Hillary Heron
Heron at the 2019 Junior World Championships
Personal information
Full nameHillary Alexandra Heron Soto
Nickname(s)Hilly
Country represented Panama
Born (2004-01-29) 29 January 2004 (age 20)
Panama City, Panama
Years on national team2017–present (PAN)
ClubNo Limits
Head coach(es)Andres Llanos Gerardino
Eponymous skillsHeron (F): (Floor exercise) Double salto backward tucked with 1½ twist
Medal record
Representing  Panama
Pan American Championships
Silver medal – second place 2021 Rio de Janeiro Vault
South American Games
Silver medal – second place 2022 Asunción Vault
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Asunción Floor exercise
South American Championships
Gold medal – first place 2023 Cali Vault
Silver medal – second place 2023 Cali Uneven Bars
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Cali All-around
Central American and Caribbean Games
Silver medal – second place 2023 San Salvador Team
Bronze medal – third place 2023 San Salvador All-around
Bronze medal – third place 2023 San Salvador Floor exercise
Bolivarian Games
Silver medal – second place 2022 Valledupar Floor exercise
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Valledupar Team
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Valledupar All-around
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Valledupar Vault
FIG World Cup Series
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Apparatus World Cup 0 0 1
Total 0 0 1

Hillary Alexandra Heron Soto (born 29 January 2004) is a Panamanian artistic gymnast. She is the 2021 Pan American silver medalist on vault.

Early life

Heron was born in Panama in 2004 to Ricardo Herron and Yaroslavi Soto.[1] She is the granddaughter of the late New York Yankees scout Karl Heron. The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing inspired her love for the sport of gymnastics.[2]

Junior gymnastics career

2017–18

Heron made her international debut at the 2017 South American Junior Championships. She finished eighth in the all-around, seventh on vault, and eighth on floor exercise.[3]

Heron started the 2018 season competing at the Pacific Rim Championships where she finished sixteenth in the all-around and fourth on vault.[4] She next competed at the Junior Pan American Championships, where she helped Panama finish seventh as team; Heron finished eleventh in the all-around and fourth on vault.[5] Additionally, she finished seventh floor exercise.[6]

In October Heron competed at the Junior South American Championships where she placed fourth in the all-around. During event finals she placed second on vault and balance beam, fourth on uneven bars, and fifth on floor exercise.[7]

2019

Heron was selected to compete at the inaugural Junior World Championships alongside Karla Navas. Together they finished twenty-third as a team. Individually, Heron finished 44th in the all-around.[8] Heron ended the season competing at the Junior South American Championships. She placed fourth in the all-around and helped Panama place third as a team. During event finals she placed first on vault, third on uneven bars, fourth on balance beam, and eighth on floor exercise.[9]

Floor Exercise
Uneven Bars
Balance Beam
Floor Exercise
Heron at the 2019 Junior World Championships

Senior gymnastics career

2020–21

Heron became age-eligible for senior competition in 2020; however most competitions were canceled or postponed in 2020 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore Heron did not compete that year. She returned to competition at the 2021 Pan American Championships where she helped Panama place fourth as a team and individually she placed twelfth in the all-around. During event finals she placed second on vault behind Natalia Escalera.[10][11]

2022

Heron competed at the Bolivarian Games where she helped Panama finish third as a team. Individually she finished third in the all-around and on vault but won silver on floor exercise. She next competed at the Pan American Championships where she helped Panama finish tenth as a team during qualifications. Individually she placed twenty-ninth in the all-around.[12] At the South American Games Heron won silver on vault and bronze on floor exercise.

2023

Heron competed at the Cairo World Cup where she won bronze on vault behind Joscelyn Roberson and Asia D'Amato. Additionally she placed fifth on floor exercise. Mistakes at the Pan American Championships prevented her from receiving an all-around qualification spot to the World Championships but was still able to perform on every event due to qualifying through the World Cup series. She finished 41st in the all-around, qualifying for the 2024 Summer Olympics as an individual.[13][14] On floor, she performed a double layout half out, also known as the Biles, becoming the first gymnast other than Simone Biles to perform one of Biles' named skills at a World Championships.[15]

2024

Heron began her season at the Cairo World Cup. During the qualification round she performed a new element in her floor exercise, a double back tucked salto with one and a half twists, which was named after her.[16] During the floor exercise final she finished sixth.

Eponymous skill

Heron has one eponymous skill, a double back tucked salto on floor with 1.5 twists.[16]

Apparatus Name Description Difficulty[a] Added to the Code of Points
Floor exercise Heron Double salto backward tucked with 1½ twist (540) F 2024 Cairo World Cup
  1. ^ Valid for the 2022-2024 Code of Points

Competitive history

Year Event Team AA VT UB BB FX
Junior
2017 South American Championships 8 7 8
2018 Pacific Rim Championships 16 4
Pan American Championships 7 11 4
South American Championships 4 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 4 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5
Top Gym 14
2019
Junior World Championships 23 44
South American Championships 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 4 1st place, gold medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 4 8
Senior
2021
Pan American Championships 4 12 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
2022 Bolivarian Games 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
Pan American Championships 10 29
South American Games 5 12 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)
2023 Cairo World Cup 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 5
Pan American Championships 7 9 25 16 10
Central American & Caribbean Games 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 5 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)
South American Championships 4 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 4
World Championships 41
Pan American Games 7 10 6
2024 Cairo World Cup 6

References

  1. ^ "Una niña prodigio de la gimnasia en Panamá" [A child prodigy of gymnastics in Panama]. Panamá América (in Spanish). 11 April 2013.
  2. ^ "Hillary Heron, entre la gimnasia y la tradición beisbolera familiar" [Hillary Heron, between gymnastics and the family baseball tradition]. ABC Color (in Spanish). 23 June 2022.
  3. ^ "2017 South American Junior Championships Results". The Gymternet. 23 September 2017.
  4. ^ "U.S. women, McCallum, Bowers take gold at Pac Rim Championships". USA Gymnastics. 28 April 2018.
  5. ^ "2018 Junior Pan American Championships Results (AA)" (PDF).
  6. ^ "2018 Junior Pan American Championships Results (EF)" (PDF).
  7. ^ "2018 South American Junior Championships Results". The Gymternet. 22 October 2018.
  8. ^ "2019 Junior World Championships Results". The Gymternet. 2 July 2019.
  9. ^ "2019 South American Junior Championships Results". The Gymternet. 21 October 2019.
  10. ^ "2021 Pan American Championships Results". The Gymternet. 8 June 2021.
  11. ^ "REBECA CONQUISTA VAGA PARA OS JOGOS OLÍMPICOS DE TÓQUIO". Brazilian Gymnastics Federation (CBG) (in Portuguese). 6 June 2021.
  12. ^ "U.S. senior men win team title, women capture silver as Pan American Championships end". USA Gymnastics. 17 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Hillary Heron clasificó a los Juegos Olímpicos de París 2024". Eco TV Panama (in Spanish). 2 October 2023.
  14. ^ "Rendez-vous Paris 2024: See who qualified to the women's team competition!". International Gymnastics Federation (FIG). 3 October 2023.
  15. ^ "This Panamanian Gymnast Managed to Do Something Only Simone BiIes Has Ever Done". Remezcla. 2 October 2023.
  16. ^ a b "Hillary Heron hace un doble mortal con giro y medio; su nombre queda escrito en la historia de la gimnasia artística" [Hillary Heron does a double somersault with a twist and a half; Her name is written in the history of artistic gymnastics]. La Prensa (in Spanish). 16 February 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2024.

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