After winning the five state Level 10 Regionals in
Michigan, Hannah Toussaint hoped to repeat her performance at Nationals in
Kissimmee, Florida.
Hannah knew that she would need to hit every event to win nationals, but she
was ready. Practice in the days before competition were going well and
confidence was riding high.
On the big day, Hannah was more calm than she has been at a big meet in a while. It was time for her first event - floor
exercise. Her first pass was a double back flip in a piked position.
Looks good...woah, a bit too much adrenaline...she took two steps and went
out of bounds. That kind of thing could cause anyone (cept maybe Paul
Hamm) to lose focus. Hannah however rose to the challenge and
continued with a nearly flawless rest of the routine.
Vault was solid with her handspring front flip with a half turn. Now
to her hardest event - Bars. To make things more difficult, she was
adding a very difficult (and risky) fifth release and catch move - the
comenecci flip. Tensions were high (at least for her coaches).
Score! Her routine was beautiful...what a time to forget the video
camera. The judges put up a 9.6.
Last event....Beam - the event that makes or breaks champions. Hannah
has a very difficult routine with some really unique skills. Small
wobble here, small wobble there, but overall, excellent routine.
What an incredible day with four excellent performances. She finished
the competition in third place and made the Junior Olympic National Team.
Hannah's performance earned her an all expense paid trip to the Olympic
Training Center in Colorado to train with the national staff at the end of
July. Way to go Hannah!