She entered as Canada’s brightest hope for a medal at the gymnastics world championships in Montreal. Now, Ellie Black looks to confirm her status as one of the world’s best.
Following a dominant qualifying round, Black will compete Friday night in the women’s individual all-around final.
“My goal in any competition is to be strong and confident and attack my routines the best I possibly can. I was very pleased with my performances [on Tuesday],” Black said after the first day of qualifying.
You can watch the Road To The Olympic Games broadcast on CBC-TV at 7 p.m. ET, or watch CBCSports.ca’s live stream at 7 p.m. ET.
Black, a Halifax, N.S. native, qualified for the all-around final in third place with a total score of 55.766. Japan’s Murakami Mai qualified first with a total score of 55.933, while American Ragan Smith was second with a total score of 55.932.
Beyond the all-around event, Black also qualified for the vault final in seventh, and the beam final in fourth. She is also the first reserve on floor.
Ellie Black: Defying the odds as Canada’s top gymnast2:25
Following a fifth-place finish in the all-around competition at the Rio Olympics, Black determined that she needed to take some time off to rest her body.
Still, it was impossible for her to stop thinking about those Olympics, which were especially disappointing on the heels of her five-medal outburst at the Pan-Am Games in Toronto the year prior.
“It’s been such a big part of my life for so long and so it’s kind of hard to take breaks sometimes but I was ready to come back and start competing and training again,” Black told CBC Sports.
The worlds are the first major competition Black has faced since taking her break.
