Young Marlborough gymnast trains for the regional competition

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By Janice Elizabeth Berte, Contributing Writer

Gianna Ruffing leaps across the balance beam at the New England Academy of Gymnastics.
Gianna Ruffing leaps across the balance beam at the New England Academy of Gymnastics.

Marlborough – She is 4 feet, 10 inches tall, and weighs 85 pounds, but don’t get fooled by her small stature because this 12-year-old young girl can leap, and flip over things that most people would run away from. Her name is Gianna Ruffing, and she has received many accolades for the 8 of out 12 years of her life as being one of the top gymnasts at the New England Academy of Gymnastics.

Gianna’s love for the sport came from her mother, Jeanine, who was also a gymnast; and hearing about her Mom’s positive experiences. Thus, coupled with determination and persistence, Gianna excels as an honor roll student in school as well. She is also inspired by Aly Raisman, the gold medal winning Olympian.

Gianna Ruffing
Gianna Ruffing

Her gymnastics routine consists of practicing for 16 hours per week at the academy over a 4-day period, and an hour and half of dancing. On occasion, she will run on the treadmill along with adding in box jump workouts. She also follows a gluten-free diet, and her pre-meet meal is gluten-free spaghetti and meatballs.

“I enjoy gymnastics because I have a ton of friends, and I get to travel to different parts of the country. One of my favorite things to do at practice is to swing around the uneven bars,” said Gianna.

Gianna has placed as high as 2nd and 5th at several national meets. Her perseverance and hard training has paid off since she qualified to participate in the USA Gymnastics Regional Championships that will be held in Springfield Saturday, April 28 and Sunday, April 29, 9April 28-29th; competing against other top New England and New York gymnasts.

Dance is also a passion – last year she was picked to be a dancer in the Nutcracker at the esteemed Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts in Worcester.

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