David Kikuchi
Canadian artistic gymnast (born 1979)
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David Taro Kikuchi (born 27 December 1979) is a Canadian artistic gymnastics coach and former gymnast. He won a gold medal in the team event at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and participated at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. He also won three medals at the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
| David Kikuchi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | David Taro Kikuchi | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 27 December 1979 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 162 cm (5 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gymnastics career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Men's artistic gymnastics | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented |  Canada (1999-2008) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Gymnastics career
Kikuchi began gymnastics at a young age because both of his parents were coaches. He joined the Canadian national team in 1999.[1]
Kikuchi represented Canada at the 2002 Commonwealth Games with the team that won the silver medal behind England. Individually, he won a silver medal on the parallel bars, behind Philippe Rizzo, and a bronze medal on the horizontal bar, behind Rizzo and Damian Istria.[2] At the 2003 World Championships, he helped Canada qualify a full team for the 2004 Summer Olympics with a ninth-place finish.[3][4] Individually, he advanced into the all-around final and placed 20th.[5]
Kikuchi was selected to represent Canada at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and the team finished 11th in the qualifications.[4] He won his first national all-around title in 2006.[3] He then competed at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and helped Canada win the team competition, and he placed fourth in the pommel horse final.[6] At the 2006 World Championships, he competed on three apparatuses in the team final to help Canada finish sixth.[7] He successfully defended his national all-around title in 2007.[3] He then advanced into the all-around final at the 2007 World Championships and finished 20th.[8]
Kikuchi represented Canada at the 2008 Summer Olympics, where the team placed ninth in the qualifications. They were less than four-tenths of a point away from advancing into the team final.[9] He retired from gymnastics after these Olympics.[3]
Personal life
Kikuchi began coaching gymnastics after his retirement from the sport. He coaches at Alta Gymnastics Club in Halifax and is best known for coaching three-time Olympian Ellie Black.[10][11]
Kikuchi was formerly married to fellow Canadian Olympic gymnast Crystal Gilmore.[12] They have two children and coach together at the Alta Gymnastics Club.[3]
Awards
Kikuchi was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame in 2015.[3]
