Baton twirling often conjures up images of marching bands and beauty pageants, but two Olds residents are taking the obscure sport much further – all the way across the ocean, in fact.
Baton twirling often conjures up images of marching bands and beauty pageants, but two Olds residents are taking the obscure sport much further – all the way across the ocean, in fact.
Tianna Tedford and Jenna Jemieff will head to Porec, Croatia next week to represent Team Canada on the world stage. Tedford will compete in the 2017 International Cup – the de facto world championships for the World Baton Twirling Federation (WBTF) in odd years.
She will also spin her batons in the prestigious 2017 Grand Prix, which gives athletes from two separate international organizations the chance to face each other. Jemieff will suit up and sit at the judges' table for the International Cup and has been appointed Canada's team manager for the Grand Prix.
Tedford, 23, moved to Olds last year, where she works at The Co-operators' Mountainview Insurance, and joined Inspire Baton Club – the outfit that Jemieff spun up four years ago, after a wildly successful competitive career.
This will be Tedford's fifth appearance on the world stage – including a trip to the 2008 International Cup, where her team won the group event – but this will be the first time she is representing Olds.
While Tedford doesn't compete in groups anymore, she's still got a full competition schedule on her plate, including solo, two-baton, three-baton and freestyle events. She qualified for the Grand Prix by being ranked top six in Canada for the events in which she'll compete.
For Jemieff, 26, who's worn the maple leaf at nine world championships, this will be her third time on the judges' side at an international event – she also officiated at the 2015 International Cup in Abbottsford, B.C., and last year's World Championships in Sweden.
"It's very high pressure, because you don't really have a lot of time to make a decision in between," said Jemieff. "You have about three minutes to come up with your score, and make sure that you're within range of all the other judges."
Jemieff, a six-time national champion in two solo events, moved to Olds at the height of her competitive career in 2006, and graduated from Olds High School in 2009. She retired after competing in the group event at the 2012 world championships, where Team Canada finished fifth, something that had previously eluded her, because she was the only competitive twirler in Olds.
"I was always an individual twirler, just because of where I lived," she said. "When I had the opportunity to join a trans-Canada team in 2012 … it was really exciting for me."
"(Now) I had placed top six at the world championships in freestyle, the pair event, and the team event – all the events I could have," she said. "So I really felt like everything had come full circle."
She went on to earn a kinesiology degree at the University of Calgary, and began coaching dance, acro and baton, then returned to Olds in 2014 to start her own club.
"I loved the teaching aspect," said Jemieff of her time spent coaching while she was studying. "That's when I decided that I am going to try and make my dream come true, and open up a dance studio, open a baton club and come back, to give back to Olds, because it was such a great community, that was so good to me when I was growing up."
It's the same community that is giving a leg up to Tedford now, letting her train daily at the Ralph Klein Centre, where she fits in cardio, weights and technical practice. Even in the summer, if the gym is locked, she said getting the doors open is just a phone call away.
"It's been pretty nice in Olds," she said, "the college gym has been really accommodating."
While she occasionally needs to leave town to practise somewhere with higher ceilings, her new home – including an employer who moonlights as a sponsor – has proven good enough to earn her another Team Canada ticket.
"It's usually pretty fun at an international cup," said Tedford. "We have all our Canada cheers, and other countries have their own cheers, and everyone will be dressed up, with Canada tattoos, and Canada flags and capes when they are in the stands cheering."
This time around, a few more Canadians from a town in Central Alberta will be cheering her on, too.
MORE: The IBTF Grand Prix will be held Aug. 4-6, while the WBTF International Cup will follow on Aug. 9-13.You can watch the live stream of the WBTF International Cup next week at http://www.wbtf.org.
"I had placed top six at the world championships in freestyle, the pair event, and the team event ñ all the events I could have," she said. "So I really felt like everything had come full circle."JENNA JEMIEFF
