By BILL KAUFMANN, CALGARY SUN
That Calgarian gymnast Kyle Shewfelt struck
Commonwealth Games gold yesterday came as little
surprise to his assistant coach.
Zoltan Hajdu even predicted the 20-year-old old
athlete he's known for four years would also win a
second gold in vaulting to add to his first-place
finish yesterday in the individual floor competition.
"He could well do the same in vaulting -- it's one of
two events he's very strong in," said Hajdu.
As he spoke those words, they became reality as
Shewfelt clinched a vaulting gold -- doubling his
pleasure on the same day in Manchester, England.
"We've been waiting for gold -- this was in the air,"
said Hajdu of the Altadore Gymnastics Club.
"He's one of the best tumblers in the world."
While Shewfelt was reasonably pleased with his score
of 9.367 in the individual floor event, he wasn't
completely satisfied.
"I set a standard for myself and I set it high," said
the 20-year-old from southeast Calgary.
GOALS SET HIGH
"I'm happy with my routine today, but I was aiming for
a 9.8. There's room for improvement."
His best score was 9.70 and lowest was 9.40.
Shewfelt's obsession with gymnastics has its origins
when the Calgarian was a six-year-old bounding off
couches -- a penchant that led mom Nola to enroll him
in the activity.
Hajdu said Shewfelt, who's shone in a host of
international meets, has also had his share of
frustration, notably at the 2000 Summer Olympics in
Sydney, Australia where a hairline infraction dropped
him to 12th in the individual floor event.
"He could have easily advanced to the finals then," he
said.
Shewfelt's impressive showing should be an excellent
springboard for the World Championships in Hajdu's
native Debrecen, Hungary, in September, said the
assistant coach.
"It's very, very exciting -- we can start preparing
ourselves," said Hajdu, 29.
On Friday, Shewfelt was part of a Canadian squad which
captured a silver medal in the men's team all-around
gymnastics event -- finishing behind defending
champions England.