The 2019 Regional Team Finals took place in Birmingham, and saw Alton members representing the South in both the Trampoline and DMT events over the weekend.

On the Trampoline, Elena came 4th in the Disability NDP1 Category 1 group. Unfortunately an extra bounce in her first routine meant that scored zero for it. She later admitted that her legs were ‘like jelly‘ as she got on to compete in front of the few thousand people in attendance, but she showed great composure to not only continue her first routine, but to get back on and performed an excellent second routine which actually received the same score as the girl who won!

Zaki was back again, having represented the region last year. This time around he had qualified in the higher NDP2 category. He improved upon his performance last year and finished in a very respectable 10th place.

On the DMT, Elliot had also qualified for the 2nd year running, and he too had moved up a level to compete in the 13+ NDP2 category. He was competing alongside Liam, who was competing his first season in DMT. Both successfully completed all of their passes, with Elliot finishing in 11th and Liam in 9th.

Jasmine and Molly competed in groups where the scores were very close throughout, where every wobble or misstep made a difference. For Jasmine in the 13+ NDP2 group there were fewer than 4 marks between 1st and 19th place, with Jasmine finishing in 12th. Molly’s NDP1 11-12 years group was even closer, with Molly finishing 17th yet only 1.3 off of a place on the podium!

We’re proud of all of our members, who were fantastic representatives of both the club and region at this event. Sylvia Comber, who was selected as one of the Regional coaches, was thanked for her support over the weekend, with one parent expressing for the gymnasts “what a memorable experience for them all”. There was great support throughout by all of the competitors and the coaches of various clubs, who all helped each other and made for a really positive team environment. When the overall results were announced, Team South finished the event in 9th in Trampoline, 6th in DMT, 5th in Tumbling, and 3rd in the Disabilities categories. Well done to all those who took part!

The full results from the event can be found on the British Gymnastics website, and the Southern Trampoline & DMT Facebook page contains a selection of photos from the event as well.

Well done to our superb Stuart Sharpe, who won Silver medals at both of the 2019 Spring Series events, earning himself a place at the British Championships later in the year!

Stuart, defending his crown after winning the 2018 British Championships in the Mens 15+ Category 1 group, completed all of his routines, coming 2nd in both events in groups of a high standard.  Congratulations to Nicholas Smith of Aspire who came 1st on each occasion, and it looks to be an exciting final when the British Championships come around!

For Stuart, it was great to see him continue his consistency and demonstrating his ability with the GB Squad and coaches around.  Thanks to Sylvia, Hilbre, Dawn and his father Philip for their support at each event.

CONGRATULATIONS TO FRANKIE, as she claimed the Bronze medal at the first Trampoline League of the year.

It was her first experience at a national Trampoline League event, and Frankie showed little nerves as she pulled off four excellent passes.

After her initial two passes she was placed fifth, which meant she qualified for the final.  She then successfully landed her ‘Full’ (full-twisting back somersault) and her ‘Rudi’ (1 and a half twisting front somersault), earning high enough scores to push her up into third position and earning her place on the podium.

The results meant that Frankie earned 40 league points and a great chance of qualifying for the League Finals at the end of the year.  A brilliant result – well done to her!  Thank you as well to ‘Coach Kerry’ and to our friend Lisa Lewis, for supporting Frankie on the day.

The qualifying rounds have now been completed and we are delighted that Stuart Sharpe has qualified through to the 2019 English Championships!

Having won the title last year, Stuart made the ideal start, winning both of the qualifying events to gain his place in the finals to be held in September.

As well as this, Stuart was involved in the Disability Synchro competition, with this season seeing it introduced for the first time ever.  Stuart and his fellow GB Squad member, Aliyah of Activ8 Trampoline Club, came 3rd.  Once again, seeing the development within the whole disability categories is impressive, and the attitude and support shown by the coaches and competitors for one another is wonderful to see.

Full results can be found on the British Gymnastics website.

We would like to extend a huge THANK YOU to one of our long-standing coaches, Lisa Tope, who has decided to take a break from her regular coaching duties.

Lisa has been part of the club for many years, completing qualifications and giving us a huge number of hours for the benefit of our members. She is now stepping down to spend more time with her family and we would like to thank her and her family for her help over the years and wish her all the very best for the future.

Lisa said “thank you for my lovely send off and very generous gifts; I feel very spoilt. I will miss you all and sorry if I didn’t get round to saying Goodbye. I will miss being part of the ATC family, it has been such a huge part of my life for many years, but equally I’m looking forward to spending more time with my own family. Good Luck to you all as the club moves forward.”

Congratulations to Scott and Eloise, who recently passed their Level 1 Coaching assessements and become the latest coaches to join our team.

Both Scott and Eloise have been members of the club for many years and were keen to undertake the course as soon as they became old enough.

