Warragul's local Olympian

by Nicholas Duck

Bona Vista gymnast Alice Johnson is set to take on her biggest challenge yet after earning selection at the Youth Olympic Games in November.

Alice, who is the reigning Oceania junior all-around champion, will be joining a team of three female gymnasts to take on the best young athletes from all over the world at the Games in Dakar, Senegal.

She will get a full Olympic experience, including getting to know her fellow competitors in the Olympic village.

The bars, beam, floor and vault will put her skills to the ultimate test, with the medals going to the best all-around scores between the four apparatuses.

Additionally, the highest scoring Australian female will get to team up with the highest scoring male for a shot at a mixed medal.

Having worked towards earning selection for as far back as the past five years, it's safe to say the size of the achievement isn't lost on the 15-year-old.

"I didn't really know what to say. I'd been preparing for it for a lot of years, it was my goal," she said.

"It doesn't feel real."

Alice has competed overseas twice before - at the DTB Pokal Team Challenge Cup in Germany and more recently the FIG Artistic Gymnastics Junior World Championships in Manila.
She's hoping her experiences will help her confidence-wise going into her biggest competition yet as she aims for clean routines and, with any luck, a medal or two.
Outside of competition, she said she was looking forward to embracing the unknown in her first Olympic competition.
"I like not knowing what to expect."
Alice's mother Rebecca is hoping to be in the stands cheering her on for every moment.
"It is like a reward for many years," she said.
"We did speak about it when she moved to Waverley (Gymnastics Centre) five years ago that she would be eligible and now it's come to fruition. It's pretty crazy."
Alice kept her skills sharp at the Australian Gymnastics Championships in Sydney a few months ago, winning the bars gold for the fourth consecutive year.
Individually she also secured silver for the beams and bronze in the floor and all-around.
Recently she also competed in the National Clubs Carnival in Brisbane.
The Youth Olympic Games will be held from October 31 to November 13.