A few days before her first World Cup, Aurélie Tran didn’t know whether she would be able to take part. A month earlier, she suffered a concussion.
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“Two weeks ago I couldn’t do anything. When you have an ankle injury you can do parallel bars or strength training, but there I was at home, isolated in the dark, without my phone,” the 17-year-old teenager said.
Tran therefore considers herself lucky that she was able to compete in Angers. She joins Elsabeth Black as the only Canadians to have appeared on all four devices. His best result was 37th place in the individual all-around.
“[La commotion] slowed me down. I had less training than expected. Just being there means a lot to me,” emphasizes Tran.
“Like a grandmother”
“I’ve been training in the gym for 15 years and the worst thing was a broken ankle, so I was only out for a month,” explains Frédérique Sgarbossa, a reservist in Belgium. My back hurts and I feel like a grandmother, but that’s part of the game. When I was young I said I would need a walker when I was 25!”
And despite being unable to train at 100% for nine months last year due to a ruptured Achilles tendon, Tran is making excellent progress and coming out of her shell.
Like all athletes, she keeps her fingers crossed to stay healthy, even though gymnastics is a demanding sport on the body.
René Cournoyer will appear on the rings at the World Championships on Saturday. AFP
His colleagues Rose Woo and René Cournoyer know something about it. The first could not take part in international competitions for a year and a half and the second could not even walk a year ago due to a knee injury.
Cournoyer stood out at the world championships by finishing 12th in the individual all-around, helping Canada secure its spot for Paris 2024 thanks to a fourth-place finish in qualifying for the team event and a seventh-place finish in the final. He was accompanied in particular by the Quebecers Félix Dolci, William Émard and the Ontarion Jayson Rampersad, who trains in Laval.
Quebec’s Rose Woo during qualifying last Monday in Belgium. AFP
Félix Dolci is amazed
Dolci also completed his first World Championships with vigor and took fifth place on Saturday.
The last time a Canadian finished in the top five in an individual event at these championships was in 2006, when Alberta’s Kyle Shewfelt won bronze on floor.
The 21-year-old from Laval also took eighth place on the high bar.
Quebec’s Félix Dolci took fifth place at the world championships on Saturday. AFP
▶ Frédérique Sgarbossa, Aurélie Tran, René Cournoyer, Félix Dolci, William Émard and Jayson Rampersad will take part in the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, starting October 20. This will be another great opportunity to gain points for possible selection for the Paris Olympics.