Thats Gymnastics!

Some of the best gymnasts from across the kingdom will be vaulting into action this Friday, as they put their hours of weekly training and natural talents to the test in the Intra-Club competition.

Gymfinity, the Gymnastics Academy at the British School of Bahrain (BSB) in Hamala, will be staging its fourth annual challenge in its main sports hall, featuring 94 boys and girls aged five to 12 competing in categories including vault, floor, beams and parallel bars.

Matthew Brant, BSB’s head of Year 2 and director of Gymfinity, said: “This competition is designed to enable all gymnasts to compete in an atmosphere which will celebrate them no matter their level, from recreational gymnasts who have just begun, to gymnasts who have been with us for many years and the squad gymnasts as well.

“Our gymnasts come from a range of schools across Bahrain. We have gymnasts from BSB, St Christopher’s School, Nadeen School, Bahrain School, IKNS and Multinational School, just to name a few. “This is a different style of competition from the InterClub competitions we have attended this year such as the Manama Cup at CHAOSS, Oryx Invitational in Doha and Inter-Gulf in Dubai.

“ The agile and acrobatic kids will be grouped based on their age and ability. All female gymnasts will compete in the floor, vault, beam and bars, while the male gymnasts will participate in the floor, vault, parallel bars and high bars.

Matthew added that there will be first, second and third place for each apparatus and a trophy for the overall winner of each round. In addition, each round will include two special trophies to be awarded to those gymnasts who their coaches feel are the ‘most improved’ in their category and the ‘most dedicated’.

These trophies are based on a gymnast’s performance over the entire year. Members of Gymfinity are no strangers to success as they recently returned home after participating in a series of competitions in Dubai with 18 medals and three top trophies in hand.

The academy’s 11-strong squad, featuring nine girls and two boys aged seven to 12, had challenged other teams from across the Middle East for glory and Matthew couldn’t be prouder of their accomplishment.

He said: “We are understandably proud of our squads and those gymnasts who have competed internationally this year. This was our first year as part of the Middle East Gymnastics Association (MEGA) and to have attended three competitions - and medalling in all three - is beyond my wildest expectations. That being said, they trained hard and thoroughly deserve their success.”

When competing in MEGA competitions, gymnasts must be able to perform the key skills of a level to a certain standard and their moves must be clean and tidy. If gymnasts achieve a high enough score at the InterGulf competitions, then they must progress on to the next level for future competitions.

They are based on the US Gymnastics Junior Olympics Levels. Competitive gymnasts begin at Level 1 and potentially can progress up to Level 10. Matthew added: “They rose to the occasion and demands of it, remaining positive and supportive of their team mates throughout.

Let’s hope we can keep this up next year and take an even larger team to international competition. “However, Gymfinity is not only its squad as we have recreational gymnasts who attend training week-after-week because they simply love this sport. In our club we strive to create an atmosphere where all gymnasts, no matter their age, ability, background or past experiences, can enjoy and improve.

“Our coaches watch them grow in confidence, developing skills and creating memories which will last them a lifetime. Those children who medalled in Dubai have strong competition from our other gymnasts.

No matter how hard they train there is always an element of uncertainty on the day. I wouldn’t like to predict any exact outcomes. Good luck to everyone in our ntra-club competition, we are proud of you all!” BSB Year 7 student, Charlotte Rodney, who earned the title of overall inner in level 2 11+ years category in Dubai after coming first on the Vault and third on the floor, is looking forward to Fridays tournament.

Charlotte, who has been a gymnast for more than four years, said: After coming back from the competition in Dubai and from previously being at the CHAOSS competition,  I feel much more confident. I used to get very nervous before these competitions but now it feels like more of a friendly meet.  feel fairly confident that I will win medals again but the competition is getting harder. y favourite element is the Vault - that is definitely my thing.  like gymnastics because there is ust something about it that makes you feel free and that is a great feeling for me.

Charlotte has been practicing twice-a-week for two hours at the infants sports hall in BSB and she now coaches fellow students for an hour before each of the sessions. She is now even helping newcomers improve their skills.

Matthew explained “Charlotte is a strong, dedicated gymnast. starting as a recreational gymnast, she joined our squad when we first began developing it in January . She has gone from strength-to-strength as our squads have developed and consistently progressed. “Through her own sessions our coaches noticed she had an interest in supporting her peers in the squad. Along with fellow squad gymnast, Cathleen Holland, Charlotte attended internal coaching training sessions and now holds the position of assistant coach at a number of recreational sessions.

Matthew also has high hopes for other members of the squad including Laura Kenna, Laya Barghuthi, Elle Harris and Hugo Braier. Lauren, nine, picked up the title of overall inner in the level 3 sixth annual challenge Cup event in her age category after being placed first on Vault and second in floor and Beam in Dubai. Jan-Harm Van Zyl, eight, earned first place on the High Bar and third on Parallel Bars in the level 4 round of the sixth Boys Challenge up. Hugo, 10, was the runaway winner of the competition, placing second on the vault and high bar and first on the Floor and Parallel bars, taking the overall champion accolade in his section.

Matthew added: “While all our gymnasts have trained and progressed, there are a few from the squad who have medalled very well this year.  will be very interested to see what they can all achieve net year if they maintain their dedication to gymnastics.

The Intra-Club event will run from 9am to 4pm. For details, email gymnastics thebsbh.com, or visit www. britishschoolbahrain.com or contact 17610920.