It is always such a pleasure to watch a floor routine that displays a combination of not only difficult, well-executed tumbling, but also attention to detail with regards choreography. All too often, in my opinion, gymnasts and coaches are so preoccupied with packing in the difficulty, that dance becomes a random arm movement here and there, simply to fulfil the requirement. At the recent P&G Championships, particularly on Day 2, there were six floor routines that caught my eye for their performance quality.

 

1: Macy Toronjo - Texas Dreams - After Day 1 of competition, Toronjo's coach Kim Zmeskal Burdette tweeted that the Texas Dreams theme for the day was to enjoy their performances. Macy certainly did just that with her floor routine on both days of competition. Her music, an instrumental version of 'Feeling Good', stood out from the rest, and she engaged the crowd with her dramatic movements and a big smile. 

 

2: Elena Arenas - Georgia Elite - Commentators Samantha Peszek and Evan Heiter stated that Arenas has "the world-class look" - and I agree with them! Daughter of former US national team member Kim Arnold, Elena holds herself with remarkable poise for someone who is just twelve years old. She displays in her body language that she takes competition seriously, and her classical-style floor routine was beautifully elegant. 

 

3: Emily Gaskins - Cincinnati Gymnastics - My favourite floor routine of the whole competition! Gaskins transitioned fluidly from difficult tumbling passes to graceful choreography and executed ballet steps with confidence. Her posture was excellent and I loved how she made everything look so light and effortless.

 

4: Maile O'Keefe - Salcianu Gymnastics - I loved her choreography! O'Keefe and her coaches evidently pay great attention to the inclusion and execution of dance. Similarly to Gaskins, I appreciated the fluidity of her movement. She was so expressive and refined - a very polished performer!

 

5: Maggie Nichols - Twin City Twisters - This up tempo routine captured my attention. Maggie really used her facial expressions to draw in the crowd and you could tell she was committed to performing the choreography to the best of her ability. She got the balance between intense focus and entertaining the audience just right!

 

6: Victoria Nguyen - Chow's - I knew this was going to be a great routine from the moment she stepped onto the floor with a flourish. Like a lot of the junior gymnasts, Nguyen showed incredible maturity in competition. Her music and choreography reminded me very much of a classic Romanian floor routine such as that of Sandra Izbasa in 2008. I enjoyed the precision of her dance and amazing leaps!

 

Thanks for reading, what were your favourite floor routines from P&Gs?

 

Lucy

(16 year old gymnast from the UK)