Two more Olympians earn berths in trampoline in final night of USA Gymnastics Championships in Minneapolis

At a kinetic final night of competition at the USA Gymnastics Championships at the Minneapolis Convention Center, two trampolinists were sent to Paris while the sport itself took a bow amid swirling ribbons and soaring bodies.

Jessica Stevens and Aliaksei Shostak were awarded the single available Olympic spots in women’s and men’s trampoline, respectively, for the United States. Shostak secured his place Tuesday night with a dramatic finish to edge out Ruben Padilla.

Padilla was named the men’s alternate while Nicole Ahsinger, a two-time Olympian, was named the women’s alternate.

“A major challenge has been overcome but there’s still a lot of work to do,” Shostak said. “I’m humbled by the experience and I’m ready to go put in the work.”

These championships were the third and final competition where trampoline gymnasts could record a qualifying score to try to reach Paris. The previous two events were the 2024 Winter Classic and Elite Challenge.

For Shostak, this will be his second Olympic appearance after representing the United States at the Tokyo Games. Stevens will be making her Olympic debut.

““You try to take it one day at a time,” Stevens said. “But it has taken years and years to get to this point.”

The rhythmic gymnasts performed clubs and ribbon routines to finish Wednesday night’s all-around finals, with Rin Keys winning the national championship with a score of 132.350. But the Olympic berth had already been secured by Evita Griskenas before these championships.

With the Olympic competitors largely decided, the evening became a showcase of disparate, visually stunning events that moved between four corners of cavernous Hall B at the convention center.

Erica Foster, who recently graduated from Minnetonka High School and trains with NorthWest Rhythmic in Plymouth, finished 10th in the rhythmic gymnastics all-around competition. She tossed and twirled a set of clubs, the gold accents on her leotard shimmering as she flipped and spun the sticks between her legs and overhead.

Later she took up a fiery orange and red ribbon. She leapt and pirouetted across the floor, spiraling the ribbon, tossing it into the air before snagging its cane as it fell into her tumbling path. When she finished, a friend tossed a stuffed animal onto the floor — a recurring theme throughout the night for strong performances.

Trampoline was a vertical endeavor. Stevens and Sarah Webster were two of the first gymnasts to perform and didn’t disappoint. Webster clung tight to the center of the trampoline, her body fluid and arms and legs static as she moved through 10 twisting somersaults and twists.

Webster took first place at the U.S. Championships with a score of 55.070 while Stevens was second at 54.120.

In the men’s competition, Shostak slipped in the middle of his routine and didn’t finish, giving him a score of 12.940 that was, luckily for him, unimportant. Padilla won the championships with a score of 57.340.

While it’s not an Olympic competition, the combined acrobatic event was the star of the night. Teams of two or three gymnasts combined elements of dance, aerobics and chaos in synchronized floor routines to bombastic soundtracks. The routines often culminated with gymnasts climbing atop each other before holding a teammate vertical so they could bend their bodies in half.

There were also showcases in tumbling passes and double mini on the trampoline. At the end of the night the “Acro Dads” took to the mat to perform a routine to “I’m Just Ken” from the film “Barbie.” It was aggressively emotive, somewhat athletic and utterly crowd-pleasing.

It was a fitting send off for the final night of the championships at the convention center.

Attention will now mostly shift to Target Center where the men’s Olympic trials will open on Thursday before the team is announced on Saturday. The team trials for women open Friday with the team announced after competition wraps on Sunday.