Naperville's Caquatto leads Pan Am gold rush
GUADALAJARA, Mexico — She wobbled on the beam but didn't fall down on the dismount.
That, and a super uneven bars routine, added up to a gold medal for American gymnast Bridgette Caquatto of Naperville in the all-around competition Wednesday at the Pan American Games.
“The beam routine went pretty smoothly for me. I just had one major wobble,” said the 17-year-old Caquatto, a senior at Naperville Central who became the seventh straight American to win the marquee gymnastics event at the games. “Besides that, I was very happy with how everything else went.”
Caquatto scored 14.725 points on the uneven bars, the only competitor to break the 14-point barrier. That put her in the lead heading into her final event on the balance beam. Despite the miscue during that last routine, she stuck her dismount and held on to first place.
“I had no idea. I didn't even look at my scores the whole meet,” Caquatto said. “I was just very thankful for staying on each equipment.”
The United States also stayed on top, winning two more golds on Day 12 of the Pan American Games to keep well clear of second-place Brazil on the medals table. There were plenty more chances for the U.S. to add to that total later Wednesday.
In the women's all-around, Caquatto follows some good company by winning gold. Olympic gold medalist Shannon Miller won the title in 1995, as did fellow world champions Chellsie Memmel (2003) and Shawn Johnson (2007).
“I'm very happy to keep the U.S. rolling with all their medals,” said Caquatto, who also helped the U.S. win the team gold and has a chance to claim a third in Thursday's bars final — her best event.
“I'm hoping to just hit the same routine I did the past two times and hopefully it'll be a good result,” Caquatto said.
Mackenzie Caquatto, Bridgette's older sister and a talented member of the U.S. team that won a silver medal at last year's world gymnastics championships, was following from afar. She had a message for her younger sibling after the final scores were posted Wednesday in Guadalajara.
“YAYAYYYY! SO PROUD OF my seeesterr!!! PAN AMERICAN ALL AROUND CHAMP! you are amazingg girl :) loveyou,” Mackenzie Caquatto wrote on Twitter.
Mackenzie, who attends the University of Florida, did not qualify for USA Team due to a foot injury. Bridgette, a member of the Legacy Elite Gymnastics LLC, is expected to join her sister at Florida next year.
Whether or not Caquatto can win a third gold on the uneven bars, she is expecting a little bit of down time once the Pan American Games are over. But down time does not include too much rest.
“I'm going to go back and heal up and hopefully get some more difficulty in all my routines, more consistency, and keep training,” said Caquatto, who is dreaming of someday making the Olympic team but knows it won't be easy.
“I would love to be able to go to the Olympic trials and experience all that and I just want to be able to hit my best routine and come out of there with no regrets and just say I did everything I could possibly do.”
Kibwe Johnson did what he could to set a Pan American Games record in the men's hammer throw, and it worked.
Johnson, who won the first gold for the United States in track and field at this year's games, tossed the hammer 79.63 meters. The previous record of 79.61 meters was set by another American, Lance Deal, in Winnipeg in 1999.
Women's All-Around results
1. Bridgette Caquatto, USA — 55.875
2. Ana Sofia Gomez, Guatemala — 55.425
3. Kristina Vaculik, Canada — 54.775
4. Christine Lee, Canada — 54.575
5. Elsa Garcia, Mexico — 54.425
6. Brandie Jay, USA — 54.350
7. Daniele Hypolito, Brazil — 54.175
8. Catalina Escobar, Colombia — 52.950
U.S. individual scores:
Vault
Brandie Jay — 14.825
Bridgette Caquatto — 14.075
Uneven Bars
Bridgette Caquatto — 14.725
Brandie Jay — 13.975
Balance Beam
Bridgette Caquatto — 13.675
Brandie Jay — 12.850
Floor Exercise
Bridgette Caquatto — 13.400
Brandie Jay — 12.700