{"id":3393,"date":"2017-05-08T20:14:36","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T20:14:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/?p=3393"},"modified":"2017-06-13T18:10:35","modified_gmt":"2017-06-13T18:10:35","slug":"connor-cavanagh-20-heads-to-junior-olympics-for-gymnastics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/2017\/05\/08\/connor-cavanagh-20-heads-to-junior-olympics-for-gymnastics\/","title":{"rendered":"Connor Cavanagh ’20 Heads to Junior Olympics for Gymnastics"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Connor Cavanagh ’20<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Connor Cavanagh \u201920 started gymnastics lessons when he was just two years old, and began competing at age five. It\u2019s no wonder, then, that after more than 12 years of hard work, he\u2019s off this week to Kissimmee, Florida, to compete in the Junior Olympics Nationals.<\/p>\n

Setting aside 20 hours a week to practice gymnastics at a gym<\/a> in Agawam run by former Olympic gold medalist Tim Daggett, Connor also finds time to participate\u00a0in other sports.<\/p>\n

“In addition to his noteworthy success in gymnastics,” cemmented\u00a0Athletics Director Mark Conroy, “in his spare time, Connor also plays on the football and baseball teams here\u2026pretty remarkable!”<\/p>\n

A versatile athlete, Connor’s\u00a0focus at the moment is on improving as a gymnast. \u201cThe most challenging part of gymnastics for me is how precise and explicit the sport is,\u201d he said. \u201cNothing in gymnastics is given, I have to work hard for even the smallest improvements. Gymnastics is very tedious when it comes to form and technique, and any slight hesitation or form break will cost you in a meet.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Form is everything. Connor pauses at the top of the high bar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So far, Connor\u2019s focus on perfection and hard work has paid off. He\u2019ll be among the nation\u2019s elite young gymnasts in Florida this week, competing in all events: the rings, vault, parallel bars, high bar, floor exercise, and pommel horse. Connor\u2019s strengths are on the rings, the parallel bars, and the floor exercises, according to Lynn Cavanagh, his mother.<\/p>\n

A level 10 gymnast\u2014the highest level of expertise for young competitors\u2014Connor spends more than 1,000 hours a year training, and takes nothing for granted. \u201cStaying humble is what I use to keep me going during practice and at meets. Even if you know you are at the top it is important to continue grinding as if you are at the bottom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Connor’s family couldn’t be any prouder of him, Lynn said. His family travels with him to his meets, both home and away. Williston wishes you luck in Florida, Connor!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Connor Cavanagh \u201920 started gymnastics lessons when he was just two years old, and began competing at age five. It\u2019s no wonder, then, that after more than 12 years of hard work, he\u2019s off this week to Kissimmee, Florida, to compete in the Junior Olympics Nationals. Setting aside 20 hours a week to practice gymnastics … Continue reading Connor Cavanagh ’20 Heads to Junior Olympics for Gymnastics<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":111,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[381,369],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3393","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-athlete-profile","category-junior-olympics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3393"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/111"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3393"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3393\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3472,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3393\/revisions\/3472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3393"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3393"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/athletics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3393"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}