24-year-old Alexandra Aristoteli from Brisbane is nervous yet excited as she prepares to represent Australia in the group Rhythmic Gymnastics competition at the Tokyo Olympics this Saturday.
In between training for the competition, Alexandra quickly sat down with The Greek Herald and tells us that she “couldn’t have asked for a better Olympic experience” so far.
“It has been absolutely amazing in the [Olympic] village. Getting to know so many other talented athletes has been so special. The atmosphere here is so wonderful…” Alexandra tells The Greek Herald exclusively.
“I am so excited, I absolutely cannot wait to go out with my team and perform the best we ever have.”
Alexandra started rhythmic gymnastics at the age of seven, after her mum began coaching her in ballet and acrobatics.
Since then, she decided to join the group variation of rhythmic gymnastics, which saw her team up and train with four other exceptional girls for over six years now. They are: Emily Abbot, Alannah Mathews, Felicity White and Himeka Onoda.
It’s this dynamic team which will now perform at the Tokyo Olympics after years of blood, sweat and tears.
“In 2018, my team and I competed at the world championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. This was our first stage of qualifying for the Olympics. From there we earned our Olympic spot by competing and winning at the Oceanic Championships in 2021,” Alexandra says.
Now, their goal is perform a flawless routine this weekend and make everyone who is supporting them proud.
“Our goal is to go out and have the best possible time and compete two perfect routines,” Alexandra concludes.
“It is so exciting to represent the Greek/Cypriot community in Australia. I cannot wait to go out and make everyone proud.”
READ MORE: Greek Australians among the 472 athletes to represent Australia at Tokyo Olympics.
