Yo Yo Contest: Barrington Champ

The results are in: Zach Gorton of Barrington took first place in the first ever Rhode Island State Yo Yo Contest.

The event was held at Barrington Congregational Church three weeks ago, said Gayle Ulrich, of the Yomega Corporation. Gorton was among 40 competitors who traveled from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and, of course, Rhode Island town to compete. Competitors ranged in age from 7 to 37.

"Spectators watched contestants perform Pick your Trick, Sports 1A, X-Division and Single A contests," Ulrich said. "The day included pizza, raffles, drinks and snacks."

Yo Yo Expert had a full display of yo yos, she said, and plenty of supplies on sale.

"Yomega Corp. brought prototypes for players to test and review and had staff to help introduce products to new players," she said.

Judges for the event included Eric Koloski, a world renowned yo yo master who performed in the 2010 season of "America’s Got Talent"; Nick Gumlaw, owner of Spin Dynamics, and David Almanzar, a yo yo teacher and competitor from A2Z Toy Store in Northhampton, Mass.

Performances were evaluated for technical execution, variation, uniqueness, choreography, presentation and style, Ulrich said.

"Yo Yoing today is not an endless display of Walk the Dog and Rock the Cradle – today’s competitions combine great music, super-fast yo yos and real athleticism," Ulrich said.

Videos are available on YouTube for many of the performances.

If you have an interest in participating in a local yo yo club, contact Christine Gorton at cegorton@gmail.com.