MacLennan clinches spot in Rio, Burnett still searching

March 23, 2016 · 0 Comments

King City’s Rosie MacLennan, who earned one spot in Rio for Canada in women’s trampoline with her fourth-place finish last fall, clinched an Olympic spot for herself on Sunday.

By Jake Courtepatte
Months after securing a spot for Canada on the trampoline at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio, reigning women’s Olympic champion Rosie MacLennan has assured that she will be taking the spot.
The King City native placed first in the women’s senior event at the Canada Cup in Kamloops, B.C. over the weekend, nudging out her teammates and close friends Karen Cockburn of Toronto and Sam Sendel of Aurora.
“Things went a little bit better in the final today than in the prelims but there’s still a lot of room for improvement,” said MacLennan. “My height was a little lower than what I ultimately want it to be but consistency and stability were my main priorities.”
MacLennan, who won Canada’s only gold medal in the 2012 Games in London, secured Canada’s participation in trampoline at the 2016 Games last fall, finishing fourth at the 2015 World Championships. She clinched the spot for herself on Sunday after posting a combined score of 152.500 points through two days.
On the men’s side, King’s other star trampoliner Jason Burnett is holding onto hope for an Olympic berth after dominating the competition to win the men’s Canada Cup title.
Burnett’s combined score of 161.020 was over 10 points ahead of runner-up Nathan Shuh of Toronto.
“I was feeling much more comfortable and confident in my final routine today,” said Burnett. “I still struggled with the last three skills but the majority of the routine was clean and a little bit higher than in the prelims.”
Burnett, from Nobleton, has a last-chance Olympic qualification meet next month to hopefully book his ticket. The 29-year-old won a silver medal in men’s trampoline in the 2008 Games, and finished in seventh in 2012.
He placed fourth at last summer’s Pan Am Games in Toronto.
MacLennan, Cockburn, Sendel and Burnett all train out of Skyriders Trampoline Place in Richmond Hill.