to be out here to again represent my country, this is my first major competition for the season and a really important one on my list. So, I am itching to get going as I’m really looking forward to improving my performance from last year," Mattis declared.
That performance she refers to is the 48.467 she tallied All-Around, with scores of 12.867 on vault, 13.000 on uneven bars, 11.333 on the balance beam and 11.267 on her floor routine.
Though that, among others to date identify her as one of Jamaica’s best young gymnasts, Mattis, knows she still has a ways to go and needs to continue improving to bring her Olympic dream to fruition.
“You always want to get better, and I honestly believe there isn’t really anywhere to stop in terms of areas you can improve on, but I feel as ready as I can be," she said.
"My preparation has been really good, I have been working on some old skills I used to have in my routine, hoping to up my start value a little and those routines are going well. So all I can do now is try my best, I know I have put the work in and I’m just going to try my best to get everything out there," Mattis added.
The 23-year-old is no stranger to the big stage as she had success as a six-time British champion, two-time English champion, Australian youth Olympic champion and European Youth Olympic medallist before injuries derailed her budding career and forced her to step away from the sport in 2018.
But since returning and, by extension, switching allegiance to Jamaica, the land of mother Charmaine Clarke's birth, Mattis has shown that she is willing to put in the hours of gruelling work it takes to be an Olympic athlete.
Should she make the cut for the World Championships and go on to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Mattis would join Toni-Ann Williams and the recently retired British-born Danusia Francis to achieve the feat.
"I think it’s safe to say I am much more motivated now than I was last year, I have set myself a few targets and I have been working really hard to make achieve them. My first goal is to qualify for the World Championships and have a clean competition and then getting to the Olympic Games is my ultimate dream," Mattis noted.
"But the journey starts here and so I just want to go out there and do my absolute best on the four apparatuses, but I need to do it slowly and smartly and then build from there. I just want to be able to jump high and flip better to make my start values higher and give myself a good chance of medalling," the cheerful personality ended.
“We didn’t disappoint”- JAGA President Nicole Grant thankful for continued Supreme Ventures partnership for Gymnastics Classic
President of the Jamaica Gymnastics Association, Nicole Grant, is excited about the association’s ongoing partnership with Supreme Ventures that, she hopes, will help Jamaica conquer the world of Gymnastics in the future.
The Supreme Ventures Gymnastics Classic and National Trials will take place at the Jamaica School of Gymnastics in Kingston from February 11-12.
The juniors will be vying for one spot at the Junior World Championships scheduled for March 25-April 3 in Antalya, Turkey.
The seniors will be vying for five spots at the Pan Am Championships scheduled for Medellin, Colombia from May 22-29. The Pan Am Championships will serve as a qualifier for this year’s Pan Am Games scheduled for October 6-October 22 in Santiago, Chile as well as the World Championships scheduled for Antwerp, Belgium from September 29-October 8. This year’s World Championships will be used as a qualifier for next year’s Paris Olympics.
For the second year in a row, Supreme Ventures, through the connection made by the Jamaica Olympic Association, has signed on as the sponsor for the event, something that Grant is very thankful for.
“We have always been in a partnership with the Jamaica Olympic Association as we are affiliated. In Jamaica, we are a minor sport so the JOA has really helped us form these kinds of partnerships,” Grant said ahead of day one of the trials on Saturday.
“They connected us with Supreme Ventures and they were quite happy with what they saw last year. We did not disappoint them and, as a result, they have come on board for the second year in a row to work with us,” she added.
When asked what she expects from the athletes on display this weekend, Grant encouraged them to show spirit, noting that winning does not mean you will make the respective teams.
“I expect the girls to do the best that they can and show us what they have. Show us how they can fight because when you go out to major competitions you must have that fight,” Grant said.
“We want to see that. You do not necessarily have to win for us to select you. We have a selection process that we use but we want to see what you have to offer or what you are capable of,” she added.
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