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Jordan Harvie

"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."

Harvie demonstrates exquisite form on the beam

Known for her elegant form and toe point, Harvie has recently raised more than a few eyebrows with her continued upward surge in the sport. Her coaches at Calgary Gymnastics Centre, Dennis Swenson, Sue Raffin, and Rima Nakishin are finely crafting this tiny gem, who could pose a great threat to her competitors in the upcoming years. Nakishin, a native of Russia, coached gymnastics legend Olga Korbut in the former Soviet Union during the prime of Korbut's career and her impact on Harvie's execution has not gone unnoticed. Her self proclaimed preferred event, the balance beam, is where Harvie shines the brightest. Working on her toes in European fashion, Harvie performs a routine that is jam-packed with difficulty, such as her outstanding full-twisting back handspring. Harvie also brings a touch of the 1970's to her routines as demonstrated in her mount and her flexibility skill, the Kelsall stretch, named after Canada's youngest, and arguably most famous, Olympian, Karen Kelsall. Turning 14 this summer, Harvie will be age eligible for the World Championships in 2006. If Harvie continues her recent momentum in the sport, she could very well attain her goal of representing Canada at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

2001 Highlights: Gymnastics fans first took notice of Harvie when she competed as a novice at the National Championships in St. John, New Brunswick. The inexperienced Harvie, a native of Calgary, Alberta, performed well, placing 10th in the all-around and 7th on her favourite event, the balance beam. In December, Harvie once again travelled across country, this time to Toronto, to compete at Elite Canada. There, she performed well enough to earn two event final berths, once again on her specialty, the balance beam, where she placed 5th, and vault, where she finished in 7th place.

3rd AA at 03 Elite Canada

2002 Highlights: Beginning the year well, Harvie placed 6th in the individual all-around, and won the gold medal on the balance beam and the bronze medal on the floor exercise, at the Western Championships. The following month at the National Championships in Winnipeg, Harvie had a mediocre meet but redeemed herself later in the year at Elite Canada in Quebec, where she beat all competitors, taking home the gold medal.

2003 Highlights: In March, Harvie returned to New Brunswick, this time to compete at the Canada Winter Games, an exciting experience for the young athlete. Two months later, Harvie finished second all-around in the novice division at the Canadian National Championships, only .05 behind Nicole Heikkila, and went on to win both the vault and floor exercise titles. Moving up to the junior HP division at Elite Canada at the end of the year, Harvie had a commendable meet, finishing third in the individual all-around competition. Qualifying for three event finals, Harvie finished with the silver medal on the uneven bars and placed 4th on balance beam before she was whisked off to catch a flight to Australia to compete in her first international assignment for Canada. At the Canberra Cup, Harvie impressed the national team coaches by placing 10th all-around, winning the silver medal on vault and placing 5th on the balance beam, a fine way to finish what proved to be an extremely successful year.

2nd UB at 03 Elite Canada

Harvie's Gymnastics: Below is a description of Harvie's most recent routines, as demonstrated at Elite Canada:

Vault: Yurchenko layout with full twist.

Uneven Bars: Giant 1.5 to Pak salto; free hip to handstand to Stalder to handstand on low bar; double layout dismount.

Balance Beam: From side of beam: straddle-L mount, press to handstand, stoop through to V-sit; full twisting back handspring; full turn; one arm back handspring to layout stepout; Kelsall stretch; switch ring leap; aerial walkover; switch leap to split jump; two back handsprings (the second to two feet) to tucked double back dismount.

Floor Exercise: Tucked jump double; ro, whip, whip, ff, 2.5 twist; ro, ff, double pike; triple turn; cat leap double to Khorkina; front handspring, front double twist; ro, ff, double twist.

Profile and Photos by: Leslie Foster

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