Gymnastics squad is awarded second place at IAPS National Gymnastics Championships
Despite the dark, damp and dreary morning the squad was in fantastic spirits and excited for the day ahead. After a short pit stop, the team arrived at Kent College and began warming up for the under 11 competition.
The under 11s were a little nervous but once they got onto the vault to practise they started to smile and enjoy the atmosphere. Many of the girls opted to perform the handspring vault which is the hardest vault to be scored in the competition. All of the girls landed their vaults and produced some of the highest vaulting scores of the day.
The squad moved over to the floor to perform their routines feeling confident and pleased with their vaults. Wow the girls really impressed! They demonstrated excellent control, precision and made sure that the judges had the time to award them the highest possible marks. Each girl was on ’point’. The judges praised the girls for their gymnastic ability, presentation and said that they were the best group of gymnasts that they had seen so far! Everyone was delighted and quite a bit of screaming followed!
After several impromptu photo shoots, a lazy lunch and a few naps, the under 9s were ready to get started. For many of the girls it was their first time competing, they were ready and thrived on the atmosphere. They smiled throughout their routines and tried incredibly hard to impress the judges. All of the girls worked through their routines with confidence and control. Again the judges were very complementary of the girls and praised them for their efforts. The team then moved over to the vault – the event which many of the girls prefer. This proved to be the strongest section with all of the girls scoring higher in the vault than in their floor routines. All of the team secured their landings and produced some excellent shapes over the apparatus. Once they had performed, the girls could all relax and look forward to the presentation.
The atmosphere was electric as the anticipation built. The under 11s were absolutely delighted to be awarded joint 6th place individually for Amelie and Isla, with Sophie gaining second place in the individual competition. This put the squad in a great position for the team event and the girls’ nails were getting shorter and shorter as the results were read out in reverse order.
Fairfield Prep were read out in second place – wow what an amazing achievement! And to top the results off our under 9s finished in 9th place overall, again a super achievement!
The girls were an absolute delight; fabulous company, encouraging to each other and making new friends. I could not have been prouder of them. I am so excited to see were this squad will go next!
RESULTS
Team Under 11 – 2nd Place
Under 11 Individual – Sophie 2nd Place, Amelie & Isla 6th Place
Team Under 9 – 9th Place
"Thank you so much to all of the parental support throughout the term and on Saturday, there have been a lot of early starts! Thank you to Mrs Sutcliffe who helped to nurse, feed the girls and drive the minibus. And lastly but not least to Mr Payne who has been fabulous in his assistance with coaching the squad and helping to get them ready for this competition."