German Wheel World Championships 2013 - The Results!

After an enthusiastic start, my coverage of the 2013 World Championships kind of fizzled out. Such is the risk when you're on a busy tour with questionable internet connection.

But I just wouldn't feel right if I didn't wrap it up somehow. So here is the link to all the results!

Special and HUGE congratulations are in order for Canada's own Paul Perrault for bringing home a bronze medal in the first ever Mono Wheel World Championships!

Congratulations, Paul!

German Wheel World Championships 2013 - The Coverage Continues!

Yesterday saw the Junior all-around spiral final, the Senior all-around spiral final, and the mono wheel Compulsories. Today we have both the Junior and Senior vault and straight-line finals (at 10:30am EDT and 5:30pm EDT respectively.

You can continue to see the events streamed live here or watch it below.

For those who are interested, here is the full competition schedule!

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German Wheel World Championships - LIVE NOW!

Live coverage of the 10th German Wheel World Championships, or Wheel Gymnastics if you prefer, begins in five minutes! Watch it here on Kicking Sawdust, or go directly to the live stream site here!

Watch live streaming video from rhonrad at livestream.com

German Wheel World Championship Reminder!

Live stream coverage starts Wednesday at 11:30am EDT. Get it while it's hot!

German Wheel World Championship Coverage

Are you a big fan of all things German wheel but won't be able to make it to Chicago for the 2013 World Championships of Wheel Gymnastics? Well do I ever have good news for you!

There will be live stream coverage of the finals available for your viewing pleasure! Coverage begins on Wednesday July 8th at 11:30am EDT with the Junior All-Around Spiral final! Woo!

Check it out here!

Artists vs. Gymnasts

One criticism I sometimes get from the director of my circus is that I look too much like a gymnast, that what I do is a little too sport like. That really bothers me. Just because I do difficult skills and make a point of doing them well doesn’t make me a gymnast. Being a circus artist doesn’t mean a bent legged free for all! But having heard it so much, I began to take it to heart.

Well, now that I’ve been to Worlds I can assure you that I am no gymnast on my wheel. I am a bonafide circus artist.

I admit I had a rather negative preconception of the type of choreography that wheel gymnasts do. I expected it to be slightly better than artist gymnastics, but still very flowery, very posed, boring, slow and without heart.

When I arrived in Baar, I saw a number of gymnasts do their straight line routines and hoestly, they made my jaw drop. Not because of the skills (well, also because of the skills) but because of the originality, the complexity and the beauty of their movements. If I had had a hat, I’d have eaten it.

Sadly, when it came to the finals (I missed most of the qualifying routines as I was busy fretting over my own routine) I realized that my first impression was closer to the truth. Yes, the Japanese (the men more than the women) are very fun and exciting to watch. But save for a handful of truly exceptional gymnasts, it was routine after routine of overly balletic arms and little knee kicks.

The current straight line champion

I’d have to say that it’s really in the choreography that you see who is simply skilled, and who is truly great. Cecile Meschberger of Switzerland, for example, has to be the most exciting and technically bad ass person I have ever seen on a wheel. She was straight line champion in 2007 and (in my opinion) was robbed of the top spot this year by a mind numbingly boring and 'safe' routine out of Germany.

I know that in this context, German wheel is a sport and not an art. But it’s those who can bring grace and artistry to their sport that add the most to it. It’s those who take risks and dare to be innovative who bring it to the next level. And while these rare exceptions of gymnasts may consider themselves gymnasts, in my mind they are great masters and great artists.

Hey everyone! This is the last post about the World Championships! In a few minutes I'll be heading off to La Rochelle for the next leg of this crazy adventure! A plus!

The Germans

Gym Wheel... Rolling Wheel... Rhoenrad… All of these names are used to describe the apparatus on which I perform, but in my mind, no name is more fitting than German Wheel.

To be sure, all of the competitors at Worlds are first class athletes and unimaginably talented wheel gymnasts. But the true wheel gods are indisputably the Germans. Of the 15 gold medals awarded, 13 of them went to German athletes. There were only two instances where there was only one German on the podium. There’s even a rule, often referred to as “the German rule” that states that only two competitors per country can make it to finals per discipline. If that rule didn’t exist, it would practically be the German National competition all over again.

