Wow! were we ever impressed on Sunday. Ruthie was participating in only her second competitive gymnastics meet. For those of you who know, she is a Level 4 in experience, and so much higher in perseverance, dedication, and drive.
Her team is "beautifully" outfitted in TuTu's (Ruthie's great grandmother, Evelyn, from whom she received her first name.) favorite color...PURPLE!!
They began their rotation at the bars, where Ruthie twisted and flipped and muscled her way into the number one position. It was a great start to the meet.
Then, they moved to the beam..I still have no comprehension of the courage it takes to spin, hop, and do handstands on that teeny little board, high above the ground. But, Ruthie did it and with style and grace.
Thirdly, the girls approached the floor exercises. Everyone does the same routine, to the same music. So, by the time Ruthie got there, we kinda knew what to look out for. Though she fell short of the perfect 10, which I was awarding on every event, the judges rewarded her with the highest score of her age group. 9.375. I think if they would just review the tape, they would see it was really a 10! Again, Ruthie took top honor for that rotation.
Finally, she made her way to the vault, and again did a magnificent job on that apparatus, as well!
Then, Adam and Lori led us off to the rewards room, where all the "hardware" was presented to the highest scoring level 4's according to ages. Ruthie walked away with the two first places (Bars and Floor) plus a 7th in the vault. This propelled Ruthie into the #1 Overall gymnast in her age group! She got medals and a plaque, and she helped her team finish in 3rd place!
I don't know how, but she was able to muster up a smile and didn't seem the least bit winded by this unbelievable day of competition. I personally was exhausted, and had to rest my back after WATCHING the warm ups!
Way to go Miss Ruthie!!
