WSG news archive 2002
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Leanna & Shannon are British Champions Guildford 9th/10th November 2002 Last weekend Wiltshire School of Gymnastics added more National Titles to their list of achievements for 2002. Leanna Clarke became the British Champion for 9 year olds and Shannon Morse joined her as British Champion for 10 years olds. In the youngest age Leanna walked away with the title winning every piece of apparatus taking the voluntary title and the overall title winning by a clear 5 marks from the nearest opponent. She also led the South West to take the team gold as well. To put the icing on the cake teammate Shannon Morse competed in the afternoon round and also took all of the titles up for grabs rounding off a very successful year for the 9 year old Bromham schoolgirl. Also in this age team mates Jessica Coombs took the silver and Jessa Powell finished in 5th place overall which led to the girls easily winning the Level 3 team title for the South West. Coach Tracey Skirton said 'I was very pleased with the level 3 team to get three in the top six in the Country from one club was excellent'. In the Level 2 11 year olds National Championships Yasmin Dyer took seventh place overall. |
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Alpha Factor Championships - Northern Final - 13th October 2002 The Wiltshire School of Gymnastics was host to the Alpha Factor Championships Northern Final on Sunday 13th October 2002. This is an out of age competition where the top 6 gymnasts qualify to enter into the Grand Final against the top 6 gymnasts from the Southern Finals. The club saw all 10 of their gymnasts who competed qualify into the Grand Finals, which will be held at the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics, Melksham, on Sunday 17th November 2002. In the youngest level 4 competition the clubs Olivia Grout (10yrs) took 1st place. The next age group at level 4 saw Beckie New 1st, Amy Cowley 2nd and Bethany Gibbons 3rd, with team mate Zoe Barnes in 5th. The older age group of level 4 gymnasts was won by the clubs Sophie Upton, with team mate Danelle Powell a close 2nd. The level 3 gymnasts from the club took 2nd (Nicola Pritchard) and 3rd (Rebecca Foreman) places in the 12 years plus category. The gymnasts in level 2 were given places directly into the final due to there being 6 places for the final and 6 gymnasts entered. All gymnasts are now looking forward to competing for top positions in the final next month. |
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Staff Hello's and Goodbye's Welcome to WSG to Rachel Levick who joined us in September as a Senior Club Coach and a welcome again to Paula Tuckfield who has returned from her jaunt around the world and is now with us again part-time while she studies at Bath. A sad farewell to Debbie Turk who has left the gym for personal reasons but will be popping in to see us from time to time. Thanks to her for all her hard work and good luck for the future. We've also said goodbye to Kath Daniels on reception and would like to thank her for all her hard work behind the desk. |
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Four WSG Gymnasts selected for National Under 12's Squad The
Wiltshire School of Gymnastics recently sent 4 girls to the National
Under 12's Squad testing at Liverpool and have just received the excellent
results that all 4 girls have got into the National Squad. Thousands
of gymnasts have been narrowed down to 45 who were tested over the 2
days. The gymnasts who have been selected are: Jessica Coombs Age 9, from Swindon
Shannon
Morse
Age 9, from Bromham, Melksham. The girls will attend the World Class Summer Camp at Lilleshall National Sports Centre from 20th - 24th August |
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WSG Retains the Alpha Factor Cup for 2002 The Wiltshire School of Gymnastics were delighted to regain the title of Team Champions of the Alpha Factor Invitational UK 2002. The competition is a club invitational involving some of the top clubs in Great Britain and also international clubs. In the 8-9 years category Leanna Clarke took 1st place on floor, bars and beam, while team mate Shona Seek took 3rd on bars and 3rd place overall. In the 9-10 years age group Shannon Morse took overall gold with team mates Jessica Coombs in 3rd and Jessa Powell in 4th. Yasmin Dyer had a three mark lead in the 10-11 years category to take the title. In the Under 13's Hannah Wickens took gold which also adds to her excitement of being selected into the Great Britain Under 14s squad. Hannah was also awarded a trophy for the highest score of the day. For the Level 4 Under 11's Amy Cowley was placed 1st, Becky New 2nd, Olivia Grout 5th, Bethany Gibbons 8th, Laura Holmes 10th and Zoe Barnes 14th. In the Level 4 Over 11's overall Wiltshire made a clean sweep with Nicola Pritchard taking gold, Rebecca Foreman silver, Sophie Upton bronze and Rebecca Turner in 6th place. Katherine Turner took silver in the Level 2 Over 13's with Victoria Johnson taking silver and Sara Harper taking bronze in the Senior Over 15's. The
Wiltshire School of Gymnastics took the overall title with 155.5
points, Garstang from Lancashire taking 2nd with 135.05 and OLGA-Kemp
Welch from Poole taking 3rd with a score of 130.2.
