Compulsory grades 4 and 3, Perth, Bell’s Sports Centre 6th March 2010

Three of our gymnasts attempted this year to compete in the elite grades: Jennifer Brankin at level 3 and the two youngsters Sarah McKenzie and Hayley Bell at level 4. These grades put extremely high demands on the girls both psychologically and physically.

Even though Sarah and Hayley started the competition on beam – a nerve wracking piece at the best of times – Hayley managed to complete her routine without a fall and Sarah could limit her falls to 1. Floor was their second piece and both girls did their best, performing their dance with some flair and landing all their tumbles. Next piece was the dreaded Range and Conditioning which requires a high level of flexibility, strength and control in the handstand position. Sarah got through her routine cleanly but unfortunately this time it was Hayley who took one fall – a rather costly one as it turned out later…The fall had left her just below the pass mark for this particular piece. However, on the last two pieces, vault and bars they both did very well, with Hayley receiving the highest vault score of all competitors. In the end they finished in position 8 (Hayley) and 9 (Sarah) with all around scores of above 53 points. Congratulations, girls!

Jennifer took her compulsory grade 3 one year out of age. She looked a bit nervous but collected and mature enough to handle the pressure. Vault was her first piece in the competition and although this is not normally her strongest event she excelled and received a very high score. This set her off to a good start and helped to settle the nerves a little. On bars everything went to plan! – unlike in training the day before where she had fallen twice. This was a big relief. Next up was the beam, a piece Jennifer does very well in training. Would she be able to deliver the same quality under pressure? Well, yes! The routine she performed for the judges was her best ever. A joy to watch. The pressure was off now – only floor and R+C to get through. On floor there was a little mistake in the last tumble but Range +Conditioning was beautifully performed. Jennifer passed the grade and received the gold medal for the overall result and the R+C. An amazing competition for Jennifer!

Good News from DGC 2K