Kate Richardson finished 15th in the all around competition at the 2000 Olympics, the best ever Games result for Canada in that event in a fully attended Olympics. Soon after the Sydney Games, she joined the powerful UCLA team and was a star on the NCAA circuit. She won the American college national beam and uneven bars titles last year. Usually gymnasts join a college program once their national commitments are over.
But Richardson got the bug again to wear Canadian colours after working last year at the world championships in Anaheim. She made a decision to comeback and go to the Olympics. She achieved her goal but narrowly, as she was a selection committee’s choice for one of the two last spots after placing fifth all around at the Olympic trials.
‘’I didn’t feel finished,’’ she said. ‘’My body was still holding up. Why not give it a shot?’’
