Yvonne Tousek
| Yvonne Tousek | |
|---|---|
| — Gymnast — | |
| Country represented |
 Canada |
| Born |
February 23, 1980 Kitchener, Ontario |
| Discipline | Women's Artistic Gymnastics |
| Level | Senior International Elite (Retired) |
| Gym | Cambridge Kips |
| College team | UCLA |
| Head coach(es) | Elvira Saadi (elite), Valorie Kondos-Field (UCLA) |
Yvonne Tousek (born February 23, 1980 in Kitchener, Ontario) is a retired artistic gymnast who competed for her native Canada in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. She qualified to the all-around finals at both Games, placing 26th all-around in Atlanta and 32nd all-around in Sydney.[1]
She also competed in four World Gymnastics Championships: 1995, 1996, 1997 and 1999. Her best finish at a Worlds was 8th place on floor exercise at the 1999 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Tianjin, China. [2]
At the 1999 World Championships, she also performed an original gymnastics skill that bears her name in the artistic gymnastics Code of Points: the Tousek, a cross-wise back handspring on balance beam.[3]
At the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Tousek won floor exercise and uneven bars and placed 4th all-around.[4]
In 2000, Tousek won the all-around, bars and floor exercise at the Canadian National Gymnastics Championships, and she placed second on vault and balance beam. [4]
During her elite career, Tousek trained with coach Elvira Saadi at Cambridge Kips in Cambridge, Ontario.[5]
College Career
During her college career with the UCLA Bruins, the freshman Tousek earned the uneven bars title at the 2001 NCAA women’s gymnastic championships.
She placed fifth on bars in the event finals at the 2002 and 2003 NCAA championships, and she placed fifth on balance beam in the 2004 NCAA championships.
She also scored perfect 10s on uneven bars in the 2003 UCLA vs. Arkansas meet and the 2004 UCLA vs. Michigan meet.[6]
Cirque du Soleil
In 2006,[7] she went to work as an acrobat for the Cirque du Soleil show Corteo. Her acts in the show included “Animation,” which sets the stage for the show, plus the trampoline act “Bouncing Beds” and the high-bar act "Tournik.” She also performed two comedic turns as an oversized golf ball and as half of a costumed horse.[8]
References
- ↑ "Yvonne Tousek Biography and Olympic Results | Olympics at". Sports-reference.com. 1980-02-23. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "1999 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Women's Finals". Gymnasticsresults.com. 2003-12-06. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "UCLA Gymnastics Again Signs Top Recruiting Class - UCLA Official Athletic Site". Uclabruins.com. 1999-11-17. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Yvonne Tousek". Gymn.ca. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "About Cambridge Kips". Cambridgekips.com. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "Player Bio: Yvonne Tousek - UCLA Official Athletic Site". Uclabruins.com. 1980-02-23. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "CTDB - Yvonne Tousek". Cirquetribune.com. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
- ↑ "Stunts and Circuses - Feature - UCLA Magazine Online". Magazine.ucla.edu. Retrieved 2011-07-09.