Rose Cossar (born July 4, 1991), also known as Rosie, is a Canadian rhythmic gymnast, who represented Canada at the 2011 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships, the 2011 Pan American Games and the 2012 Summer Olympics.
| Rose Cossar | |
|---|---|
 Rose Cossar in 2016 | |
| Personal information | |
| Country represented |  Canada |
| Born | July 4, 1991 |
| Discipline | Rhythmic gymnastics |
| Level | Senior |
Medal record | |
Background
editCossar was born in England and raised in Canada, She began her career in gymnastics in 1996, and competed internationally for the first time at the 2001 Happy Cup in Belgium.[1]
Competitive career
editCossar was team leader of the rhythmic gymnastics team,[2] which also included Katrina Cameron, Kelsey Titmarsh, Alexandra Landry, Anastasiya Muntyanu and Anjelika Reznik.[3]
At the World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in September 2011, the team placed 17th,[4] and earned Canada's first-ever Olympic berth in the event.[2] At the Pan American Games in October, the team won silver in the women's rhythmic group 3 ribbons + 2 hoops[3] and the women's rhythmic group all-around,[5] and bronze in the women's rhythmic group 5 balls.
At the 2012 Olympics, the team placed 11th in the women's rhythmic group all-around.
Post-competition
editIn December 2014, Cossar publicly came out as lesbian.[6] She had already been out to her teammates for several years, but had not previously spoken to the media about her sexuality.[6] Since the 2012 Olympics, she has worked with Toronto's The 519 Church Street Community Centre on the creation of Pride House Toronto, a resource house for LGBT athletes being launched for the 2015 Pan American Games, and is a spokesperson for the Canadian Olympic Committee in its new program to combat homophobia in sports.[7]
References
edit- ^ "Gymnast Rose Cossar headed back to England for Olympics". Newmarket Era. 2012-06-27.
- ^ a b Graham Lanktree, "Canada's rhythmic gymnast team heads to Olympics for first time"[permanent dead link]. Metro Ottawa, June 29, 2012.
- ^ a b "MacLennan captures Canadian gold at Pan Am Games". CBC Sports. 2011-10-18.
- ^ "Canada closes in on Olympic rhythmic gymnastics berth". Canadian Press. 2011-09-25.
- ^ "Canadian women add five medals to Pan Am count". National Post, October 16, 2011.
- ^ a b "Rosie Cossar, 2012 Olympic gymnast, on being gay and changing the sports world". Outsports, December 1, 2014.
- ^ "Canadian Olympic Committee unveils LGBT initiatives, partnership with You Can Play". Outsports, December 2, 2014.