Courtney McGregor, 15, has been boosted by her Doha experience. Photo / Graeme Roberts
New Zealand's youngest athlete at this year's Glasgow Games is also regarded as one of the brightest talents in her sport of gymnastics.
In March, Christchurch's Courtney McGregor just missed becoming the first New Zealander to win a World Cup medal, in Doha, Qatar. A fractional error on landing her
vault routine nudged her into fourth.
Then the 15-year-old finished second on the same apparatus at the Pacific Rim event in Vancouver a few days later, again a New Zealand female first. Competing against Olympic and world medallists in Doha was hugely beneficial.
"It was really good experience. We went there not expecting much but I ended up doing really well in qualifying," she said. "It was a great confidence booster, because we didn't really know where we stood in world rankings; now we know we have a chance."
McGregor is part of a five-strong, Christchurch-based artistic gymnastics team going to Glasgow - there's also a men's team and two rhythmic gymnasts. Having started doing gym at 6 in recreational classes, McGregor is now putting in 32 hours training a week, and it's paying off.
