Dec. 29, 2007
Get behind the scenes of Illinois Gymnastics with Illini Ink - the weekly women's gymnastics journal. This week, junior Julie Crall about the team parting ways for Christmas break and the upcoming schedule for the squad.
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Greetings Illini Fans!
Ten days ago, thirteen gymnasts parted in all directions from Kenney Gym traveling to hometowns around the country to spend time with family and friends for the holiday season. The past week and a half was quite a change of pace from our usual routine, but it was a great opportunity to relax, enjoy our time at home, and return to Illinois ready to get the competitive season started! The fall semester sure flew by, which luckily means, the competitive season is quickly approaching!
During our time at home, we kept up with our skills and routines by fitting in a few workouts and keeping up with our cardio. This way we will be ready to pick up right where we left off when we get back. Now, in returning to Champaign, the next couple weeks prior to our first meet on January 11 will serve as a great chance to improve even further. Since the fall semester is over, we will not have to worry about classes and schoolwork, allowing us to really focus on our goals in the gym and the impact we want to make at our first meet at Alabama.
There are a few exciting events to look forward to for our team and the Illini community upon our return to Champaign. First, we have our annual Christmas party at Bob's house where we eat a delicious dinner and exchange our Secret Santa gifts with each other. Then, New Years Day will quickly approach; as we will gather to watch our Illini football team make a triumphant victory over the USC Trojans (hopefully!) Finally, on January 3, a judge will come to our gym to score our routines for our intersquad meet. This will be one of our last opportunities to perform our routines in a pressure situation, allowing us to feel ready to compete at our first meet in Tuscaloosa in front of a large crowd.
Well, I sure am missing each and every girl on the team and look forward to being together again oh so soon. The rest of break will be filled with TV show marathons, crazy antics, lots of laughs, and of course lots of hard work in the gym. I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season with their families and I wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year. Thanks for reading!
GO ILLINI!
-Julie
