J&J athletes shine at gymnastics Nationals

Five athletes from J&J Trampoline and Tumbling team in Pecatonica recently returned from their National Championships with some hardware. The 2023 USA Gymnastics Stars and Stripes National Championships hosted the events of Tumbling, Trampoline, and Double Mini Trampoline and were held in sunny West Palm Beach, Fla.

Of the five athletes who qualified to attend the championships, J&J athlete Aliyah Quenzer of German Valley brought home the Title of National Champion L6 Tumbling 11-12 year olds.

Also, medaling was Melalie Denny of Winnebago taking home the bronze medal in Double Mini Trampoline L6 ages 15 and over. Macy Thomas also of Winnebago brought home the bronze medal for Tumbling taking third in the Level 5 13-14 year old division.

All J&J athletes were able to make the podium which awarded only the top eight athletes in some very large divisions. Quenzer also competed in Double Mini placing second in flight and twelfth overall and Trampoline placing fifth in flight and twenty-ninth overall.

Denny also competed in Trampoline placing fifth in flight and Tumbling placing second in flight taking fifth overall in both events. Thomas placed third in flight and tenth overall in the Double Mini Trampoline event.

J&J athlete HaLeigh Rhode (Davis) placed second in flight and sixth overall in Trampoline out of a field of twenty-seven athletes. Molly Johnson (Pecatonica) attended her first nationals and took first in her flight and fifth overall out of forty-six in Tumbling and second in flight and thirty-fourth overall out of a huge group of eighty-seven in Trampoline.

J&J athletes train two to three days a week at J&J Trampoline and Tumbling throughout the year attending local, State, and Regional events to qualify for the National Championships.

These athletes learn routines that are both compulsory and optional routines and receive scores from nationally certified judges at their events. The J&J athletes resumed training for the 2023-2024 Season on Aug. 14 when they will begin to work on new skills and routines for next year’s nationals in Fort Worth, Texas. J&J’s will be scheduling Pre Team and Competitive Team tryouts for the events of Tumbling, Trampoline, and Double Mini. For more information please call 815-239-1558.