Nine Elite Boys from Baskervilles Gymnastics Club travelled to Pegasus Gymnastics Club in Maidstone last weekend for their annual Gymnova Pegasus Open Competition. The gymnasts, aged between 8 and 13, competed on six pieces – pommel horse, vault, rings, high bar, parallel bars and floor – on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th June, with some great successes. Leading the way was 10-year-old Theo Todd-Jones, who won silver medal overall in his category, taking gold on pommel horse, rings and vault.
Baskervilles’ boys competed against elite gymnasts from all around the UK, and were judged by Pegasus Gymnastics Club’s own Elite Gymnasts Courtney Tulloch and James Hall, both of whom will be competing in Great Britain’s Gymnastic Squad at the Rio Olympics this Augusts. With accolades such as Courtney Tulloch’s recent 4th place on rings at the 2016 European Championships, the judges provided inspiration for the boys.
The youngest boys from Baskervilles competed in the 2004/5 age group. For 8-year-olds Charlie Pecchia and Jacob McLean, this was their first experience taking part in a six-piece gymnastic competition. Both boys had solid performances, with Charlie coming 12th overall, and Jacob in 16th place. Charlie came 7th on pommel horse, whilst Jacob placed 13th on both pommel horse and vault.
10-year-olds Theo Todd-Jones and Jacob Watts competed in the 2003 age group. Jacob Watts took 16th place overall, with a score of 11.300 placing him 6th on vault. But it was Theo Todd-Jones who had the strongest showing of the competition for Baskervilles, with an overall 2nd place, and gold medals on the pommel horse, rings, and vault, his highest score of 12.600 coming from his rings performance.
In the Under 10 years category, 8-year-olds Edward Gould and Toby Hales, and 9-year-old James Smith competed in a category of 58 gymnasts. Toby Hales placed 50th, James Smith came 37th, and in 35th place was Edward Gould.
In the Under 12 Competition, 11-year-old Oliver Snook won bronze medals on pommel horse and vault, with a brilliant score of 12.150 on vault – which contributed to his overall 5th place, out of 25 gymnasts.
The eldest of Baskervilles’ gymnasts to compete, 13-year-old Henry Brooker, took part in the Under 14 Competition. Henry came in 7th place overall, winning 5th positions on both pommel horse and vault.
Our Elite Boys are now looking towards the Baskervilles Cup, our at-home six-piece boys’ competition, which is being held on Sunday 10th July.
The Coaches and Gymnasts of Baskervilles Gymnastics Club took up the challenge to go upside down for International Handstand Day on Saturday 25th June. The initiative, which was promoted by British Gymnastics and BBC Get Inspired, saw gymnasts from around the world attempting their most creative handstands, and using the hashtag #HandstandDay to showcase their efforts on social media.
Celebrations at Baskervilles kicked off in the week leading up to the big day, with gymnasts from different groups, including Adult Gymnastics and FreeG (Freestyle Gymnastics), demonstrating their best handstands. And it wasn’t just gymnasts at Baskervilles’ hub centre at Englishcombe Court who got involved – gymnastic classes at Baskervilles’ Satellite Centres at Bath Sports Centre, Broadlands Academy and Monkton Prep School also joined in the fun.
Throughout the week, some of Baskervilles’ Elite Gymnasts joined their coaches in an attempt to hold a handstand for as long as possible, with coach Paul Baskerville eventually closely pipping elite gymnast Keira Williams to the post, holding a handstand for an incredible 1 minute and 36 seconds.
Celebrations peaked on Friday evening, when the whole gym paused to handstand together. Over 70 gymnasts from General Classes, Elite Gymnasts and Coaches kicked to handstand on floor, beam, vault, pommel horse and even rings.
A compilation video of Baskervilles’ celebrations has already garnered over 1,300 views on their Facebook page, and has received recognition from both British Gymnastics and BBC Get Inspired.
‘Our International Handstand Day celebrations have been fantastic fun, and it’s been great to see the creative variations of handstand our coaches and gymnasts have come up with’, Baskervilles spokesperson Emily McKay commented, ‘we will definitely be handstanding again for next year’s International Handstand Day, and aim for someone to hold a handstand for two minutes – watch this space!’