Olympic Showdown

• Tiara Hudson, Grade 3
• Short Story
• 2016

“Introducing . . . Gracie Woods from Australia!” Gracie walked onto the floor, heart beating fast. She saw the audience, staring at her, watching, and she felt even more nervous. She looked around searching, and finally locked eyes with her family. She knew she couldn’t let them down, or her new friends from Australia.

The music started, and she began a series of energetic turnovers and cartwheels. She stopped for a split second, face and body sweating, and remembered, ‘She couldn’t let them down’.

She carefully but swiftly moved to the parallel bars, beside each other, looking so big and mighty. Gracie knew she couldn’t waste time staring. She had to get on there! She climbed on, knowing if she made one wrong move, her life would be at risk. She cautiously flipped her body onto the bars. She did a handstand on top of the bars, and did a double front flip toward the bars. She gasped, in the middle of the air, realising then that she had jumped a step too early. She knew there was only one thing to do, but it was beside impossible.

Gracie could pick to . . . either break her leg or foot, or she could just fall onto the ground and stand up, pretending that was the end. But she knew this was barely possible. She could risk dying and being disqualified, but if she did it incorrectly, there was still a chance . . . Gracie did that exact thing, and she only JUST made it! Her face was sweating and her whole body burning all over. But she DID NOT CARE. She had made it!

She looked at the judges, curious to see what their faces looked like, when she heard loud clapping and cheering. Her eyes flickered to the scoreboard. 1st – Gracie Woods, 2nd – Maria Finato . . . WAIT! Hang on a second! Was she imagining things! Gracie looked up in disbelief, but there was her name, written in gold, and looking all grand. This was too much for Gracie. She looked around again, and pinched herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.

She burst into tears, and as the wet, salty tears rolled down her red, puffed cheeks, she knew it. She knew she had not let them down. Australia had come fourth in the Olympics. She had done her best, and that is what counted.