2021 Junior Pan American Championships
by Alyssa Jacobs, USA Artistic Swimming
2021 JUNIOR PAN AMERICAN GAMES#
7 photos
THE ATHLETES
The junior national team is made up of ten total athletes: nine female and one male. Reserve athletes were unable to travel to this competition. For a full junior national team roster, visit the page HERE. The nine athletes competing in Colombia are Ivy Davis, Megumi Field, Anya Melson, Atira O'Neil, Keana Hunter, Elisa Brunel, Claudia Coletti, Emily Ding and Kenny Gaudet. Many of these athletes have been training with the national talent program for years and, due to COVID, have been unable to compete at the international level for the last two. The Junior Pan American Games are a much-anticipated event for this crew, and they are looking forward to finally showcasing their talents to the world.
THE EVENT + THE SCHEDULE
The junior national team has been preparing seven routines for the first-ever Junior Pan American Championships in Cali, Colombia. The artistic swimming event runs from December 2nd - 4th and will feature the top junior competitors from the Pan American nations. Athletes are aged 19 and under and chosen to represent their countries on their respective national teams. This marks the first time mixed duet has been featured in an Olympic-related sporting event. The entire competition will feature five mixed duets, seven teams, six highlight routines and fifteen female duets. All technical routines will take place December 2nd, mixed duet and team free will take place on December 3rd and free duet and highlight will conclude the competition on December 4th. For a full schedule, visit the Cali 2021 page HERE.
THE ROUTINES
Fans should be excited to see the US showcase incredible choreographies. The team and female duet routines are the same routines competed by the senior national team at both the Olympic qualifiers and the Tokyo Olympics this past summer, speaking volumes for how the advanced the athletes are. They have made a few tweaks within the routines to make it their own and highlight the strengths of the eight juniors. The mixed technical duet is the same routine competed by Davis and Gaudet at the UANA International Open hosted in August which was adapted from a collegiate routine. The mixed free duet has been adapted from choreography originally performed by Bill May and Natalia Vega at the last World Championships.
THE COMPETITION
Watch for Mexico and Chile to have strong showings as well and serve as mighty competitors for USA. The countries competed in the International Open at the end of the summer and it was a close competition for gold.
HOW TO WATCH
Fans can catch the action streaming on the Pan Am Sports channel HERE. Sign-up is required, but the events are free to watch.
ORDER OF COMPETITION
Technical Duet: Uruguay, USA, Guatamala, Chile, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Aruba, El Salvador, Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Cuba
Technical Mixed Duet: Cuba, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, USA
Technical Team: Brazil, Cuba, Aruba, Mexico, Colombia, USA, Chile
Free Mixed Duet: Mexico, USA, Cuba, Colombia, Brazil
Free Team: USA, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Mexico, Aruba
Free Duet: Peru, USA, Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica, Aruba, Cuba, Cayman Islands, Chile, El Salvador, Brazil, Guatamala, Colombia, Uruguay, Dominican Republic
Highlight: Colombia, USA, Brazil, Cuba, Chile, Mexico
RESULTS - TOP 3
Technical Duet: 1. Mexico (81.1175) 2. USA (78.1328) 3. Brazil (75.5365)
Technical Mixed Duet: 1. USA (75.7939) 2. Mexico (75.2413) 3. Brazil (70.7174)
Technical Team: 1. Mexico (80.2504) 2. USA (80.1574) 3. Colombia (74.7320)
Free Mixed Duet: 1. USA (78.2667) 2. Mexico (77.2000) 3. Brazil (71.6667)
Free Team: 1. Mexico (83.5667) 2. USA (82.5333) 3. Colombia (75.7000)
Free Duet: 1. Mexico (80.2504) 2. USA (80.1574) 3. Colombia (74.7320)
Highlight: 1. Mexico (82.8000) 2. USA (79.4000) 3. Colombia (76.5667)
Full results can be viewed HERE.