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Sam Bayley selected for Olympic Squad 14 year old Samantha Bayley has taken her first steps towards her dream of competing in the 2004 Olympic Games. Sam, from Hilperton, Trowbridge, has been selected for the Great Britain 2004 Olympic Squad. Thirteen girls have been chosen after their performances at this year's British Championships where Sam collected 1 gold and 3 bronze medals. Her first International Duty will be a 2 week training camp to Bulgaria. |
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Shannon Morse represents Great Britain WSG Gymnast Shannon Morse has been selected to represent Great Britain for the first time. Shannon aged 9 has been one of two girls selected to travel to Italy on a European Training Camp. Shannon is the current 9 year old British Champion and will be working with top gymnasts from all over Europe. Shannon will travel with her coach Tracey Skirton for the 10 day camp on the 19th August. |
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WSG Summer Training Camp, 19th - 22nd AUGUST 2002 A
County training camp was held at the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics
on the week of Monday 19th to Thursday 22nd August. The camp was for
County level gymnasts and was attended by Olympic Gymnast Paula Thomas,
along with top coaches from the Rhythmic and Sports Acrobatic sides
of the sport. Over 60 gymnast from the County of Wiltshire attended
the camp which was very successful and ended on the Thursday evening
with a disco for the gymnasts and coaches. A very successful week which
we hope to run again. Below is a report on the week by Debbie Turk,
who organised the camp. Monday. Day 1 started with introductions to all the coaches and a register, then Shane entertained everyone by playing silly team games, this seemed to help breakdown any barriers between the different clubs straight away, judging by all the laughter!! After the games came the warm-up and stretch which was taken by Paula Thomas. In their mixed groups the Gymnasts were then sent to all 9 stations for 25min rotations of Dance, Sports Acrobatics, Rhythmic, Trampoline, Bars, Beam, Tumble, Vault & Double mini. We had 5 rotations in the morning, 1hour for lunch then 4 more rotations in the afternoon. The only hiccup which occurred was on day one when I sent one group to the wrong rotation, things got a little fuddled by the last 2 rotations of the day, ending up with a couple of the groups doing the same rotation twice!! As I had just under 70 gymnasts to organise I didn't think this was too bad!!
Unfortunately due to a minor accident on Vault the Tooth Fairy was needed for one young Gymnast, Luckily it was a milk tooth!! The highlight of the day was a Gymnast from Swindon School doing a Handspring Front unassisted on Vault for the first time!! Everyone stopped to cheer her on!! Tuesday. Day 2 started in the same way with the register, team games and warm-up, then splitting into the 9 groups for the rotations. As all the Gymnasts had already had an Acro' session the day before, we started to see some fairly exciting balances on the floor, everyone would stop & spontaneously applaud what they were seeing!!
The Acro' coaches were all rapidly becoming heroes to the Gymnasts (& coaches!!) The day ended well & hiccup free, I was getting the hang of it all now!! Everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves!!! Wednesday. Paula was back in the Dance studio doing Ballet & getting the Gymnasts to make up small routines to music, Shane was getting the girls to do some fairly good tumbles into the pit & Penny had finally cracked under the strain of all the Trampolining and had the girls tied up!!!! Only in the somersault rig though!!! Every group I took on bars asked the same question "When do we get to do the ribbons & balances?" they of course meant Rhythmic & Sports Acro, Bless!! Both of these disciplines were VERY popular with all the Gymnasts, although I was told on many occasions by the girls that they were loving the whole Camp experience!! Another good day without any hiccups! Thursday. The day kicked off following the same routine as the previous days & continued that way. Lots of work, lots of fun & lots of laughs!! I had noticed as the days had gone by that the atmosphere had gotten better & better. The Gymnasts had got to know each other & the coaches were all a lot more relaxed!! All the clubs were mixing so well together it was hard to distinguish who was from which club!! As this was the aim of the Camp I was feeling rather pleased with myself!! All the girls had achieved something new over the 4 days within Gymnastics and the new disciplines which were on offer, but the nicest thing to see was all the new friendships that were being made!!
The
camp day finished at 4pm daily but the last day was a bit different
as we had a party.
