© Filippo Tomasi

SOFIA, Bulgaria (November 18, 2022) – Four-time individual medalist Ruben Padilla captured his first World title Friday at the T&T World Championships, earning gold in men’s double mini trampoline. Padilla was one of three U.S. athletes who collected individual hardware on the day. Veteran Tristan Van Natta took silver in women’s double mini, while Tomas Minc earned bronze in men’s double mini.

Padilla (Bluffdale, Utah/Wasatch Trampoline & Tumbling) delivered a 30.200 in the medal round to claim men’s double mini gold. Canada’s Gavin Dodd finished second after nosing Minc (Chevy Chase, Md./Dynamite Gymnastics) by a tenth of a point, 29.200-29.100. Padilla was the model of consistency Friday at Sofia’s Arena Armeec, posting a 30.200 in his first pass to secure a spot among the final four athletes with a chance at the title. Minc’s 28.400 was the opening round’s third-highest score.

In the women’s double mini final, Van Natta (Maryville, Ohio/Integrity Athletics) finished a tenth of a point behind New Zealand’s Bronwyn Dibb (24.900), garnering a 24.800 on her second pass. The seven-time World medalist earned a 26.200 on her first pass, advancing to the medal round in fourth. Australia’s Cheyanna Robinson (24.000) rounded out the podium. Shelby Nobuhara (Mapleton, Utah/High Altitude) was fifth with a 25.600.

U.S. gymnasts were also active in the men’s and women’s tumbling finals. On the men’s side, Kaden Brown (Herriman, Utah/Wasatch Trampoline & Tumbling) earned a second pass after scoring a 28.100 in the opening round of the final. He finished fourth with a 27.300. Kaleb Cave (Columbia, Md./Fairland Gymnastics) was seventh with a 21.400. Isabel Steinmetz (Batavia, Ohio/Gymnastics Central) finished seventh in the women’s tumbling final with a 23.900. Australia’s Ethan McGuinness (28.900) pocketed the men’s title, while Great Britain’s Comfort Yeates (24.400) topped the women’s field.

Second-round qualifications for men’s and women’s tumbling and men’s double mini preceded Friday’s finals. Brown qualified to the men’s tumbling final in the top spot with a 29.300. Cave notched a 27.000, and Patrick Lyell (Kenner, La./Elmwood Gymnastics Academy) was 15th with a 24.100. During second-round women’s tumbling qualifications, Steinmetz’s 25.000 was the sixth-highest score. Teammates Miah Bruns (Crete, Ill./World Champions Centre, 23.600) and Tia Taylor (Knoxville, Tenn./Premier Athletics Knoxville, 19.800) were 12th and 14th. Padilla led men’s double mini qualifications with a 30.000. Minc was second with a 28.400. Changa Anderson (Washington, D.C./Silver Stars Gymnastics) posted the session’s third-highest mark of 28.200 but did not advance to the final due to the two-athletes-per-country limit.

Individual trampoline second-round qualifications were also held Friday. Jessica Stevens (Ellicott City, Md./Fairland Gymnastics) is through to the women’s final, qualifying in the seventh position with a 54.260. Sarah Webster (Lafayette, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express) was 15th with a 52.480. Aliaksei Shostak (Youngsville, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express) will be the first reserve for the men’s final. His 57.150 slotted in ninth.

Individual and synchronized trampoline and team all-around champions will be crowned Saturday on the event’s final day. After earning team all-around silver in 2019 and 2021, the U.S. qualified in the top spot with a cumulative 428.430 based on first-round qualification scores earlier in the week. Nicole Ahsinger (Lafayette, La./Trampoline and Tumbling Express), Brown, Bruns, Cody Gesuelli (Huntsville, Ala./Merino Trampoline Gymnastics Academy), Padilla, Zachary Ramacci (St. John, Ind./Element Tumbling and Trampoline), Shostak, Stevens, Van Natta and Webster will compete. Ahsinger and Webster will also take on the women’s synchronized field, while Isaac Rowley (Frisco, Texas/Eagle Gymnastics Academy) and Shostak will vie for the men’s synchro title.