I say practically because as with anything, other nations are stepping up to the plate and getting stronger and stronger. The Israeli team, all junior girls, are absolutely incredible. As a team, they were the most beautiful gymnasts there. Then there are the Japanese. As a team, they’re really quite strong, but more than anything, they are daring, innovative and wonderfully creative. I’m a big fan of the Dutch team and while the Swiss team didn’t do well in competition, you can see that they are definitely ones to watch out for.

But whatever the politics of the sport, whatever the general feelings towards the Germans may be (I can name quite a few people fed up with hearing the German national anthem), there is no denying that, unlike Canadians at basketball, they are truly masters of the sport they created.

Oh, Canada!

Being the only Canadian at Worlds caused quite a stir. You’re the only one? There’s a wheel club in Canada? Who is your coach? The answers (yes, no, I don’t have a one) simply lead to more questions and more astonished looks.

Overall, I received very good feedback and people were impressed. Many people told me they really liked what I did. I think a lot of that had to do with the performance element that comes naturally as a circus artist. You don’t exactly see the other gymnasts smile.

But by far, the best part about being the Canadian at Worlds was when people sought me out, not to talk about wheel, but to talk about Canada. It is incredibly flattering to have people come up to you and tell you that they’ve been to Canada and loved it or that their child is studying in Canada and loves it. It’s overwhelming and heart warming to be greeted with raucous applause when your country’s name is called, even though there isn’t a single Canadian flag being waved out in the crowd.

And while the best part about being the Canadian at Worlds may be the general warmth coming my way, the most touching gesture by far would have to have been on the second to last day at lunch.

The Swiss organizers made a huge effort to make everyone feel welcome. One of the things they did was try to have foods from each country to offer some kind of comfort and a link to home. So imagine my surprise when I got up to the lunch counter and saw two bottles of maple syrup! They were serving crepes filled with Nutella and jam, so the syrup wasn’t really necessary, but wow. Way to extend a hand in welcome!

I got to lunch near the end and neither bottle had been opened. But you can bet I drowned my crepes in syrup with a smile up to my ears. Such a small gesture, but I was completely overcome with emotion! Seeing as the Canadian delegation was a delegation of one, they very easily could have lumped me together with the Americans (as many people do). To take that extra step, for just one person… Thank you Switzerland and thank you IRV!

Three Minutes, Five Seconds

This entire experience has been a whirlwind of emotion from the minute I set foot in the gym hall. Seeing the Canadian flag in the gym for the first time set my heart racing. Marching in for the opening ceremonies made me cry. Seeing the level of skill and mastery that the other competitors have on the wheel is both mesmerizing and breathtaking.

But looming over all these happy squishy feelings of joy and good times is the harsh reality that I need to go out on that floor and compete against these wheel gods.

Me.

The random Canadian who learned wheel through circus and hasn’t had a coach in three years.

Me.

The ill prepared acrobat who ran her routine three times before coming to Worlds and chose to perform a dismount that she hasn’t done in two years.

Me.

I went out onto the floor. My name and country were announced and everyone cheered. My music started and I was officially competing at Worlds.



I would just like to take a moment to note that I was the 21^st competitor to pass the straight line event. The men and women’s competitions run simultaneously and the men’s meet had already concluded before it was even my turn to go. All that amounts to some serious jitter building time.

Needless to say, I was nervous. I’m finally starting to better handle my nerves during a show, but this ain’t no show. In a show, mistakes can be covered up and no one really cares if you fall a little or bend your needs to make a trick work. And seriously, these women really are unbelievable. One look at them and I want to pack my bags and head to the door!

But I did it. Not nearly as well as I would have hoped, and not nearly as well as I know I am able to do. I was shaky and my feet were all over the place. Because of my nerves, I wasn’t nearly as tight as I could have been. My major mistakes, I’d say, were in the transitions because I hadn’t really practiced them. I messed up the hanging bridge but covered it up like a champ. In fact, I covered all my mistakes brilliantly. No one else there could have sold their errors as choreography the way I did. Thanks circus! When all else failed, I performed. And the crowd loved it.

