Standing just five-foot-one on an 80-pound frame, 13-year-old Lane Oke stood out as the smallest and youngest in a forest of longer-limbed gymnasts who jumped, swung and twisted their way around the gym at Prince George secondary school.
Lacking the seasoning and size of his more-experienced peers in the Level 4 boys class Saturday at the B.C. Secondary School provincial gymnastics championships, Oke wasn't about to take a back seat when it came time for the all-around medal presentations.
In his first crack at a provincial high school gymnastics event, Oke earned his place on the podium as the Level 4 bronze medalist.
"It's pretty good, I keep up to the other guys and stay where they are – it kind of boosts my confidence from nothing to where I am, getting bronze," said Oke, a Grade 8 student at Kelly Road secondary school. "The other (six) guys are all in Grade 10, 11 or 12. I thought I might get fifth or a ribbon."
Oke scored first-place marks in the pommel horse, known as the toughest event for most gymnasts because of the core and upper body strength it requires for even the most basic movements. He couldn't believe he topped the field in that event with a score of 10.700.
"That's surprising because I'm not really good at it," he said.
Oke was second in the floor exercise, third in high bar, fourth on rings, fourth in vault and fourth in parallel bars for a 64.70 point total. Neil Shibata of Kitsilano won the all-around title (67.50) and Luca Frontini of Prince of Wales (Vancouver) was the silver medalist (67.35).
Oke stuck both of his peaches in his parallel bar routine. The move requires him to swing his hips backwards and do a complete back tuck (flip) as he lets go of the bars, then grabbing the bars again to regain control. He also pulled off a high bar giant, which is one complete rotation of the bar with his body fully extended. He had trouble with his giant in his warm-up routine but was able to complete it when it counted and he landed his dismount without a wobble.
"I did pretty good, I'm happy with all my scores," said Oke. "I was pretty nervous because I didn't know anybody."
Oke is in his third season as a competitive gymnast at the Prince George Gymnastics Club and on Saturday he far exceeded the expectations of his club coach Mason Wong.
"When I got here and I saw Lane compared to the other kids I was kind of worried but he just performed remarkably," said Wong. "A lot of the competition are well-developed teenagers and he's just starting on that curve. His pommel score just blows me away, he's got a handle on it. Overall, with his scores and how well he felt he did, I'm just a happy coach."
Colbey Simunac, a Grade 10 student at Duchess Park, was vying for his third high school provincial medal in Division 3 after winning silver in 2015 and bronze in 2016. He quit club gymnastics two years ago to take up other sports (football, track and field, boxing) and spend more time with his friends.
On Saturday, Simunac won the Division 3 vault (his least favourite event), was second in floor, third on rings, and fourth on high bar but he was sixth in parallel bars and eighth in pommel, which dropped him to fifth in the all-around standings.
"I was most happy with my vault, it was just such a high score (12.70 out of a possible 13.5)," said Simunac, who totaled 70.50 in his six events. "I did a handspring over the vault and it really lifted my move and got me excited for my last two events (parallel bars and high bar)."
Simunac says he's considering moving up to Level 4 for next year's provincial high school finals but that will require stepping up his training time from the two-and-a-half hours per week schedule he's followed since October. He's still a regular around the PGGC gym at Exhibition Park as a coach in training, one of four male coaches at the club. He's been coaching since he was 11, working with younger kids, and it's a job which gives the 15-year-old great deal of satisfaction.
"It's phenomenal being able to see how you can change younger kids depending on how you coach them," said Simunac. "It helps me improve myself when I try to show others what to do and then realize I may not be doing the right thing so I correct myself immediately."
Dylan Warner of Brooks (Powell River) won Level 3 all-around gold (76.15), Liam Hart of Moscrop (Burnaby) won silver (73.80) and Ben Cleroux of Moscrop was the bronze medalist (73.65).
In other local results, Aidan Faucher of College Heights finished fourth in Division 1 (66.65). He won the floor exercise and was third in parallel bars. Cohen Quek of Argyle (North Vancouver) won Division 1 gold (70.00), while Joshua Gali of St. Thomas Aquinas (68.15) and Aidan Cowell of Semiahmoo (67.65) won silver and bronze respectively.
In Division 2, Nathan Stokes of Duchess Park was sixth overall. His best result was third in parallel bars. Kai Schultz of Windsor (North Vancouver) won gold (70.75), ahead of teammate Alex Campbell (69.75), while Austin Smith of Argyle won bronze (69.15).
The event drew just three Level 5 male gymnasts. Eric Weibe of South Delta won four of the six events (floor, pommel, vault and parallel bars) to capture the overall title with 69.90 points. Conor Edgson of Delta was second (68.90) and Douglas Forrest of Sutherland (North Vancouver) placed third (65.50).
