Marisa hopes Olympic debut inspires others

Participating as the country’s first representative in gymnastics, she exited the women’s individual all-around competition in the qualifying round with a score of 50.832 which resulted in her finishing 42nd out of 48 competitors.

However, Dick insisted she wasn’t deflated by the outcome and vowed to continue her improvement with the intention of helping grow the sport locally as well.

“It feels amazing.

It’s just so surreal that I was here and that I competed at the Olympic Games. Of course it sucks to end your Olympic journey falling on (the) bars but I had to actually stay positive about how the rest of the meet went,” said the teenager after contesting in the balance beam, floor, vault and uneven bars.

Dick remained proud about her stint, revealing that sharing the dream with seasoned athletes was priceless. She was particularly elated on her performance in the vault which gained her best score. “It was just awesome. I stuck one (landing) in the warm-up hall so to go out there and just stick it again felt so good.

There’s nothing more I could have done to make that vault better,” she stated. It was her best showing which garnered a score of 13.900 from the judges.

In reference to the balance beam which she scored 13.066, she discussed the slightly wobbly and nervy performance as one she was “happy” with.

Dick successfully attempted a new signature move “The Dick 2” to mount the beam and expressed delight at nailing it, which the vociferous crowd appreciated during her vault routine. “I was just like, oh my gosh, I landed it. I was just so happy because it was kind of rocky in training and on podium training, I didn’t land it in front of the judges so just to be able to land it (then) was so exciting,” she added, thanking the audience for their support too.

Dick’s other routines included a 12.533 floor performance, also wobbly, and a 11.333 struggle on the uneven bars, which she divulged left her most disappointed of all the components. “I got experience here (in Rio) so I’m happy for that. I was the first (gymnast) for Trinidad and Tobago and I don’t want to be the last. I hope there’s more (gymnasts) to come after me. I also want to represent TT at the next Olympics as well as the next World Championships.

It’s back to the drawing board as I’ve got work to do.

This was a learning experience,” continued Dick. She reiterated that she wanted to distance herself from the negativity surrounding compatriot Thema Williams and thanked her fellow gymnast as well as the nation for their support during the Games.