Vivian and Mitchell Narrowly Miss Podium

Western Australian Institute of Sport gymnasts Olivia Vivian and Lauren Mitchell have narrowly missed podium finishes at the FIG World Challenge Cup in Doha.

Vivian contested the final of the Uneven Bars with the 24-year-old scoring 12.725 for her routine at the Aspire Dome to finish fourth, just .050 points behind bronze medallist Laura Schulte of Switzerland (12.775).

The gold medal went to Kristyna Palesova of the Czech Republic with a score of 13.425 while her teammate Jana Sikulova claimed silver with 13.175.

An Olympian at the 2008 Beijing Games, Vivian was making a long-awaited return to international competition after suffering a serious back injury.

“It was not the greatest routine tonight in the finals,” said Vivian.

“But you can only learn from the mistakes and work towards better future performances.”

In the floor final Lauren Mitchell made a strong return to international gymnastics finishing in fourth place.

Competing in her first international meet since the London 2012 Olympic Games, Perth-based Mitchell scored 13.475.

“I went into the competition not really expecting anything and came out making a final and then coming fourth,” Mitchell said.

“What surprised me the most is how hungry I was and how much I wanted to compete again and show what I’ve been working on – I haven’t felt that feeling in a really long time and it was fantastic to get some drive back and fuel the fire in my belly.”

Romania’s Larisa Iordache won the gold medal with a score of 14.425 ahead of teammate Diana Bulimar (14.300) and Canada’s Isabela Onyshko (13.725)

Both Vivian and Mitchell will contest the 2014 Australian Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne (21 May – 1 June) where they will seek to qualify for the Australian Commonwealth Games Team.

-GymnasticsAustralia