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30 Sports Oakville Beaver www.aplushomes.ca from 2 .4% ·Full MLS ·Full Service Call ADAM CAMPBELL Broker 905-844-4444 SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 2007 Lord golden, Grinter second at provincial artistic meet Local high-performance gymnasts qualify for nationals By Herb Garbutt OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF The day before the Rogers Men's Artistic Provincial Championships, Sean Lord tested his theoretical knowledge of muscle movement as he wrote two kinesiology exams at McMaster University. Sunday, the Oakville Gymnastics Club member showed he has also has a strong grasp on the practical side, winning the all-around senior high performance title at the all-Ontario meet. "There was a lot on my mind and I got stressed, but it's what I've been doing my life -- school and gymnastics," Lord said after earning his first provincial all-around title since he competed at the novice level. "I'm going to Mac full time -- I think I'm the only high performance gymnast going to school fulltime -- but education is important and sometimes it has to take priority." Lord won five event medals, including gold on rings, vault and parallel bars, where he shared top honours with teammate Matthew Grinter. Grinter rebounds from shoulder injury Grinter, coming off a shoulder injury, delivered a strong performance in his first year of senior high performance competition, claiming the all-around silver. Grinter had damaged muscle tissue in his shoulder after a snowboarding fall in early March and the injury prevented him from practicing his routines until the week of provin- cials. "It was a surprise to me," Grinter said of his finish that included four event medals. "My muscles know the movements, I just hadn't worked them for a while." For a while, it looked like Oakville would sweep the podium in the highest level of competition, a feat Lord, Grinter and Matthew Albrecht accomplished at a meet in Ottawa in February. That got the trio thinking about doing it again when its club hosted provincials. Oakville nearly sweeps podium The odds of achieving that feat again were looking good through four events as Oakville gymnasts held the top three spots, led by Albrecht, the defending champion. However, he failed to land his vault, dropping him from first to fifth. Albrecht was battling a shoulder injury of his own, a torn labrum that will now force him to shut down his season for surgery. "I expected to have some ups and downs so I wasn't too bummed out," Albrecht said. "Even though I was hurt, I wanted to be up there with our guys. If it wasn't going to be me, I was hoping it was going to be one of them." Albrecht got that wish as Lord, an all-around bronze medalist last year, took two steps up the podium. Even before Albrecht's fall on vault, Lord sensed there was a chance for the all-around title, especially after taking the gold on rings, an event he doesn't consider one of his best. LIESA KORTMANN / OAKVILLE BEAVER LORD OF THE RINGS: Sean Lord performs his rings routine during last weekend's provincial men's artistic gymnastics championships, held at the Oakville Gymnastics Club. Lord won gold on rings, vault and parallel bars on his way to securing the all-around senior high performance title. See Nationals page 31 SELECT TRY-OUTS WHO: BOYS U10 (1997) ONLY WHEN: WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY APRIL 18/19 @ 6PM-7:30PM WHERE: SYL APPS FIELD WHO: BOYS U11-U16, GIRLS U10-U18 WHEN: SATURDAY & SUNDAY APRIL 21 & 22, 2007 WHERE: CHECK WEBSITE FOR TIMES & LOCATIONS ONLY PLAYERS REGISTERED WITH THE OAKVILLE SOCCER CLUB FOR THE 2007 OUTDOOR SEASON ARE ELIGIBLE FOR TRY-OUTS. PLAYERS ON THE WAITING LIST CANNOT ATTEND TRYOUTS AND ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO BE ROSTERED ON A TEAM. ALSO AVAILABLE ONLINE: · SUMMER CAMP INFORMATION · SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES (LIMITED SPACE & TIME AVAILABLE) · VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES CONTACT CONNIE: cruetter@oakville-soccer.on.ca for further information www.oakville-soccer.on.ca Oakville Soccer Club A Proud Sponsor of Oakville Soccer Club Sponsored by: 504 Iroquois Shore Rd., Unit #11, Oakville, On L6H 3K4 Tel: 905-849-4436 Fax: 905-849-3677