When all the food had been eaten & the last games played it was time to say our goodbyes.( I was given so many hugs & thankyous for organising the camp I had a lump in my throat!! It was hard work but so many people benefited from the experience that it made it all worthwhile!! I would like to say a HUGE thank you to all the coaches but especially to all the Gymnasts that came and had FUN whilst learning!!! Thank you. Debbie Turk. WSG |
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Pre-School enters float in the Melksham Carnival Pre-School entered a float into the Melksham Carnival on August 17th 2002. The float was based on the "Round the World" theme of the extravaganza put on at the gym earlier in the year. It featured a jungle scene at one end, a large globe of the world in the centre and a polar scene at the front all complete with tigers, penguins, cowboys, indians and many other colourful characters portrayed by the children in superb costumes. A lot of effort went into preparing the float and a big THANK YOU to all those who helped with it.
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WSG Trampoline Squad Novice Competition - Wimborne The WSG Trampoline Squad had a very successful day on Sunday 14th July at Spirals Trampoline Novice Competition held at Canford School Sports Centre, Wimborne, Dorset. 2nd
Tilly Powell U9 All competitors produced excellent routines and were a credit to the club. The U13 girls were praised for their willingness to bed-spot at all times. |
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Pegasus Men's Open - July 29th 2002 The Pegasus Men's Open was one of the major competitions of this year and placed only two short weeks before the Boys National Finals. Last year the number of gymnasts numbered 120. This year it attracted a massive 550 gymnasts from all over the UK. Being so close to the Finals there was a choice of Set or Open routines and many of the serious contenders for the Nationals chose to follow their set routines - even though scores could be compromised - to limit the routines that had to be perfected. Five of our Gymnasts were entered: Ewan
Reed The day was started with the two younger boys registering at 8:15 !! The older boys then had a wait until late afternoon before their shift. Each group, having upwards of 60 gymnasts, would take some time to complete! Primary
4 Under
14 Senior Ali Whitehead was placed 4th with 2nd in Vault, 3rd in P-Bar and Pommel, 4th in Floor and Rings. Three well deserved individual medals! |
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Melksham Trophy 2002 The Melksham Trophy competition was the first all boys competition to be held at the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics. The date, only one week from the National Finals in Newcastle, limited the number of clubs who could attend the event. The quality of gymnastics however were not to be compromised with teams from some of the best clubs in the South West. The whole competition was masterminded by Levi who showed his superb organisational skills to put together a truly great event. All aspects were covered from judges scoring notes, coaches notes for routines etc to presentation details. The competition ran like clockwork and the teams of gymnasts fought for the team placings and the individual apparatus honours. The boys from WSG excelled and took home a whole host of medals and certificates. Category
1 Category
2 Amongst
our spectators was Marilena Vladarau (now Pereteanau). Marilena is an
ex world champion gymnast and was the coach to Nadia Comanech. She has
been coaching top national girl gymnasts throughout the UK for the last
few weeks and took the opportunity to visit Levi before flying home.
Levi has coached alongside her and Nadia for many years mentoring members
of the Romanian National Girls Squad as well as his main work with his
National Boys. A very big thank you to all the parents and trustees who helped to put on such an enjoyable event. From the Coffee shop stalwarts who kept the bacon rolls flowing and the coaches fed - to the cleaners, tidiers, and equipment movers to the excellent commentary. All the cakes baked, by parents, for the coffee shop were superb. A special thank you to all the Girl Runners who added elegance to the competition and the displays by KATSU-MI Karate Club, Ed Morrell for his Floor routine and Joel Baxter for his Rings routine. |
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South West Boys take Gold in NDP National Finals Gold medals for Wiltshire School of Gymnastics Boys Joel Baxter and Edward Morrell travelled up to Newcastle to compete in the National NDP Finals held at the Benfield Centre. The Saturday sessions started early with registration at 08:15 and the competition starting at 10:00 for the two boys in the Intermediate 2 section. The Competition was intense with the South West determined to avenge the result from last year when a last minute injury meant that a team medal was missed by under 1 point! The sophistication of the Lilleshall (National Sports Centre) video scoring was missed and all the spectators were kept on their seat edges until the final results were announced. As the result came through, that the South West had won Gold for the team position, the crowd erupted! Not only had the team won but by an unprecedented 33.80 points from the next team!! The two boys from Melksham had triumphed making up 2/5 of the winning South West team. Joel
Baxter
was placed 10th with individual placings of:- Edward
Morrell
put in a solid performance with some excellent scores:- The spokesman from Lilleshall, who distributed the awards, stated that the Intermediate 2 group was the elite group of the whole competition. "The exceptional standard was all we expected and is a sound basis for Men's Gymnastics in the near future". Congratulations to both Joel and Ed and not least to their Romanian High Performance Coach Levi for the advanced skills he has taught the boys in such a short time.
