Cary, NC – Jump Rope is no longer just a playground past-time. If you have had the opportunity to witness the Cary Family YMCA’s Super Skippers you were probably amazed by kids that did push-ups while jumping rope, or back handsprings in double dutch routines.

This awesome group of athletes had the opportunity to participate in New York City’s annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. They were part of Team USA.

A total of 26 jump rope athletes from the Triangle were selected to participate: 23  from Cary YMCA Superskippers, two from Tri-Force jump of Cary; and one from Skipsations! of Chapel Hill.

These athletes qualified to be a part of the parade team at the 2009 USAJR (USA Jump Rope) National competition in Galveston, TX. They joined 125 other jump rope athletes from more than 20 other jump rope teams across the country to perform in the parade. The group jumped rope non-stop for the 2-1/2 miles of the Parade route, stopping in front of Macy’s flagship store for a moment before the camera’s.

Check out NBC’s coverage with Matt Lauer:Team USA jump rope Macy’s Parade

The following athletes participated in the Parade event:

Hunter Adams
Hannah Butler
Alivia Canter
Suzanne Cash from Skipsations! of Chapel Hill
Sarah Chen
Alexandra Davis-Isaac
Olivia Enright
Britney Fortier –from Tri-Force Team in Cary
Grace Forster
Kelly Konrad
Madison Lever
John Mangum
Catie and Connor Payne
Tyler Perez
Claire Ridout
Melissa, Jessie, and Laura Robinson
Alexis Schafran
Catherine Shaw
Anna Sun
Amy Tarquini
Daniel Thompson
Lauren Warzecho

Founded in 1994, and currently coached by Gary Anderson, the SuperSkippers are a performance and competition jump rope sports team, dedicated to promoting physical fitness through jump rope as a lifetime sport and fostering confidence, discipline, responsibility and leadership.

Located in Cary, NC, the team competes in regional, national, and international competitions throughout the year.  They have won dozens of national medals in the US Amateur Jump Rope and AAU Nationals, and took home 6 medals and the overall gold in the 2006 Worlds competition.

The Team trains 3 days/week, increasing to 5 days/week when preparing for competitions, working to improve speed, endurance, strength and freestyle skills. Their next performance will be this weekend in Cary’s Christmas parade, Saturday December 12th at 2pm.