Sixteen-year-old Lia-Monica Fontaine captured a silver medal at the artistic gymnastics world championships on Friday in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que., native finished second in the vault event with a score of 14.033 points.
Neutral athlete Angelina Melnikova won the gold medal with 14.466 points. American Joscelyn Roberson earned a bronze with a score of 13.983.
“Coming into these worlds, like I know I’m pretty good on vault, so I was looking forward to doing the final, but I did not know that getting a medal would be possible,” Fontaine said of winning silver at her first world championships.
Fontaine becomes just the second Canadian to win a medal in the women’s vault. Shallon Olsen earned a silver medal in 2018.
Friday’s performance has been a continuation of a breakout season for Fontaine.
In just her first year competing at the senior level, Fontaine collected four individual medals at the 2025 Pan American Championships this past June, including silver in the all-around and vault, gold in floor exercise, and bronze on uneven bars.
Also today, Canada’s Aidan Li, another world-championship rookie, finished eighth in the men’s pommel horse final. Felix Dolci was 16th in the men’s all-around final earlier this week.
The worlds conclude Saturday with five more apparatus finals.
Thirty-year-old Canadian Ellie Black qualified fourth for the women’s beam final in her ninth world-championship appearance.
She took silver in the beam at the 2022 worlds, where she also helped Canada to a team bronze. Black also earned an all-around silver at the 2017 worlds in Montreal.
