Local gymnasts head to national championships

The Shrewsbury Gymnastics Trampoline team is on its way to the USA Gymnastics National Championships in Houston, Texas.

The event, which occurs from today through Aug. 3, is expected to draw over 1,600 athletes from around the country. This year’s event will combine U.S. Championships, featuring the Senior Elite and Junior Elite competition, with the Junior Olympics Championships for Levels 5-10. Shrewsbury Gymnastics has a history of performing very well at Nationals, traditionally placing team members in the top 10 in their age groups and having several past National Champions, including current team member Stephen Krzyzanowski.

The team members are Robin Webster, of Eatontown (a senior at Monmouth Regional), Stephen Krzyzanowski, of Lincroft (a sophomore at Red Bank Catholic), Kyle Telman, of Lincroft (a freshman at Communications High School), David Desbiens, of Lincroft (an eighth-grader at Thompson Middle School), Ian Miller, of Eatontown (a seventh-grader), and Timothy Wright, of Shrewsbury (a sixth-grader at Shrewsbury Elementary).

The boy’s team has been training at Shrewsbury Gymnastics since last August for the 2005-06 season and have all been involved in gymnastics for a period ranging from three to 11 years. The team is coached by Edward Soles, of Ocean Township, co-owner of Shrewsbury Gymnastics and a former USA Gymnastics state director and current trampoline judge.

The National Championships will cap off a very successful year for the team. Shrewsbury scored three gold, a silver and two bronze medals at the Northeast USA Regional Championships at Rutgers University June 5. Webster, Krzyzanowski and Telman will also represent the Northeast in the Regional all-star competition at Houston. The team placed second overall in the N.J. State Championships with five team members bringing home the gold.

The Olympics brought back trampoline as an Olympic sport in the 2000 summer games. This is when Shrewsbury Gymnastics reintroduced the trampoline team. There are 10 skill levels of competition, followed by two elite levels and athletes compete in defined age groups. The difficulty of skill increases with each level. To qualify at each level, the athlete must perform a 10-bounce compulsory routine. They are judged based on their form and execution. Like gymnastics, the highest possible score is a 10. As the levels increase, the number of somersaults in the routine increases and an optional routine is added.