Like many other students, juniors Nicole and Michelle Jewett are dedicated to their sport. Like other students, they have to balance their schoolwork with sports practice. However, unlike other students, the Jewetts practice jump roping – an unconventional sport – at a highly competitive level.
Unlike other students, the twins practice this sport three times a week for three hours a day, and make an hour commute to get to their practice facility, all in preparation to compete at the World Championships, sponsored by the International Rope Skipping Federation, held this July and August in Florida.
The twins earned the chance to compete at the world level by qualifying at the U.S. Trials Qualifying Tournament in Brighton, Michigan on Feb. 17 and 18. The pair competed and became eligible in the categories of single rope pairs freestyle, four person single rope freestyle and double-dutch singles freestyle events.
The upcoming months for the Jewetts will be filled with rigorous training to sharpen their skills before the competition.
“We attend all of our practices and we practice a list of tricks that have a maximum difficulty,” Nicole Jewett said. “We take the tricks that we have in our routine and try and make them more difficult and faster.”
Their fellow athletes and instructors recognize their hard work and dedication, and see their opportunity to compete at the world tournament as a testament to that dedication.
“Michelle and Nicole are the definition of commitment,” the Jewett’s coach, Molly Metz, said. “They have immaculate attendance to practice, they give 110% during all of our speed and power workouts and are diligently working to better themselves in the gym.”
Because the Jewetts are twins, their presentation in performances is enhanced.
“It gives us an advantage, being twins, because we have the same style and so, presentation-wise, it’s like the same person is doing the exact same thing but in two different places,” Michelle Jewett said. “That gets us a lot of points and it definitely gives us an advantage over other people who jump differently.”
The Jewetts started jumping rope at a young age when they joined their elementary jump rope team, the Highland Hoppers. Since then, they have continued to jump and improve on club teams, because of the many positives the sport provides.
The sisters say they appreciate the sport’s health benefits, such as muscle building and increasing cardio-vascular health. They also love its unique aspects, as it distinguishes itself from other sporting competitions by using a rope rather than a ball and involves elements of other sports, such as gymnastics.
“It is a very intense activity,” physical education teacher Katie Abner said. “It’s a great exercise for athletes and for agility with footwork.”
The value in jump rope is that the sport’s rules are malleable, and participants are continually trying to perform new tricks to impress judges.
“It is always evolving,” Nicole Jewett said. “There is always a new way to manipulate the rope or jump faster or a new event to compete in.”
In addition to competing, the two have performed at various half time shows for the Denver Nuggets and Metro State College basketball games, as well as for the Colorado Mammoth lacrosse team. They have also performed at the Bolder Boulder and at various schools.
“I really like performing, especially in front of little kids because they scream and cheer us on a lot, especially when we flip,” Michelle Jewett said.
The girls are excited to continue their love of jump roping at the world championships.
The world championships will involve jump ropers from 25 different countries. The girls will compete with athletes from various different cultures. This will be a rare opportunity to learn about these cultures, as each one has its own style of jump roping.
“Even though we won’t be able to communicate in the same language, we will be able to communicate through jump roping,” Michelle Jewett said.
The sisters say the age range for jump roping can be far-reaching, so they will be able to jump for many more years if they so choose.
“Our coach is 36 and she is still jumping and competing,” Nicole Jewett said.
“She is so positive and encouraging,” Michelle Jewett added. “She is also able to do everything along with us, so she’s not just a coach telling you to improve, she is improving along with us.”
The Jewetts plan to continuing practicing hard and will use upcoming performances to prepare for the World Championships.