Polarette Caitlyn Venasse had never competed in the B.C. Championships before.

But she remained poised in her debut at the gymnastics competition to win silver in the beam.

Cool as a cucumber even.

"I kind of just did my routine cleanly,” said the 13-year-old, who competed in Novice Level 3.

"I thought it was going to be a lot harder. The other girls went last year, and my coach said that it was going to be a really hard meet and I didn't find it very hard. It was kind of easy, like any other meet.”

She also picked up a sixth place in floor, 11th in vault and 25th in bars, good enough for 10th place overall.

Venasse was one of six gymnasts from the Polarettes and Polar Tumblers Gymnastics Club to compete in the 2011 Canadian Linen & Uniform Service B.C. Gymnastics Championships in Langley, B.C., from April 8-10.

Eight hundred registered to compete in men's, women's and trampoline and tumbling.

This was the third straight year the Polarettes sent gymnasts to the event.

Polarettes head coach Jenn Ryan said Yukon gymnasts achieved their best ever results at the meet.

"This has definitely been our best showing out of the three years,” she said, adding the club sent two athletes the first year and eight in the second.

At the 2011 event, Fayne O'Donovan won a bronze in vault in Tyro Level 3 and Andrew Crist won a bronze on high bar for the Yukon's other two medals.

But the club also nabbed a slew of top 10 results.

Crist, the sole male competitor for the Whitehorse club, won fifth on floor and rings, sixth on pommel horse and parallel bars and seventh in vault for fifth all around.

O'Donovan's other results were a 20th on floor and a 24th on beam for 21st overall.

Lilyanne Gale finished 15th on beam, 20th on vault, 26th on bars and 32nd on beam for 31st overall in Novice Level 3.

Mackenzie Davy, competing in the same age category, finished 15th on beam, 23rd on bars, 29th on vault and 30th on floor for a 23rd place finish.

Corey Baxter competed in the Open Level 5 group, finished fifth on beam, 10th on floor and 11th on vault and bars for 12th overall.

"This year was extremely good because all the kids did well,” Ryan said. "Overall as a club we're definitely doing consistently well. I think we're continuing to move up in our results, which is nice to see as a coach.”

Ryan can notice the experience in each of the gymnasts' performances from one meet to the next.

The B.C. Championships were open to Provincial Level 3 and up.

"So they're high-caliber gymnasts who already have some experience behind them. B.C. Champs is the biggest meet they get to go to,” Ryan said.

The event also posed a different format, with a warm-up gym and 30 seconds warm up before competing, not to mention the trampoline and tumbling disciplines, new to the Yukon gymnasts.

"So it's a totally different style for them,” Ryan said. "Overall it's a fantastic experience for them.

We were really pleased with our results. It was a fabulous way to end off the year.”

For some.

For Crist and Baxter, the Western Canadian Championships in Grande Prairie, Alta., from April 28-30 await, Ryan noted.

"So it was a really good lead up for both Corey and Andrew going into this meet. They both placed top 10 at B.C. Champs so we're looking for a good meet at Westerns.”

The season, which usually runs from January to mid-May, will be prolonged this year because of the Western Canada Summer Games to be held in Kamloops, B.C., from Aug. 5-14.

These Outside opportunities help build a good competitor, Ryan said.

She noticed an extra jump in the step of the athletes after the club attended the Kyle Shewfelt Gymnastics Festival held at the University of Calgary at the end of March.

Ryan was unable to accompany the athletes to Calgary, but said the experience helped while training for the B.C. Championships.

"The kids came back and they were so motivated and so excited, and you could just see the adrenaline in the gym,” Ryan said.

"Every time you get out you notice a big difference with the kids; even if you can bring a coach up you can notice it.”

Venasse attributed her bronze-medal performance on beam in Calgary to helping her in the most recent meet.

"I did a really competition there and then I had a really good competition at B.C. Champs.”