All my other tricks went off without a hitch. Well, the double forward roll was late. I don’t think the real gymnasts would have gone for it, but sure as hell wasn’t going to mess up another move! My triple was gorgeous and received some nice applause. Not because I’m the only one to do it, but because my wheel is so small and I have to go so fast in order to pull it off. I think most people were surprised I could make it.

And the flying line? My “D” move? Well… let me put it this way: there were only two people to perform that feat in the competition. Me, and the previous World Champion in the straight line event!

Feel free to be impressed.

I may not have scored terribly well, but I showed the world of wheel gymnastics that this random Canadian can at least compete on the same level as them! With innovation and pizzazz no less!

I came 25th in straight lines out of 31 women. I would have placed higher but accidentally touched my foot to the floor (a 0.8 point deduction) and finished just after the music (a 0.2 point deduction). Plus, being a complete and total unknown, they’re not about to bust out anything terribly generous. I did, however, have full points for my difficulty start value.

I admit that I cried afterward. I was really disappointed. I know I could have done so much better. A former World Champion came up to me afterward, hugged me, and told me that I did really well, especially for my first competition ever. It only lasted for three minutes and five seconds, but without a doubt, it was one of the most incredible moments of my life.

Opening Ceremonies - The Best Part

I can't believe I almost forgot to include this. It was quite possibly the best part of the opening ceremonies, nay, the entire event!

Okay, maybe not, but it certainly was the strangest.


Those two things flanking the mayor of Baar? Those would be the mascots of the World Championships.

From what I was able to understand from the translator (who's English was kind of a disaster) those two things were inspired by Carnival and have something to do with turnips...

Turnips!

I love you, Switzerland.

Eee! Eee! Eee! *

Needless to say, the opening ceremonies left me feeling giddy. When I got back to the hostel I couldn't help but document the pieces of my Worlds thus far.


We've got the 'tard, my 20 year old Aces, official accreditation, my trusty straps,the Canada jacket and the World Championship commemorative hoody. Okay, maybe the term "commemorative hoody" is a little excessive, but it accurately embodies my level of excitment.

The little round flag is actually a card that was given to me by the little Swiss girls who did the Canada tribute number. That bad boy is going to have a place of honour in my mal back stage at the circus!


And yes, that is a chocolate Swiss army knife! Clearly, the Swiss have no illusions when it comes to their identity. Their delicious, delicious identity.


* Eee! Eee! Eee! refers to the sound the Israeli coach made when one of her girls got the top marks in straight lines. It's also the sound my heart was making for most of my time at Worlds.

Opening Ceremonies

Walking into the venue for the first time, seeing all the wheels, the competitors and the sheer ass kickery… that all felt pretty real. But as it turns out, I wouldn’t experience the full out, smack-in-the-face enormity of what I’m a part of until the opening ceremonies.

I haven’t competed in a gymnastics event in thirteen or fourteen years, and when I did compete, it was certainly never at this level. Marching in with my fellow competitors, the stands packed, flags waving, the crowd cheering… I started to cry. It was so powerful and so moving. I was completely overwhelmed by it. And even though there wasn’t a single Canadian flag in the mix, I still felt like they were cheering for me too. And that is one of the most beautiful things in this sport. Because there are so few people and because you can compete for such a long time, most people know each other and everyone is supportive of each other. You can really feel the vibe is more familial than cutthroat. When Canada was announced, the people cheered. They cheered!



It’s amazing to me, and an incredible honour to be competing next to athletes of this calibre. More amazing to me is that I have the level to compete next to them! At least in straight lines.

We marched out and went back to our seats to watch the remainder of the opening ceremonies, which were exactly as you would expect an opening ceremony to be: too long. Although there were a few things there were pretty cool. Like the group wheel act at the beginning! I’m sure for everyone else it was old hat, but I’ve never seen something like that before.

And the local club did a mini tribute for each country accompanied by said country’s national anthem! It was really sweet. And afterwards, the little girls who performed it gave each nation a signed card wishing them luck with a Swiss chocolate Swiss army knife! Fantastic!

Oh, and did I mention the techno yodel polka extravaganza? And the skipping rope? No? There’s a reason for that.

