Kelowna

Photo: Contributed - Nicole Kouwenhoven

Kelowna cheerleading programs came up big at the first ever Mardi Parti Cheerleading Extravaganza in Richmond, taking home several pieces of hardware.

Rutland Secondary School’s Co-ed program took home first place in the Co-ed cheer division and finished in the top three for the School Grand Champion Awards. The Okanagan Firestorm – the regions first and only competitive cheerleading program – also did well with the junior squad finishing first in the Large Junior 2 category and the Senior squad finishing second in the Large Senior 2 category.

The March 2 event saw over 1200 athletes from across the province come and celebrate Mardi Gras style with routines including jumps, tumbling, gymnastics, lifts, tosses cheers and dance.

Other local groups competing at Mardi Parti included Rutland Senior Secondary's All-Girl team, which finished fifth in their division and Rutland Middle School who took second in division B.

In the individual athlete categories, Rutland Middle School's Britney Evans took second place for her first Junior Individual, and Rutland Senior Secondary's Maddi Arnold took home first place in Senior Individuals – her second straight division win this season. 

The next event will be the Sea to Sky International Cheerleading Championships April 5 - 7th in Vancouver which will see over 500 competitors from across western North America descend on the city. At stake will be international titles and bids for both the Summit All-Levels Championship in Memphis and the USASF Cheerleading Worlds at Disney World Florida next month.

Photo: Contributed - Nicole Kouwenhoven