Gymnasts from Highbridge’s Monarchs Acrobatics Club have returned home from Portugal happy after winning a number of medals at the Maia International Acro Cup Gymnastics Competition.
They joined young gymnasts from eight different countries from across the world in competing for the top places on the podium.
Fabulous gold medals were won by the Men’s Four of Sean Mckenna, Conor Mckenna, Jacob Baker and Joseph Blake, who performed three superb routines, achieving excellent scores, while smiling throughout and showing their confidence.
Women’s Pair Emily Shortland and Katie Hoskins also performed very confidently, scoring high scores for their balance routine and, despite a small deduction for their tempo, qualified for the finals on Sunday, where they came sixth overall. The pair have only been training together since January so were very pleased with their results and look forward to the British Acrobatic Competition in Stoke on Trent.
Juniors Women’s Pair Sophie McArdle and Sian Coogan were running seventh after a solid balance routine and also qualified for the finals, where they maintained their position and came seventh overall. This was an excellent achievement as Sian was one of the youngest overall competitors.
Women’s Trio Poppy Broom, Tallulah Harris and Mia Rowlands, a new partnership, were running a fantastic 13th after their Tempo routine and almost qualified for the finals. Competing internationally against high-level gymnasts, they showed the level they can expect to achieve.
Junior Women’s Trio Lauren Jarrett, Crystal Hale and Ellie Cater still managed to compete in one of the hardest categories despite a knee injury to Lauren, which was sustained during training the day before the competition started. Dedication and commitment shone through as they performed their routines, however, they did not quite manage to reach the finals.
The Monarchs thanked the ‘Howards Group’ of garages for sponsoring their team polo shirts at the event, and is always grateful of any sponsorship from local businesses. The event was televised locally and was also broadcast live on the internet.
One of the impressive moves performed by the Monarchs team in Portugal is pictured
