PEISAA championships in Kensington on Saturday

More than 300 athletes expected to participate in 10th annual event

KENSINGTON – The 2020 Amalgamated Dairies Limited (ADL) P.E.I. School Athletic Association’s (PEISAA) provincial gymnastics championships will be held at Kensington Intermediate-Senior High School on Saturday for a 10th consecutive year.

The PEISAA’s gymnastics co-ordinator, Paul Goguen, is expecting upwards to 340 gymnasts from 26 Island schools to compete for the P.E.I. School Milk Foundation awards in four age categories.

Goguen said the KISH gymnasium is the perfect host for the championships.

“It’s such a beautiful facility, which can hold many spectators, and the gym is very spectator-friendly,” said Goguen, who encourages friends and family to attend and cheer on the athletes.

PEISAA sport co-ordinator Phil Bridges expressed his pleasure with the continuing growth of gymnastics in schools all across P.E.I. Approximately 750 gymnasts had competed in zone competitions as a lead-up to the provincials.

“Just the participation alone does provide our students with both mental and physical health benefits through strength and endurance conditioning,” Bridges noted.

Each gymnast will execute two vaults and one floor routine. Event and all-around awards as well as

provincial team awards.

DEFENDING CHAMPIONS

Spring Park boys and L.M. Montgomery girls are the defending pre-novice champions. Gymnasts from those schools will be among the 151 athletes from Grades 3 and 4 kicking off the day-long event at 9 a.m.

There are 130 gymnasts registered for the novice boys and girls’ competitions, which get underway at 1 p.m. L.M. Montgomery Elementary is the defending champion for Grade 5 and 6 competitors in both genders.

The attention shifts to the bantam and intermediate girls’ categories at 3:50 p.m. There are 59 gymnasts registered in the Grades 7 and 8 and Grades 9 and 10 divisions. Summerside Intermediate will be looking to defend its 2019 bantam girls’ title while Montague will be looking to defend the intermediate girls’ crown.