2018 City of Jesolo Trophy

Jesolo Team Preview: Canadian Juniors Ready To Rise

Jesolo Team Preview: Canadian Juniors Ready To Rise

Gymnastics Canada is sending a junior team and one senior gymnast to compete at the 2018 City of Jesolo Trophy competition in Italy.

Apr 4, 2018 by Amanda Wijangco
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Elite gymnasts from all over the world will compete at the 2018 City of Jesolo Trophy, one of the first opportunities this year to represent their countries in a major international competition. The meet features both team and individual competitions for junior and senior gymnasts. 

Gymnastics Canada is sending only a junior team, led by Quinn Skrupa and Lucia Jakab, which, combined, has just a few years of international experience under its belt, so Jesolo will be a valuable experience to the Canadian juniors. One senior gymnast, Laurie-Lou Vezina, will be competing as an individual.

Learn more about the Canadian gymnasts competing in Italy, and follow the competition LIVE on FloGymnastics on April 14-15.

Juniors On The Rise

Lucia Jakab

Jakab is one of Canada's top junior vaulters, winning two silver medals on the apparatus in the past year with a solid Tsukahara 1/1. The British Columbia native is also capable of some big tumbling on floor, including a piked full-in, double layout and double double. With controlled landings and good form, Jakab can be a medal threat on both power events and can provide good scores to Team Canada.

Notable Medals:

  • 2018 Elite Canada: Vault Silver
  • 2017 Canadian Championships: Vault Silver

Notable Skills:

  • Bars: Church, Piked Jaeger
  • Beam: Side somi, Back handspring to layout step-out to layout step-out, double pike dismount
  • Floor: Piked full-in, Double layout, Double double

Notable Recent Scores:

  • Vault: 13.550 (2017 Canadian Championships)


Jenna Sartoretto

Jesolo will be an important meet for Sartoretto as Gymnastics Canada originally named her to the 2017-2018 Novice National Team, which is just below the Junior National Team. She doesn't have much international experience beyond L'International Gymnix but has a good skills that, if put together well, can give Team Canada solid scores.

Notable Medals:

  • 2018 Elite Canada: Novice All-Around Bronze
  • 2017 L'International Gymnix: Novice All-Around Gold

Notable Skills: 

  • Bars: Double pike dismount
  • Beam: Back handspring to layout step-out to layout step-out, switch split leap to split leap 1/2
  • Floor: Double tuck, front layout to front 1/1,  double pike

Notable Recent Scores:

  • All-Around: 52.236 (2018 Elite Canada)
  • Vault: 14.900 (2018 Elite Canada)
  • Beam: 14.434 (2018 Elite Canada)


Quinn Skrupa

Skrupa is the most experienced of the Canadian team with prior competitive experience at Elite Gym Massilia, L'International Gymnix, and the Top Gym Tournament. She can put up solid scores on all four events and finished in the top five on three events at the 2017 Canadian Championships. On floor, she gets good height on her passes and has a big double arabian pass.

Notable Medals:

  • 2017 Canadian Championships: All-Around Bronze, Beam Silver

Notable Skills:

  • Bars: Tkatchev, Pak salto, Double arabian dismount
  • Floor:  Double arabian, Double pike, Y turn, Double tuck

Notable Recent Scores:

  • Vault: 13.350 (2018 Elite Gym Massilia)


Mia St. Pierre

St. Pierre was originally named to the 2017-2018 Canadian Junior National Team with Espoir status, which, according to the Gymnastics Canada website, means she was on the watch-list to make the team within six months. Now she is officially on her way to representing her country in international competition by being named to the Jesolo team. The Quebec gymnast is capable of scoring 13.000+ on beam and has big, solid tumbling on floor.

Notable Medals:

  • 2018 L'International Gymnix: Vault Bronze

Notable Skills:

  • Bars: Tkatchev, 1/1 pirouette, Double pike dismount
  • Beam: Switch split leap to split leap 1/2, Back handspring to layout step-out, Split leap to back handspring, Double tuck dismount
  • Floor: Tucked full-in, Punch front through to double tuck, Double pike

Notable Recent Scores:

  • Vault: 13.534 (2018 Elite Canada)
  • Beam: 13.000 (2018 WOGA Classic)


The Young Veteran

Laurie-Lou Vezina

Vezina may be Canada's lone senior gymnast at Jesolo, but her poise makes her one to watch for individual event finals. Her strengths are beam and floor where her rather difficult dance elements shine. The Quebec native also has a toepoint that is hard to miss on bars. In the all-around, it may be difficult for her to contend for a medal with the likes of Angelina Melnikova and Flavia Saraiva, as she tends to score in the low-to mid-12 range on vault and bars.

Notable Medals:

  • 2018 WOGA Classic: Floor Silver
  • 2016 L'International Gymnix: Team Silver

Notable Skills:

  • Bars: Ray, Straddleback 1/2
  • Beam: Roundoff layout step-out mount, Back handspring to layout step-out, Switch split leap to switch ring leap, Split leap 1/2
  • Floor: Double Y turn, Double pike, front handspring to front 1/1

Notable Recent Scores:

  • Beam: 13.500 (2018 WOGA Classic)
  • Floor: 13.350 (2018 WOGA Classic)