The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.insidehalton.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, November 10, 2017 | 18 Kevin Nagel, Oakville Beaver Sports Editor, knagel@burlingtonpost.com Sports "Connected to your Community" In near right photo, Helen Dong (left), Ben Rybka (centre) and Emily Harrison of the Oakville Gymnastics Club will represent Canada at next week's 2017 Trampoline and Tumbling World Age Group Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. In far right photo, Rybka gets plenty of height at a recent practice at the club. | photos by Graham Paine ­ Oakville Beaver Tumbling trio heads to worlds in Bulgaria By Kevin Nagel Beaver sports editor Three tumblers from the Oakville Gymnastics Club will make their debut at the world age group championships in Bulgaria next week. Emily Harrison and Helen Dong, who compete in the 1314 age group, and teammate Ben Rybka, a 15-16 men's age group competitor, are headed to Sofia, Bulgaria where the 2017 Trampoline and Tumbling World Age Group Championships are being held Nov. 14-19. The trio qualified with stellar performances at two Canadian trial events earlier this year. Of the 10 members of the Canadian tumbling team going to Europe, three are OGC members. Coach Niki Lavoie will accompany the athletes. Lavoie doesn't take any of the credit, suggesting the club's attributes helps athletes succeed. "We have a lot of talent, a large successful program, a great facility and a great staff," said Lavoie, who is in her 13th year coaching at the club. At the most recent Canadian tumbling championships, Harrison, a Grade 9 White Oaks Secondary School student, finished second and Dong, a Mississauga resident who attends Woodlands Secondary School, took third competing in the National Level 6 category. "They're the only 13 or 14-yearold females in the country who were able to make the qualifications," said Lavoie. Rybka, who attends Appleby Park, was second in Level 6 on the men's side. Harrison and Dong will train for two days in Sofia before displaying their talents in a pressure-packed day of competition on Thursday, Nov. 16. Starting at 11:30 a.m. local time (4:30 a.m. EST), they'll com- pete in preliminaries. If their marks warrant it, one or both could advance to the finals later that day. "It's a new (situation) to get used to," Harrison said, "but we're training for it, so hopefully it goes well." Rybka is preparing to compete the following day, Nov. 17, when the men's 15-16 age group determines a world champ. Preliminaries start at 1:30 p.m. local time (6:30 a.m. EST). To represent Canada at the world age group championships, Gymnastics Canada insists a tumbler must be 13 or older, reach qualification standards and perform passes with a defined degree of difficulty. Additionally, scores must be among the top four in the country using results from preliminary or final marks at either of the two Canadian trials earlier this year. "So not only do they have to do really difficult tricks, they must do them well," added Lavoie. Follow Halton sports on Twitter: @postbeaversport (Kevin Nagel, Burlington Post and Oakville Beaver sports editor) @miltononsports (Steve Leblanc, Milton Canadian Champion sports editor) @herbgarbutt (Post, Beaver, Champion sports reporter) Athletes must also have the experience of competing in at least one international event before participating at worlds. Of the three athletes, Harrison is the most outwardly confident, says Lavoie. "She's a really good competitor, she pours it on," said Lavoie. "Helen's form and technique and the consistency in her passes are her strengths." Rybka often gains extra points by performing tumbles with higher NOTICE OF MEETING Deerfield Golf & Recreation Centre Ltd. 2363 North Service Road West Oakville, Ontario L6M 3H8 Will be holding their 2017 IPM Public Meeting to discuss turf grass maintenance applications on: Tuesday, November 28, 2017 At Deerfield Golf & Recreation Centre Ltd., 1:30 - 2:00pm Please RSVP to Ian McIsaac- 905-847-5555, Ext. 1 Notice is hereby given that: degrees of difficulty than many of his competitors, Lavoie said. "He's a quick learner," she added. "When he was in the rec program he was identified as having a lot of talent. It's only his fourth competitive season." Lavoie has no set goals for her tumblers in Bulgaria. "Since it's their first time, it's just a chance to go and have a great experience and hit their planned routines," she said Wednesday. "If they hit, we have a good chance of being in the top 10." Harrison, who asked to switch to tumbling after more than seven years in OGC's artistic gymnastics program, advanced to the national group at the club within two months. She says that no matter how difficult the task, her goal next Thursday is to make the finals. "I know it's a bit of a stretch because it's my first worlds," she said, "but it would be nice."