Worlds! – Training Day 2

Okay… today was hard. Yesterday felt good but today I feel exhausted and sore. The floor here is a disaster. It’s the big concern among all the competitors. It’s really, really soft and you have to work so hard to get the speed required to do the tricks. My routine is only three minutes long, but I feel almost as tired as I am after I run my number in the show!

The really disappointing news, however, is that my hip injury isn’t even remotely close to being better. There’s no way I’ll be doing my split bridge in the competition and I have to replace it with a super lame ‘y’ position. Boo! And even though the other skills I do don’t really work that part of my body the way a split does, I’m still feeling it, the constant dull ache of an enraged hip. Grr!

I ran my routine two full times and about a million quarter times. The CD player kept skipping and was stuck on this weird mode where it loops after 30 seconds. Speaking of CDs, it was one of my colleagues at the circus who burned my music onto a disk for me. All she wrote was the name of the track and my first name. As a result, my CD reads The Winner Is Kristina.

I’m thinking I should maybe change that…

All in all, it was a pretty good day. I’m completely beat and really sore, but my last run through went really well. I’m still kind of scared to do my dismount (you know, the one I haven’t done in two years) and had a really terrible moment of panic at the end of the day. One of the US athletes mentioned how I was taking off a little early and would maybe hit my head. After that, I was too scared (having hit my head in the past) and had to slowly work back up to doing the move. Not really what I was hoping for the day before I compete.

But now its time for a quick nap and the opening ceremonies! Yay Canada!

Worlds! - The Arrival

The journey to Worlds was a stressful one. Not because of anything specific (well, I did almost miss the train) but mostly because I am stressed. I mean, what the heck am I getting myself into? This is going to be one of the biggest events of my life and I have no one by my side. Team Canada, in its entirety, consists of me. I am the delegation. I wrote to the Canadian Gymnastics Federation before leaving because I realized that no one back home even knows they’re being represented.

Upon arriving in Zurich, I must admit I had a moment of “What the hell am I doing here? Get out, and get out now!” but somehow I managed to get a ticket for the train into Baar. I wasn’t excited. I wasn’t much of anything. That all changed when the train pulled into the station.

Decked out in the competition garb was an event volunteer waiting to meet me. The city has banners and posters announcing the competition. The hostel we’re staying at literally has a German wheel in front of it with a banner hung up inside it.

For some strange reason, they didn’t want to mix countries in the hostel, so I have my own room with a private bathroom and shower! And the breakfast here? Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, juice, fresh fruit and bread, yoghurt, granola, meat, cheese… We don’t get that much to eat for breakfast at the circus!

After settling in, I went directly to the gym hall to train. Walking in, one of the first things I saw was the Canadian flag hanging from rafters, right next to the World Championships banner! I think my heart may well have burst out of my chest and the biggest smile has permanently plastered itself to my face. I am so proud to be here, so honoured to be a part of something like this. I qualify for the World Championships! Do you understand how awesome that is? And to be here as a representative of my country? That’s just the icing on the cake.

Seriously, this place? It’s heaven. Its like one of those movies where the main character dies or almost dies and gets a glimpse of paradise and it turns out to be this one thing that they loved and now get to do all the time, like that magical night in nineteen-dickety-two where they danced in the moonlight with Sally Jean at the Summer Festival dance, down by the boardwalk…

Okay, maybe my idea of paradise isn’t a smelly gym full of people doing German wheel, but there certainly would be a gym full of people doing German wheel just down the street. And I would totally be able to go whenever I wanted and learn to do all the biggest, most bad ass moves there are…

sigh…

Back to the competition, there are maybe 120 competitors and I could spend the entire day just watching each and every one of them. Except I can’t because I need to train! But, oh! My jaw is permanently agape and I am so impressed and in awe of what I’m seeing. Technically, these athletes are outstanding. But I suppose that’s normal, what with this being Worlds and all. But I must admit I’m very surprised by the level of artistic. So fluid, so graceful and seamless. Even the boys!

How do I fit in? Well, let’s just say that I have full marks (four) for difficulty, assuming I make all the tricks. That leaves four points for execution and two for music. So in that respect, I’m not too shabby. One of the junior girls from the US team seems to think I’m really good. A young Austrian lad said the same. And the Israeli girl who has dual citizenship with Canada? She really digs my last line. So while I may not be in any position to make it to finals, at least I’ve gotten the nod of approval from those in the know.