Joel Baxter now faces interim selection for the National Squad at the end of August and again in December |
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South West FIG Championships - June 16th 2002 The Wiltshire School of Gymnastics played host to the South West FIG Championships on the 16th June. Competing clubs were Bristol Hawks, Olga, Fromeside, The Academy and WSG. Six gymnasts from WSG competed and the results were as follows: Under
13 years
Under
15 Years
Over
15 Years
Katherine Miller (WSG) was just pipped into 4th place and Victoria Johnson (WSG) withdrew. |
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The Wiltshire Grades - June 9th 2002 The Wiltshire Gymnastics Association grades competition was held at the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics on the 9th June. Some 150 gymnasts from around the county took part in the competition. The ages of the gymnasts taking part ranged from 6 to over 12 years of age who competed in 23 separate categories. In this competition the gymnasts are not only seeking to score enough points to pass their relevant grade but also fighting for individual honours in each class. The gymnasts from the Wiltshire School of Gymnastics produced some solid performances throughout the days competition, which were rewarded with a fantastic set of results. The gymnasts from the club all passed their respective grades with very good points totals, what is more remarkable is that out of the 51 gymnasts entered all of them passed their grades and 45 of them passed with a distinction mark. In the individual positions the gymnasts from the club won a staggering 13 gold medals, 11 silver medals and 13 bronze medals making this an out standing performance. WSG Results were as follows: ROUND 1. Grade
4, 8 & 9yrs. CONGRATULATIONS TO THEM ALL |
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First Regional Grading Trampoline Competition for WSG WSG gymnasts entered their ever regional trampoline grading competition in Poole on Sunday 9th June. The results were as follows: Max
Hill 4th, Under 11 boys The Under 13 team came 2nd to Littledown by 0.2 CONGRATULATIONS TO THEM ALL |
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British Women' Team Championships - May 18th & 19th 2002 The
weekend of 18th - 19th May saw our club in action again, this time at
the British Women's Team Championships at the Spectrum in Guildford.
This is the competition to find the top club in the country. During the last twelve months three of our older girls who competed last year have retired from gymnastics. So we always knew it was going to be an uphill struggle to retain our position. This was all the more so given the superb opposition from teams like City of Liverpool with Emma Williams and Beth Tweddle, or Park Wrekin with Rebecca Owen, to mention but a few! Girls born in 1991, or earlier, could compete this year which meant Yasmin Dyer competed for the first time alongside Sam Bayley, Sara Harper, Victoria Johnson, Kathrin Miller and Hannah Wickens. Our girls were in the final of 5 rounds alongside the big and the best. They put up a valiant fight but as each round unfolded it was clear we were going to have to be at our very best. The girls worked hard to maintain our standing but it was not to be on this occasion. City of Liverpool took the title, with Park Wrekin in second and Nottingham Gymnastics Club in third. Our girls came in a credible 10th. Although we missed out on a medal this time everyone competed with heart and soul and should be congratulated for a magnificent effort - well done to all of them.
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WSG Gymnasts in South West Triumph Level
3 Team Results
Level
4 Team Results
Individual Results
Congratulations to them all. |
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Sam competes in the European Championships Samantha Bayley represented Great Britain in the European Championships in Patras, Greece on April 18th - 21st. Unfortunately, due to injury, Sam only competed on the floor in the individual but came a very creditable 10th. Congratulations to Sam and Tracy. Sam has also been selected for the World School Games to be held in France in May. Six girls have been chosen along with Wiltshire School of Gymnastics Coach, Tracey Skirton as the Team Coach. |
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Boys do well at the South West Intercounties Competition Wiltshire School of Gymnastics Boys took some of the top honours at the South West Intercounties Competition on Sunday 14th April at Plymouth. All the boys competed at the competition to the highest standard and took more of their fair share of medals in the four age groups. In the Open age group Ali Whitehead took the bronze individual medal and a bronze medal in the team placing. His outstanding floor routine attracted the highest score. In the under 14 Joel Baxter and Edward Morrell took a silver team medal with Joel gaining another silver medal, this time in the individual, and Edward a very commendable 5th place. In the under 12 group Charlie Sherman took a silver team medal in his first large boys competition. In the under 10 group Jordan Baxter, Thomas Gibson and Ewan Reed were placed an excellent 4th place in the team positions. This was an excellent result after only a few weeks of competition training from the new boys' coach Levente Molner Schondorfer. A special mention was made by the organisers of the superb level of achievement that has been made by the boys from Wiltshire - especially from WSG after only a short time with their new coach. Well done to all the boys who competed and a very big Thank you to "Leve" for his outstanding skills that he has passed on to the boys at WSG. |
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South West Regional Level 3 & 4 Compulsaries Sunday 10 March saw the South West Regional Level 3 Compulsorie | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
