Reaching for the acrobatic gymnastics national

She flies through the air into a round off back tuck. Concentration crosses her face as she balances her partner on her hands in preparation for a hand-to-foot back tuck, where she will catapult the girl into a back tuck and catch her as she lands.

Freshman Sydney Wu was doing artistic gymnastics for five years when she switched to acrobatics at the beginning of eighth grade. Last summer, she competed in Michigan for the Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships for the first time and she and her partner, Adele Poloziouk, a fourth grader at John Baldwin Elementary School, placed tenth.

“My favorite memory was my first national competition in Detroit and making the national team. I love the social aspect of acrobatics, hanging out with teammates and going to meets,” she commented.

Making the national team means that Wu will have the opportunity to attend an acrobatics camp at the gym of Bella Károlyi, a gymnastics coach who has trained Olympic gymnasts like Mary Lou Retton and Nadia Comaneci. Being part of the national team will give Wu and Poloziouk exposure to international competitions in countries like England and Switzerland, which have previously hosted events.

“I would like to compete internationally, and go to Italy or England. I would like to also keep improving our scores at each meet,” said Wu about her goals.

Next year the national competition will take place in Louisville, Kentucky in July. Wu hopes to compete at level nine and then go on to achieve her goal of reaching the elite level, which is after level ten. For now, she continues to practice nine hours a week and acquire new skills. The most interesting one? “I think that would be the toe pitch handstand,” she said.