* All of the posts from Worlds are off by about a week. Just so you know.

Deep Breaths...

On Saturday I presented my routine for Worlds to the troupe (complete with leotard). I didn't want to do it. I almost canceled the presentation because I didn't feel like I was ready. It was only the third time I ever tried to run it and the two times before, I didn't even manage to complete the routine.

It got off to a rocky start. Two rocky starts, in fact. I started over three times and it was only on the third try that I figured out how to keep going if I mess up the first move. So that's pretty damn positive! After that, it went really well.

I'm actually really, really glad I did it. I was feeling so discouraged and so unprepared, but now I feel like I can head over to Switzerland with a bit of confidence! Plus, everyone in the troupe is being super supportive and they all seem really excited about it. In fact, the other night, a woman came up to me after the show saying how she had just spoken with the director and that he had told her I was going to Worlds! I think everyone feels kind of proud to have a "World Champion" in the troupe.

I, for one, know I'm not going to win anything and that I'm not actually a World Champion. I'm not going there to win. I'm going for the experience, to have fun, and quite frankly, the fact that I even qualify is enough for me! That doesn't change the fact that I have the technicians telling me I'd better bring back a medal. Or that my coach mentioned that he'd really like to be able to put that he coached a world champion on his CV. I mean, I know they're just kidding around and that they're really showing their support, but it does feel like pressure none the less.

Oh! And did I mention that the technical director embroidered a Canada jacket for me? Because he did, and its made entirely out of awesome! And did I mention that the technicians wrote "World Champion" on my wheel case before they packed it into the truck? Because, being sweet like they are, they did.

All that's left to do is get on the train to Switzerland! Wish me luck!

Worlds Update

I have purchased my train ticket to Switzerland.

There's no turning back now!

Look out Baar, here I come!

Worlds Update

Last weekend I set my piece for Worlds. Well, more or less. When I tried to run it today I pretty much had to reestablish every single transition. But the good news is, if last week my routine was set, now its super set!

I was expecting it to be really difficult to run a three minute long straight line sequence, but it was way easier than running my number. Yes, I messed up quite a lot, but that's normal for a first run through. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised though. My act in the show is twice as long as the routine for Worlds, so of course my show number is much more challenging.

What I love about having a full out straight line routine is that all my big tricks are in it! It makes me feel like one helluva bad ass. I don't know if I'll be up to par with the athletes who genuinely train for Worlds, but I think I'll be representing Canada and the circus world well.

Worlds Update

I just received an e-mail from my 'coach' for Worlds informing me that he's signed me up for the team competition. Clearly, I can't compete as a team all by my lonesome. That's why Wolfgang fandangled a super team consisting of Canada, Ethiopia and the United States!

Yeah team Canada/Ethiopia/USA!

Wait, what?

Its Official!

Remember how I mentioned that I may be getting another taste of German wheel goodness in the not too distant future? Well I can now confirm that that German wheel goodness will be a reality!

Ladies and gentlemen, you're looking at (or rather, reading the words of) the first Canadian ever to be competing at the German Wheel World Championships!

I know what you're thinking, "World championships? Of German wheel? That exists?"

The answer is yes. Before it was a circus discipline, it was (and is) a sport. And the people who do it are bad ass. So how does a random Canadian fit in to all of this? One would imagine that to qualify for Worlds, an athlete would have to, I don't know, go to some qualifying meets first. And normally that would be true. But Canada has no wheel federation, and certainly no qualifying events. Fortunately, I have the recommendation of an eight time World Champion and undisputed god of German wheel. That and I wrote to the head honcho of the competition, sent in some videos of my work, and after being evaluated for my skill level, was awarded a place at the meet.

While I was told I could compete in all three events (straight lines, spirals, vaulting) I have chosen to only compete in straight lines. Its the event I most excel at, but more than anything, I don't have time to create three routines for the competition. The show is my number one priority. Really, I just want to go for the experience and to have fun. And to wear a leotard (velour and glitter, aw yeah). After all, I may be good, but by no means am I in any position to win anything.

But who cares about that? I'm going to the World Championships of something! And as my brother said, that kind of makes me Canadian National Champion by default. Woo!