Both remain active members and continue to train too. We are delighted for them and will continue to support them, both as competitors and to help them develop into the fantastic coaches they are fast becoming!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ELLIOT, LIAM, JASMINE, MOLLY, ELENA AND ZAKI! All of whom have been invited to represent the Southern Region following their successful performances at the Regional Team Qualifier!

Elliot, Liam, Jasmine and Molly all achieved the qualifying score and a top 2 position in their DMT groups, while Elena and Zaki achieved the same on the Trampoline.

Having had 9 members reach the qualifier across the two disciplines, their were strong performances throughout the day. In Trampolining, Elena won her group in the TPD Regional 1 Category 1 group, while in the NDP 1 11-12 years Alex came 8th out of the boys and Molly 20th out of the girls. Elliot and Liam earned podium places in the 13+ boys, coming 2nd and 3rd respectively, although neither managed to hit the qualifying score, coming within 0.5 of it.

Zaki came 2nd in the NDP2 group to reach the regional squad for the 2nd year running. The NDP3 group saw Jasmine come 20th, the NDP4 group saw Scarlett produce an excellent compulsory routine but an error in her 2nd routine meant she finished in 24th. Finally, Hattie produced two excellent routines to finish 8th in a highly competitive NDP5 group.

While the groups were smaller in the DMT competitions, the target was still to hit those qualifying scores and a top 2 finish, and every single member did their best by successfully landing their passes. Molly’s 2nd place in the NDP1 group, along with 1st for Liam and 2nd for both Elliot and Jasmine in NDP2 all secured their places in the squad. Alex and Scarlett both narrowly missed out as they both achieved the qualification score, but finished in 3rd and 4th respectively. Hattie unfortunately had to withdraw midway through her competition after aggravating a foot injury.

Well done to all our members and to everyone who competed and qualified to join a strong Southern Regional Team, ready for the Regional Team Finals in June.

A fantastic evening celebrating local sport saw our members Mike Wakely, Sylvia Comber and Federica Vazzana all shortlisted for awards at the 2019 East Hampshire Sports Awards.

The prestigious event was hosted by Olympian Roger Black MBE, along with Councillor Julie Butler and former England Cricket Captain Charlotte Edwards CBE. We are thrilled that our three members were all shortlisted for awards for their effort and success.

Mike was shortlisted for the Senior Volunteer Award, Sylvia for Coach of the Year, and Federica for Senior Disability Sportsperson. Roger Black spoke highly of them all, with each of them giving delightful interviews in front of the crowd in attendance. Each of them came away as runners-up in their categories.

The event showcased the vast array of sporting talent throughout the region, and number of dedicated volunteers and coaches who enable this to happen. We are honoured and humbled that we have been recognised among this talent, and huge congratulations to Mike, Sylvia, and Federica on their achievements! Our Chairperson Vicky Othen congratulated them: “our nominees did amazingly well and are winners in our eyes”.

The full list of nominees and winners can be found on the East Hampshire District Council website

The first set of regional competitions happened and we are delighted that we had 11 gymnasts in Trampoline and 9 in DMT all achieve the required score to reach the Regional Team Qualifiers.

For some it was their first experience at Regional competitions, while others were following up from their achievements last year. Lorna, Alex and Elliot, regional representatives last year, all achieved the scores in both Trampoline and DMT.  Zaki only competed in Trampolining and he easily coped with the step up to NDP2 by coming first and smashing the required score!

Liam and Elena were both competing in the Regional NDP levels for the first time and both did incredibly well.  Liam had previously achieved success in other gymnastic disciplines but was new to Trampoline, and he qualified in DMT, as well as hitting the score in both NDP1 and NDP2 on the Trampoline!  Elena improved upon her performances in the Schools competitions to complete her routines and come first, qualifying in the Regional 1 Category 1 section. While Reuben didn’t achieve the qualifying score in his first regional competitions, he will no doubt have plenty more opportunities in the future!

Special mention to Frankie, who was our first competitor to ever compete in DMT at Level 6, who narrowly missed out after missing one of her landings.

Congratulations to our other gymnasts: Molly, Scarlett, Hattie, Jasmine and Eloise on the Trampoline, and Jonty, Scarlett, Molly, Hattie and Jasmine in DMT.

There was great support from parents and coaches alike, and well done to our new judges too, who were also involved in their first Regional competitions. Our members couldn’t compete without the time they gave, so a large thanks to them as well!

Congratulations to Federica, who successfully finished 5th in the 2019 National Schools Finals.

Representing Alton College, this was the culmination of a tournament that saw Federica qualify through both the regional and zonal rounds to compete against the other top students from across Great Britain in the Category 1 Girls Novice group. This was a brilliant achievement and Federica can be proud of how well she did throughout the whole tournament. Thank you to Cessie as well, for the support she provided on the day.