Gaudry bounces to Rio

South Australia’s Blake Gaudry has been selected as the athlete to represent Australia in the Men’s Individual Trampoline competition at the Olympic Test Event to be held in Rio de Janeiro in April.

Along with his coach, Nikolay Zhuravlev, Gaudry will compete in the Olympic host city on April 20, in what will be the final opportunity for Australia to qualify a position in the Men’s Individual Trampoline event at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Thirteen athletes from 11 countries will be vying for a top five finish in Rio in April, in order to secure their nation a place at the games.

Gaudry, a 2012 Olympian and current Australian Champion, confirmed his selection for the Test Event following a national selection trial held in Sydney on Saturday.

Gaudry finished 14th at the 2015 Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships held in Odense, Denmark in November, to secure Australia a position at the Rio Test Event.  He will prepare for the competition at a Portugal-based training camp prior to the event.

NSW’s Shaun Swadling and his coach Brett Austine have been named as the reserves for the Rio Test Event.  They will not travel to South America, but will instead attend a USA-based training camp in April.

Swadling was also the reserve athlete for the London Olympics in 2012, and placed second at the 2015 Australian Gymnastics Championships.