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Emilie Fournier

Fournier at 2000 Olympic Trials

Emilie Fournier is coached by Claude Pelletier and Francine Bouffard at the Gymnix club in Montreal, QC. When Emilie's gymnastics is discussed, everyone will agree that she is one of the most powerful gymnasts Canada has ever had! She is only one of two Canadian gymnasts this Olympic cycle to perform the Yurchenko 1 1/2 consistently, not to mention the owner of the only double layout mount on floor. Emilie also made Canadian gymnastics history by winning the 2000 Qantas International Challenge in Sydney, which made her the first ever Canadian "Olympic Test Event" champion. At this competition, she debuted her double layout mount on floor and had her highest individual score on bars (an event she did not compete at the 1999 worlds), after upgrading to a 10.0 start value thanks to some new combination work with elgrip giants. Winning this competition was a huge accomplishment and lead to increasing fan support and media attention.

The year 2000 seemed to be a year of both joy and dissapointment for Fournier. After her win at the "Test Event" in Australia, she competed at her first ever Pacific Alliance Championships in Christchurch New Zealand. Although she was not able to compete on all events due to injury, she placed 8th on the beam (She has performed a front piked mount; tuck jump-punch front tuck immediate Korbut; backhandspring-layout-backhandspring; and usually finishes off the routine with a sky high double back tuck dismount). A sore back kept Emilie from competing at the National championships, but the injury wouldn't dare stop her from making her first Olympic team. Thus she competed at the Olympic Trials in Toronto, almost healthy, minus the few nagging injuries she and all gymnasts always seem to have. After placing sixth at the trials, national team coach Andrei Rodionenko chose Emilie to be one of the six team members for the Olympic team. After surviving tough and crucial training camps in Alberta and New-Zealand prior to the Games, Emilie injured her ankle in podium training in Sydney doing a double layout mount on floor. A crowd favourite for perhaps a top ten finish in the all-around at the Games, Fournier was forced to give up her Olympic spot to team alternate Crystal Gilmore of Ontario due to what turned out to be a broken ankle. Emilie felt her teammates needed her to stay, so she encouraged them throughout the Games despite the pain she must have felt, both mentally and physically. Emilie initially was forced to leave the Olympic athletes village, but she was eventually allowed to return and she remained in Sydney and marched with her teammates in the Closing Ceremony.

One might say that Fournier first burst onto the Canadian scene at the 1997 Nationals where she won Junior AA, vault and bars. But in the previous nationals, she had placed 3rd AA and first on floor not to mention a 9th place AA finish in her first nationals as a novice in 1995. So a promising junior career meant she would probably be given many international assignments in no time, which she was. Her first international meet was in 1997 where she placed 13th AA and won a team bronze medal at the Gymnix International. For Fournier, the year 1998 proved to be a good year for "experience". She placed 10th AA in her first meet outside of Canada at the Romanian International. Later she traveled to Russia to compete in the World Youth Games. Her firstappearancee came at the Commonwealth Games where it was obvious that she was already the leader of team Canada. Helping her team win the Bronze medal, she also placed 5th AA and qualified to all event finals. An ankle injury in warm-ups kept her from competing in the finals.

After placing an impressive 6th AA at the 1998 Elite Canada, a meet which featured all of the 2000 Olympians to be, she competed in the 1999 Gymnix International and came 4th AA. During warm-ups for individual event finals, she decided to pull out due to injury. Determined to show everyone that she was still training hard, she competed at the 1999 U.S.A vs Canada dual meet in Toronto. With her help, team Canada defeated the young American squad, and Fournier placed 3rd on beam and fourth on vault. She also debuted her yurchenko 1 1/2 on vault at this competition. She then travelled to nationals in Burnaby BC, placing 7th AA on day one before another injury forced her to pull herself out of yet again another meet! Nonetheless she made the 1999 Pan Am Games team, still recovering from a back injury and unable to compete in the AA. The team won team Gold, which was a huge success for both Emilie and her teammates. Later she made the 1999 world team, and helped her team qualify a full team to the Olympic games! She then returned to Asia for the "China Motor Cup" in Taipei and brought home 4 medals in total (Gold on floor, silver in AA, vault and bars).

Fournier hopes to be able to compete at 2001 worlds. This all depends on if she is healthy, but the team could certainly use her in every way. A healthy Fournier can possibly make a top ten finish in the AA and make an apparatus final. After her elite career, she will compete on a full NCAA scholarship for the Penn state women's gymnastics team. We wish Emilie the best of luck and let's cross our fingers so that she won't be injured at 2001 Worlds in Ghent, Belgium!

Written by Bryan Milonja

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