The gymnasts and acrobats representing Eden Area Gymnastics (EAG) have returned home triumphant after blitzing the field in the NSW Gymnastics’ Country Championships in Orange last weekend.
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The four day event from Thursday October 1 to Sunday October 4 attracted gymnasts and acrobats from regional clubs right across the state, with over 900 participants in total.
First to compete were the acrobats, with pair and trio troupes taking to the floor to do two very different routines; tempo and balance.
Wearing two hats as both competitor and club manager was Zoe Stewart.
“All EAG acrobats placed first, second or third,” Ms Stewart was proud to report. “And the club was placed first overall.”
The result was a podium packed with the black and red tracksuits of the Eden club, with a sea of smiling faces to match.
“First place for level four woman’s trio was Makenzie Baker, Hollie Knowles and myself,” Ms Stewart said.
“Second place was the trio of Coco Houston, Amelie Shannon, Charlotte Purcell. And third was the trio of Ursula Paradine, Lauren Hocking, Samantha Gordon.”
Eden Marine High school student Montana Tinson stepped onto the first place podium with team mates Kirra Turner and Pip Keogh after securing gold in level five woman’s trio, with another gold in level five’s woman’s pair event and bronze for level four gymnasts.
Perhaps the most pressure was on the level five and six gymnasts, who had to compete in four routines; floor, beam, uneven bars and vault. Examined by a line-up of steely judges and cheered by exuberant family and friends, the pressure on the young athletes was palpable.
Emotions ran high as mistakes were made, with some understandable tears among the brave smiles.
Head EAG coach Bennett Moroney, Ms Stewart and many other EAG coaches were on hand for both mental and physical support for the participants, from pre-performance pep talks through to post-performance congratulatory cuddles.
“All of us coaches at EAG are extremely proud of how well our country bumpkin gymnasts and acrobats performed,” Ms Stewart said.
"It was an incredibly successful first comp for over half of our competitors.
“The girls all worked extremely hard to achieve these results, and it most definitely paid off.”
